Gulfport Senior Center Makeover Completed

It took a few years, but for the numerous older local citizens who take advantage of the programs and services of the Gulfport Multipurpose Senior Center will tell you the center has never looked better. 

The plan to improve the center first started back in 2008 with the bid process for various work, although no real initiatives took place until 2009, the popular senior center has experienced an array of cosmetic and construction improvements in recent years that are now finally complete. These improvements have not only helped to make the structure more attractive inside and out, but more functional, according to the center’s supervisor Susan Frank.

The improvements project was funded via a grant under a Memorandum of Understanding with the State of Florida, Department of Elder Affairs, with the City of Gulfport responsible for 25% of the funding. The actual figures: Funding from THE DOEA was $168,750, with the city contributing a cash match of $56,250.

Improvements include:

• Re-roofing of the Senior Center

• New carpeting in those locations previously carpeted

• Sealing and stripping of the parking lot

• Installation of an emergency generator

• A new security system installed

• New kitchen cabinets as well as additional cabinets throughout the building

• An exterior paint job

• A remodeling of an interior storage area that helped to provide new office space

• A new fire alarm system 

If there is a single initiative in this overall project Frank and her colleagues are especially “happy” about, it has to be the additional office space that has achieved. Take, for example, the comments of Christina Angelou, site coordinator for Neighborly Care Network’s Meals On Wheels and Senior Dining Programs at the center. Along with a renovation of the storage area, from a caged-in, metal enclosure to a structure with actual walls and a door, there are new cabinets and she now has the convenience of her office in this location rather than on the opposite side of the senior center. “Our space area is now so much more efficient and convenient. This new layout just makes sense. It allows me to be closer to our diners and to our Meals on Wheels drivers when returning from delivering meals. We are just so grateful to the City of Gulfport for doing this.”

This move by Angelou to her new office has freed up her old room, which the administrative staff of senior center most welcomed. That’s because prior to this move, three people were sharing an office only big enough for two individuals. Hence, at times, the third person, affiliated with the Gulfport Senior Center Foundation, would block the entry way. Every time someone wanted to come in or go out, this person had to get up and move out of the way. Now the former Neighborly Care Network site coordinator’s office serves as the work room for the Foundation.

In spite of these improvements, Frank says there is at least one other enhancement she hopes that can eventually be made at the center.  She said there is a dire need to expand the existing , noting that at the moment the center’s exercise equipment is jammed into a barely-adequate area, with very little space between machines.  Despite this constraint, the fitness center is perhaps the most utilized service at the facility, with literally hundreds of local seniors using the exercise equipment every month. In fact, because of its distinctive popularity the number of seniors taking advantage of the center’s overall services has grown dramatically.

Overall, though, in spite of this wish list item, Frank says she and fellow staff members, along with those who visit the center are delighted with the $225,000 spent on improvements – enhancements that obviously reflect the facility’s recognition as a Nationally Accredited Senior Center -- one of only a handful so designated in the state of Florida.

The Gulfport Multi-Purpose Senior Center has approximately 2,000 active, registered members, with an average daily attendance for its programs and services of about 200 people. Hours of operation are Monday through Thursday, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information on this senior facility and its services visit: www.gulfportseniorfoundation.org