Senior Center on the move
By Molly Montag / Journal staff writer | Posted: Thursday, March 27, 2008
SIOUX CITY - This Spring, seniors living in Siouxland will have a one-stop shop for recreation, information and assistance in Sioux City.
The Siouxland Senior Center will be relocating from its Pierce Street headquarters to a newly-renovated facility, joining the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly(PACE) at 313 Cook St.
The new location, which is being renovated right now, is a former Hy-Vee store.
The city of Sioux City is paying for up to $2.5 million to assist with the relocation, which was necessary because city officials want to use the current building for construction of the Stoney Creek Inn.
The center is currently located at 217 Pierce St., where it has been renting from the city since it bought the building in the early 1980s. Previous tenants included a grocery store and Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance company.
The Cook Street building was in good condition with no major problems, said Siouxland Senior Center Executive Director Jeff Loffswold, but still needed some modifications to become a senior center.
"It was just a shell of a building," he said.
The heating and cooling will be replaced, extra wiring will be installed and more bathrooms will be added. The building also will need a new roof and some outside work.
The new location should be done by the end of April, Loffswold said, but the center's staff will take three or four days to move into it. In addition to staff and ordinary office furniture, the center must move a full-scale commercial kitchen from one building to the other.
The Siouxland Senior Center's $240,000 budget is funded in part by Woodbury County, the United Way, Siouxland Aging Services, donations and bequests.
It also is funded through an annual $20 membership fee paid by members and proceeds from the coffee shop and gift store.
Relocating services, although spurred by necessity and not choice, will afford the center more room for expanded services. One of the bigger additions will come from having more room for recreational activities.
Loffswold said sharing a building with the PACE program will allow the Siouxland Senior Center to utilize medical experts for informational programs and clinics. Hospice of Siouxland operates PACE, which provides medical care to the frail elderly.
While there will be additions, people who attend senior center programs shouldn't worry about too many changes, Loffswold said.
"Everything's pretty well going to be the same or better," he said. "It's just going to be in a different location - a better location."
Officials also are working on a plan to ensure that the center's services will not be interrupted during the move. Details haven't been finalized.
The Siouxland Senior Center will be relocating from its Pierce Street headquarters to a newly-renovated facility, joining the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly(PACE) at 313 Cook St.
The new location, which is being renovated right now, is a former Hy-Vee store.
The city of Sioux City is paying for up to $2.5 million to assist with the relocation, which was necessary because city officials want to use the current building for construction of the Stoney Creek Inn.
The center is currently located at 217 Pierce St., where it has been renting from the city since it bought the building in the early 1980s. Previous tenants included a grocery store and Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance company.
The Cook Street building was in good condition with no major problems, said Siouxland Senior Center Executive Director Jeff Loffswold, but still needed some modifications to become a senior center.
"It was just a shell of a building," he said.
The heating and cooling will be replaced, extra wiring will be installed and more bathrooms will be added. The building also will need a new roof and some outside work.
The new location should be done by the end of April, Loffswold said, but the center's staff will take three or four days to move into it. In addition to staff and ordinary office furniture, the center must move a full-scale commercial kitchen from one building to the other.
The Siouxland Senior Center's $240,000 budget is funded in part by Woodbury County, the United Way, Siouxland Aging Services, donations and bequests.
It also is funded through an annual $20 membership fee paid by members and proceeds from the coffee shop and gift store.
Relocating services, although spurred by necessity and not choice, will afford the center more room for expanded services. One of the bigger additions will come from having more room for recreational activities.
Loffswold said sharing a building with the PACE program will allow the Siouxland Senior Center to utilize medical experts for informational programs and clinics. Hospice of Siouxland operates PACE, which provides medical care to the frail elderly.
While there will be additions, people who attend senior center programs shouldn't worry about too many changes, Loffswold said.
"Everything's pretty well going to be the same or better," he said. "It's just going to be in a different location - a better location."
Officials also are working on a plan to ensure that the center's services will not be interrupted during the move. Details haven't been finalized.
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