Letter to the Editor: Loss of the Senior Center under Prop1

To the Editor,

Reading the campaign materials for Prop1, I was bothered that the community center portion of the facility will give “priority use” to “senior programs.” I did additional research and found that indeed, the planned facility does not give dedicated space to a stand-alone senior center as Shoreline presently has at the old Shoreline High School. The “commercial kitchen” will be available for rental by the community, and that will negatively affect senior programs such as the daily lunch and nutrition program, the monthly birthday lunches, etc. Also, the fact that such rental will bring in revenue will make community rental use very seductive to the city and management of the facility, possibly further reducing use by the “senior programs.”

Moreover, the whole community center, minus the kitchen area, will be about 4800 square feet, with “senior programs prioritized.” Presently the stand-alone Senior Center has many many programs, activities and classes in 12,000 square feet of space. This is a very significant and program damaging change. In doing some additional research, I also found that final space allocation will be decided AFTER the vote. (The wording used is not even “prioritized” but “allocated senior programming” which I find alarming.) At that point, there will be very little negotiating leverage. 

I was inclined to support Prop 1 until learning all this. I will be voting no, and urge others to do so as well. Shoreline has a larger population of seniors than other cities in the state, and this proposed building will short change them just as numbers will increase as the baby boomers retire and age. Vote No on Prop 1. A better plan for such an expensive facility is needed.

Chris Gaston

Shoreline