Corte Madera’s Community Center has been a local hub of activities for years.
But it looks like more space is needed for programs for seniors.
That shouldn’t be much of a surprise as the share of the town’s population who are at least 65 years old is growing.
More than a decade ago, Marin was hearing predictions that by 2030 more than one in three residents will be 65 or older.
The civil grand jury at the time called it the “Silver Tsunami.”
As that graying wave washes across our county, so does the need for more programs and services for seniors.
It is estimated that seniors now comprise a quarter of the town’s residents.
Corte Madera town officials are considering a proposal from Age-Friendly Corte Madera, a nonprofit organization, to open a senior center, either at a leased site or at the Community Center or the neighboring town-owned Park Madera Center.
The nonprofit says it is ready to contribute $300,000 for the project.
The issue is that competition for space at the Community Center is limiting programming for senior activities.
The town should consider what could be provided if more space was available.
It need only ask San Rafael, Novato or Mill Valley, neighboring cities that have community centers where they host local senior programs. Novato, for one, has a center that was built for seniors. The Margaret Todd Senior Center offers a daily schedule filled with fitness courses, card games, sewing classes, movie nights and serving congregate meals.
The town also should reach out to seniors nearby to gauge what sort of programs in which they would be interested in participating. Getting a handle on that could help determine what kind of space is needed.
The possibility of attracting seniors from neighboring communities, such as Larkspur and Kentfield, will help fill out the rolls for those programs.
Councilmember Charles Lee noted at a recent town meeting that one of the goals is to create a community hub that would “bring people to that center every day.”
The town has been fortunate over the years that it has had homegrown programs aimed at addressing seniors’ needs and desire for activities.
Leasing a site may be the best move to be able to provide needed space sooner.
Possible expansion or changes to the Community Center could take a lot longer and be much more expensive.
The town is already moving forward with an overhaul of its smaller Town Hall, located nearby.
But the Town Council appears to be ready to address the call for more space dedicated to providing programs for the seniors slice of the community.
That’s probably a welcomed sign to many Corte Madera residents, both its large segment of seniors and those heading in that direction.
