Residents Pack Callahan Center To Voice Opinions To Mayor

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Hundreds of residents packed into the Blais room of the Callahan Center on Tuesday afternoon for the Council on Aging Board meeting. The meeting was a special one — on the agenda was a discussion about the proposed move of the Health Department into the Callahan Center by mid-June. The decision has drawn criticism and calls for transparency in Mayor Yvonne Spicer's administration. Over 200 people attended the meeting, some taking to the podium to speak — all opposed to the proposed move.

The Health Department has been working from Fuller Middle school but as construction of the new Fuller building comes closer, the construction company needs the space. The mayor's office said the area where the Health Department was working will be a construction zone and too dangerous for them to stay.

Framingham Superintendent Robert Tremblay said the district and administration have been discussing the possibility of the Health Department moving out of Fuller since the project for a new school was proposed. "This is a conversation we've been having for the better part of a year," Tremblay said, "As far as the decision making process, we had no part in that." The Health Department's move to the Fuller Middle school was supposed to be a temporary move, Tremblay said, adding that a number of other services are housed in the building that will also have to move.

The Mayor addressed concerns residents had about moving the Health Department to the center, citing a fact sheet she released on Monday listing frequently asked questions and answers. Spicer said from the time she took office, seniors have been "front and center" in her decisions. The passionate audience interrupted her statements with passing choruses of grumbles, disagreeing.

Spicer noted that the city was faced with a tough decision and that when the news was first released last week, the proposal was not set in stone — but that the Callahan Center was the best option the city could find within budget and timeline. Spicer said her administration was open to suggestions from the public on alternative locations.

Th cost of moving the Health Department into the Callahan center is between $65,000 to $75,000.

One by one, residents took to the podium with suggestions and comments about the proposal, all in defense of the center.

Several city councilors were present including Mike Cannon of District 4 and Councilors-At-Large Cheryl Tully Stoll and George King — all of whom spoke during the meeting. All three expressed concerns of transparency and negative affects on the senior community. Stoll suggested reaching out to the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority (MWRTA) for space or seeking a donation for space to place trailers for the Health Department to work out of.

Residents made suggestions to use the Marian High school, borrowing space from the South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC) or using module units.

Other residents spoke from personal experience at the center. One resident, Brina Wolpe, talked about how the center offers one of the only couples alzheimer's program in the state and how it helped her and her husband, who suffered from the disease. She expressed concern that the program would be disrupted since it is held in the multipurpose room, one of the areas the Health Department will be using.

The mayor said only 11 percent of the center will be used by the Health Department and events and activities would be "minimally impacted." Council On Aging Board member and President of the Friends of Callahan Senior Center, Mark Goldman said "that 11 percent is the heart and soul of this center."

Goldman has asked the state Attorney General to intervene, claiming the move would violate the spirit of a $1 million donation given to the town to buy the center in 2004.

The deadline to move the Health Department out of the Fuller school is June 15. Work to get the center ready would have to start the third week of May.

Jim Desimone spoke about how the the very thought of the proposal was spurring anxiety in him and other residents, "I've seen it take a toll on some of us," he said.

Another resident, Mel Warshaw, explained that no matter how good the intention of the city were, seniors could still suffer from the move. " Warshaw highlighted that many seniors live with family or day-to-day on Social Security checks. "They found another home — it's called the Callahan Senior Center," he said, drawing a roaring applause from the crowd, "Taking away, whether it's 11 percent or a third, of their home — regardless of the merits of having it at the Callahan Center — is wrong."

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