WAUPUN — City leadership held the second of two Community Listening Sessions during Mayor Bishop’s regular update session to the members of the Senior Center. Before the Community Listening Session began, Mayor Bishop and City Administrator Kathy Schlieve gave an update on the status of the Senior Center Facility Project.
The plans for the new Senior Center Facility were originally presented to the City Council at the November 29th meeting and copies of the plot and floor plans were passed out to members of the audience.
Before getting into details, the floor was opened for questions. A member of the audience asked about the facility’s future procedures, raising concerns over whether seniors would be pushed out in favor of other organizations if the facility was rented out. To explain his concerns he explained situations where seniors were “kicked out” of the Beaver Dam Senior Center when the space was being rented by other organizations.
“We do want it to be both a senior center and a community center,” Mayor Bishop said. “One of the things that we at the city level want to do is have a place that can be used for different generations especially at different times of the day. For instance on Tuesday afternoon it would be a place for seniors since seniors are retired. But in the evening we would like it to be used for the general public.”
Mayor Bishop went on to explain the benefits of the “intergenerational” facility being used as a new community center, including for being used as a public venue, for sporting events, and a place for members of the community to exercise during the winter. However Mayor Bishop assured the senior center that they will not be kicked out in favor of other organizations or events.
“It’s primarily a senior center, we just want to make sure it’s bringing in revenue so we can maintain the facility and offer all the amenities,” he said.
Under the current plans the facility will be over 22k sqft with rooms designated for seniors, including a billiards room, a reading room, a dining hall, and a senior fitness center. The facility will also include rooms for the Recreation Department, REACH Waupun, the Food Pantry, a dining venue, and a full-court gymnasium for community use.
City Administrator Kathy Schlieve stated that the committee responsible for the facility project will be devising the list of procedures for the facility in the coming months, including the rates for residents and non-resident organizations who would rent the venue spaces.
The Community Listening Sessions were created as a part of an effort to involve the community in the process to decide priorities for the $1.17 million ARPA fund the City received last year.
