Commission Charts New Course for County Senior Centers

Clinton Rose Senior Center. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

What should the senior centers of the future be like?

That question was central to a large, conceptual plan created for Milwaukee County’s five senior centers crafted by the Commission on Aging. The answer was, essentially, top to bottom improvements of the senior center experience including upgraded, modern facilities and new programming and activities.

The plan is intended to guide policymakers in future decisions about the county’s senior centers.

The county’s ability to invest in facilities and programming for senior centers is limited by its ongoing financial challenges, as the government continues to weather a structural budget deficit But the commission contemplated new strategies for development, drawing from the City of Milwaukee’s mixed-use approach to building new public libraries.

A major challenge to beginning to implement the vision laid out in the commission’s report is the current state of the buildings, said Gene Guszkowski, a retired architect and commission member.

“What we learned first of all, from a physical point of view, is that these buildings are old and that there’s a lot of deferred maintenance that has simply not been able to become a priority,” Guszkowski told supervisors on the Health Equity, Human Needs and Strategic Planning Committee earlier this month.

The Wilson Park, Washington Park and Clinton Rose senior centers were built for their purpose, but McGovern Park and Kelly senior centers were not. Kelly is a former barracks for a defunct missile program located in Cudahy and McGovern Park is “really kind of an overgrown park shelter,” Guszkowski said.

The report imagines newly developed, modern senior centers for McGovern and Kelly; and significant upgrades to the other three. But, with the county’s financial situation, the commission accepts that this will likely require new forms of revenue, and the report suggests policymakers should look to partner with local philanthropic corporations or private entities to support these projects with the county.

“We think that the way to do that is that we have to find long term embedded community partners, a healthcare partner, a food service partner, a lifelong learning partner,” Guzskowski said.

The city’s model of working with private developers to build new, mixed-use buildings with a library on the ground floor could serve as a model for building out a network of smaller, neighborhood senior centers across the county.

“I don’t think Milwaukee County has the ability to build freestanding, new senior-centered buildings,”Guszkowski said. “It’s just too costly. But if we could be a tenant, it would make a lot more sense to be part of that.”

A 2017 survey of senior center users was used to develop the commission’s plan, Guszkowski said. The survey showed more programming, new technology, building upgrades, new fitness equipment and programming that fosters greater diversity. Seniors want “a modern, welcoming and fun atmosphere,” Guszkowski said.

“I think we just assumed a senior was some old, retired person who wanted to play bingo,” Guszkowski said. “I think older adults are a lot more than that, and so we need to address those expectations.”

There is also a desire for improved dining and entertainment — Guzskowksi suggested seniors centers would be great locations for coffee shops. To make the centers more lively and attractive community institutions, they should adapt to a “seven to 10pm culture,” he said. This would mean offering programming and activities that extend into the night. 

“Why can’t there be coffee shops when you first walk in one of these buildings?” Guzskowski said. 

The plan calls for rebranding senior centers to reflect their ideal role as social institutions that play an important role in the community. For this reason, the commission is recommending MKE Hubs, or some variation.

“We like the idea of hub, because a hub, when you look it up in a dictionary, simply says it’s the center of a network of activities,” Guszkowski said. “That’s what these things should be.”

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Related Legislation: Full report, File 24-730