By Janet McGregor
Contributing Writer

Fayette Senior Services is another step closer to having a new senior center.

Members of Fayette Senior Services Building Committee, FSS board members, Fayette County commissioners and the architectural firm of Flynn-Finderup have been meeting and moving ahead.

At a recent FSS board meeting, George Flynn and Lars Finderup presented a conceptual design for the building. The design was based upon hours of interviews with board members and employees and volunteers with Fayette Senior Services.

Flynn and Finderup also relied on their expertise and prior experience. In addition to numerous other projects, they have designed three other senior centers.

Based on the input received, Flynn and Finderup's design will have 80 rooms and be approximately 22,000 square feet. There will be a multipurpose room which can accommodate 150 for dining or 100 for dining with a dance floor and stage area.

Additionally, the center will have card, craft, game and meeting rooms. A series of lounges “for fellowshipping” will be available for seniors and the community. A multipurpose room that will seat up to 100 is also part of the initial design.

Andy Carden, director of Fayette Senior Services, noted, “The design will have the capacity to service the active and inactive senior in the future. The 80 rooms will provide individuals with educational and recreational experience.”

He continued, “Seniors will enjoy space to learn computer skills, to exercise the mind, body and relaxing with cards and billiards. While in a different area, others will be having breakfast and lunch, participate in educational programs on current events, history flashbacks and exercise.”

Another welcome addition will be the gracious covered porch along the front of the building. A large warming kitchen is situated in the rear of the center.

The kitchen will allow volunteers and employees to serve up to 200 Meals-on-Wheels a day. Meals-on-Wheels volunteers will be able to park in the rear of the building, solving the problem with traffic congestion currently occurring at peak periods. The FSS vans will also be parked in the rear.

According to George Flynn, president of Flynn-Finderup Architects, “Fayette Senior Services has really been an easy group to work with. They know what they want and have a good vision of future needs. Their knowledge and willingness to work with us and rely on our experience is going to make the project go smoothly.”

The architects also are working closely with the County Commission, mainly through Vice Chairman Greg Dunn and Jim Mallet, project manager for the new courthouse and expanded jail. They are collaborating to ensure that the new senior center will fit aesthetically into the overall “look” of the larger project. As an example, the brickwork and roofing will be of the same material. Also, Flynn and Finderup have added a slight curve to the building design as it will face the circular parking lot of the new courthouse.

“I'm very pleased with the tremendous amount of progress Fayette Senior Services has made regarding the project during the past few months,” said Dunn. “Andy Carden and Fayette Senior Services are aggressively pursuing the development of the new senior center. I'm also impressed with the energy that board member Jim Steinbach has brought to the project.”

The next step for Flynn-Finderup is to complete a set of color illustrations of the building and floor plans for the FSS Board to use in fund-raising. Flynn-Finderup will also provide FSS with a building cost estimate.

One of the first tasks FSS completed when they began moving ahead with the project was the development of a tentative budget for the completion of the entire center. With the building cost estimate FSS will be able to fine-tune complete project costs a little closer.

A project budget typically includes the construction, furnishings, landscaping, architects and other costs. The building cost basically includes “bricks and sticks.”

Although things are moving quickly in some ways, funding is a key issue for ensuring the project is completed. The group is hoping to raise $600,000 from the community to offset the estimated overall project cost of $2.4 million.

For more information regarding the center, contact Andy Carden, Director of Fayette Senior Services at 770-461-0813.

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