Seniors tour potential new home for the South County Senior Center

SUNDERLAND — About 50 older adults from southern Franklin County roamed the rooms of the office building at 112 Amherst Road on Wednesday to see for themselves the South County Senior Center’s potential new home.

After weighing several options, the Senior Center’s Board of Oversight is considering the 12,150-square-foot office building currently owned by Delta Sand and Gravel Inc. On the first stop of the walk-through, South County Senior Center Director Jennifer Ferrara stressed that the Board of Oversight has not signed any contracts, so plans are still fluid.

If the 112 Amherst Road option moves forward, Ferrara told listeners that renovations would be split into two phases, with the second phase involving converting the technology storage room into a commercial kitchen. Ferrara said the cost of Phase 1 renovations, estimated at $500,000, would be amortized over the course of the lease, bringing the annual lease to roughly $168,000, or between $18,000 and $19,000 a month, including $5,000 for electricity, water, sewer and propane. According to a handout for visitors, the lease would include real estate taxes, water district taxes, hazard insurance, maintenance and repairs, landscaping, snow removal and any tax increases due to renovations.

The three towns would split the cost of the potential project, with Deerfield paying 54%, Sunderland paying 28% and Whately paying 18%, a formula in the new intermunicipal agreement based on usage data over the past 30 years and 2020 census statistics.

In response to a resident’s question regarding the impact of the renovations on residents’ property taxes, Ferrara said the Board of Oversight is working on calculating the answer.

When another visitor asked about building a new facility from scratch, Ferrara reminded the crowd of the feasibility study that examined building on the lot where Deerfield Town Hall stands at 8 Conway St. The study estimated a $16.9 million price tag for the new build.

“Does anybody want to pay that? We can’t afford it,” Ferrara said. “The cost is a lot less expensive than going into a new building.”

Ferrara added that the Senior Center would have the right of first refusal to purchase the 112 Amherst Road building at the end of the lease, a duration yet to be determined.

Visitors started the tour in an office space that would be converted into a program room for workshops, movie screenings and other activities. On the main floor, proposed renovations would also create an open lobby with seating to greet members and visitors at the door, a 630-square-foot activity space and a wellness room.

After passing signs reading “wall removed” and “door added,” visitors headed up the stairs. Ferrara asked visitors to imagine the space cleared of its several cubicles and a new wall separating the floor into two exercise rooms.

Earlier in the tour, Ferrara said centralizing Senior Center activities and offerings to one location would allow participants to socialize after events.

“People would socialize more, and that’s the goal: to reduce isolation and depression,” Ferrara said. “Did you know that suicide is the highest amongst older adults nationwide? Because people are isolated and they don’t ask for help.

“You guys are very prideful, and that’s not a bad thing, but sometimes you’re prideful to the extent where you forget to ask for help,” she continued. “A lot of people don’t know their neighbors anymore, times have changed so much, so our goal is to reduce isolation.”

In the basement, Ferrara said staff would store and distribute meals and visitors could socialize in the basement lobby. Exits in the downstairs clear a path to the parking lot, easing the flow of grab-and-go meals, Ferrara noted.

After the tour, Senior Center member Jay Baudermann said the current center at 22 Amherst Road is “inadequate for parking,” a challenge he faces when picking up meals. Looking through the basement windows at the parking lot, he said, ‘This would be ideal.”

Baudermann described the space at 112 Amherst Road as a safer spot to socialize than the current location with more breathing room, given that his wife is immunocompromised.

“I think it might attract more people to come. It’s pleasant,” he said.

The tour finished in an office space on the main level that would host a foot clinic.

After outlining the long road of next steps ahead before the proposed renovations could become a reality, including approvals at Town Meetings and Finance Committee meetings, Ferrara urged attendees to voice their thoughts and opinions on the Senior Center’s future.

“All of this information is fluid,” Ferrara stressed. Referring to municipal board members, she said, ‘They want to hear from their constituents; they don’t want to hear from me.”

Sunderland resident Bruce Bennett said he feels the towns should revisit other buildings.

“I think there are cheaper alternatives,” Bennett said. He claimed that the towns have prioritized other projects above the search for a new home for the Senior Center.

During the tour, Fran York, a longtime Senior Center member, said the building was “very nice” but “might be impractical.”

York claimed her father had hoped for a new Senior Center and senior housing as a member decades ago.

“We still don’t have either,” she said. “I would love to see a Senior Center before I pass, that’s for sure.”

The South County Senior Center will host four community forums to update members and visitors on the search for a new space on Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. in the Frontier Regional School auditorium, Feb. 3 at 1 p.m. at Deerfield Town Hall, Feb. 10 at 1:30 p.m. at the Sunderland Public Library and Feb. 18 at Whately Town Hall.