Rejuvenating the Town of Mamaroneck Senior Center As Well As the Community

The Town of Mamaroneck (TOM) Senior Center will soon be back in its original location at the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) building on 1288 Boston Post Rd. just in time for summer.

The town began planning the project in the spring of 2010 and started construction on the VFW in February of this year. 

Since February—when construction began—the Center has been temporarily relocated to a meeting room in the TOM Firehouse on 205 Weaver St. for the majority of their activities. A few classes—Tai Chi, bridge, and art— are being held at a second location in the Community Room at the Hommocks Ice Rink on Tuesday-Thursday due to space constraints at the firehouse.

“The volunteer fireman have treated us like gold,” said Senior Center Coordinator Maria Gallagher, about her experience in the temporary location. “They’ve given up their space for us,” she said gratefully.

The $470,000 renovation will include an upgraded kitchen, more handicap accessible men’s and women’s bathrooms, an office for the center’s director and new windows on the front porch to make it accessible year-round. 

According to Town Administrator Steve Altieri, $150,000 of the budget is being funded by a federal grant from the Community Development Block Grant Program, with the remaining $320,000 coming from a bond issuance. 

Initially, the cost of the , however, an additional $70,000 was needed for asbestos abatement on exterior shingles and basement areas as well as contingency for unexpected expenses, according to Altieri.

The project is scheduled for completion in early July said Altieri at Wednesday night’s town board meeting, and seniors should be back in the location at the end of July.

One added benefit, noted Gallagher, will be the additional space to accommodate a variety of activities ranging from mahjong to coffee chit-chat.

“The renovation will allow us to have different rooms so that different activities can go on at the same time,” said Gallagher, continuing, “The biggest plus is our ability to utilize the space to the best of it's capacity.”

The Center serves the Mamaroneck and Larchmont communities and offers an array of activities for residents ages 60 and older, including trips and meals.  People generally gravitate to the Center after hearing about it through word of mouth or from after being persuaded by their children to try new activities, said Gallagher.

“We encourage people to come a few times before they join,” said Gallagher, emphasizing that the goal of the Center is to meet the needs of the people they serve and make their time there as enjoyable as possible.

The TOM Community Services Department—of which the Senior Center is part of— also offers other needed services to elderly residents including the Meals on Wheels program and weekly transportation to doctor’s appointments and local grocery stores for a nominal fee.