WILMINGTON, MA — The Wilmington Elderly Services Commission is ready to start the conversation — it’s time to build a new senior center in town.
“[A new senior center] is needed. It is our turn. It is our time,” Wilmington Elderly Services Director Terri Marciello told the Commission and approximately 30 seniors in the audience at a meeting last week.
The town’s new Facilities Master Plan finds that the Buzzell Senior Center — a former school house built in 1935 — is undersized for the population it serves at just 8,308 gross square feet.
According to a recent population study of Wilmington conducted by the UMass Donahue Center, Wilmington’s senior population is expected to increase from 3,584 in 2015 to 6,058 in 2030, a 69% increase. As a result, the town’s Facilities Master Plan recommends the next senior center needs to (conservatively) be around 14,000 gross square feet.
Marciello encouraged seniors to attend the next Facility Master Plan Committee Meeting on Monday, September 30, 2019, tentatively scheduled for 7pm at the Wildwood Early Childhood Center.
“We have to speak up. Your Selectmen are ready to listen,” Marciello told the crowd. “You’ve made Wilmington what it is today. A strong, helping community. You’ve done a lot for this community. You just need to do a little more to be heard so Wilmington gets the senior center you deserve.”
The Elderly Services Commissioners echoed Marciello’s sentiments.
“We can’t be afraid of the Selectmen,” said Commission Chair John Wallace. “The more we ask them, the more they’re going to realize they have to do something. But we have to speak up. You’ve waited a long time for [a new center].”
“I really think we’ve outgrown this building,” added Commissioner Robin Theodos. “This building no longer accommodates our needs. We really do need a new senior center.”
The discussion was sparked by an impassioned plea from resident Audrey Reed, an active member of the Senior Center.
“The Senior Center is running out of space,” began Reed. “More and more elders are coming to the Center. Some programs are having to be cancelled to make space for new programs. Our painting classes and Memory Cafe are now held in the Fourth of July Building.”
“Terri was just honored as an unsung heroine for going above and beyond for helping seniors…,” continued Reed. “Don’t you think she deserves a larger, nicer, more functional office? She currently shares a 10 x 12 room with Laura, the Case Manager. Both are supposed to be able to have confidential talks with people, but where? And we all know about the big parking problem at the Center.”
Reed noted that the need for a new senior center is acknowledged in the town’s new Facilities Master Plan. Reed argued the plan’s other two top priorities — a new Town Hall and a new Wildwood Early Childhood Center — don’t suffer from the same serious space issues that the Center does. She acknowledged a new center will raise taxes, but stresses the other two projects will as well, and argues the center should take priority.
“We are the largest growing group in our town. We have outgrown the senior center. It’s our time. Let’s start the conversation,” concluded Reed.
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