State Funding $3.9 Million Clinton Rose Senior Center Renovation

Clinton Rose Senior Center. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The Clinton Rose Senior Center will undergo a $3.9 million renovation.

The renovation will expand the center’s telemedicine room, create a multi-purpose space, make improvements to the kitchen and dining room and add a computer lab with 12 desktop computers. It will also add new vocational, educational and nutritional training.

The Milwaukee County-owned senior center was part of a list of facilities across the state — libraries and community centers — awarded $115 million in grants by Gov. Tony Evers‘ administration. The funding comes out of the state’s allocation of America Rescue Plan Act funding, which was released as an economic stimulus during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Milwaukee County has four senior centers serving thousands of residents a year. The Clinton Rose Senior Center, 3045 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, serves residents in the central city and on the East Side. More than 700 individuals who regularly use the senior center will benefit from the upgrades including minority populations, elderly individuals, persons with health trouble and those facing poverty, according to the county.

“Milwaukee County’s senior centers are vital community hubs that allow folks to access healthy living services, connect with their neighbors, and thrive in social settings,” County Executive David Crowley said in his statement. “We are incredibly grateful to Governor Evers and the Biden-Harris Administration for delivering federal funding for these much-needed capital improvements at Clinton Rose Senior Center. Lack of access to technology, educational programming, and nutritional information can pose significant barriers for older adults in managing their daily lives.”

Crowley’s comments reflect a new idea for senior centers recently developed by the county’s Commission on Aging. Members of the commission created a conceptual plan with a new focus on senior centers as community hubs. An initial idea for branding is calling them MKE Hubs, and the plan calls for top-to-bottom improvements of the senior center experience including upgraded, modern facilities and new programming and activities.

“I’m thrilled with this new investment in one of our busiest Senior Centers. The stereotype of an older adult is no longer true. We are active, vibrant members of the community,” said Janice Wilberg, Chair, Milwaukee County Commission on Aging.

There are currently approximately 185,000 seniors living in the county, and the population is expected to grow, according to the county.

“Ensuring our older adult population has access to well thought out community space and the tools they need, not just to live, but to thrive, is a high priority,” said Shakita LaGrant-McClain, the executive director of the Department of Health and Human Services. “This new funding will help us make important quality of life improvements.”

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