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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-05-2006 SCAC Approved Minutes • CITY.OFDUBLIN SENIOR CENTER ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES:OF`JANUARY 5,2006 Call to Order: Chairperson Greer Payton called the meeting to order at 9:04 a.m. Roll Call: Committee Members (CM)Present: Al Edge,Barbara Gifford, Greer Payton, and Beth Wood. Parks and Community Services Commission Liaison: Rich Guarienti. Staff: Anna Hudson, Recreation Coordinator, and Paul McCreary, Parks and Community Services Manager. Oral Communication: CM Payton announced that she will be sending a condolence card to Mayor Lockhart on behalf of the Advisory Committee. CM Payton welcomed Beth Wood as the newest member of the Advisory Committee. CM Wood requested information on past meetings to be familiarized with the Committee's past discussions.,CM Payton stated that a handbook with past agendas, minutes and agenda statements of Advisory Committee will be compiled and given to her by the next meeting. Approval of the Minutes: THE COMMITTEE UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED THE MINUTES OF THE OCTOBER 6, 2005 MEETING AS CORRECTED. MOTION BY CM EDGE, SECONDED BY CM GIFFORD. ABSTENTION BY CM WOOD. THE COMMITTEE UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED THE MINUTES OF THE NOVEMBER 3, 2005 MEETING. MOTION BY CM GIFFORD, SECONDED BY CM EDGE. ABSTENTION BY CM • WOOD. Written Communication-None Unfinished Business-None New Business: ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON The Committee conducted an election for Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson for the term of office through December 2006. CM Gifford nominated CM Payton to continue as Chairperson. As a former Chairperson, CM Gifford suggested that it takes about one year for a person to get the full grasp of the responsibilities and felt that CM Payton had done a great job in 2005. CM Payton accepted the nomination. CM Payton nominated CM Edge to be the Vice-Chairperson, and he accepted the nomination. BY UNANIMOUS VOTE, THE COMMITTEE NOMINATED AND ELECTED CM PAYTON AS CHAIRPERSON. MOTION BY CM GIFFORD,SECONDED BY CM EDGE. BY UNANIMOUS VOTE, THE COMMITTEE NOMINATED AND ELECTED CM EDGE AS VICE-. CHAIRPERSON. MOTIONED BY CM PAYTON,SECONDED BY CM GIFFORD. Dublin Senior Center Advisory Committee Minutes of January 5,2006 Page 2 of 5 CITY COUNCIL GOALS AND OBJECTIVES Prior to discussing the City Council Goals. and Objectives, Paul McCreary, the City's Parks and Community Services Manager, provided an overview of the Dublin Senior Center Vision, Mission and Values. The Vision,Mission and Values were adopted by the Advisory Committee earlier in 2005. McCreary then reviewed an analysis of the trends, opportunities and challenges identified by Staff related to operating the Senior Center and providing senior programs and services. The trends, opportunities and challenges identified by Staff were as follows: - Increased demand for lunch programs. - Addition of 350+units of senior housing in the community. - Increased number of baby boomers with discretionary income. - Increased cultural diversity and foreign languages spoken at the Senior Center. - Seniors are working later in life and even after retirement. - Changing customer expectations and demands. - More customers for other City programs are in need of assistance at the Senior Center counter. - Increase in the number of frail/elderly being dropped off. - Increased problems with obesity and health. - Attendance by men is lower than women at the Senior Center. - Reduced options for public transportation and access to the Senior Center. - More companies are interested in sponsoring Senior Center activities. - Increased demand on staff time for building management/operations. - Demands on office volunteers have increased. , - Significant increase in operating expenses due to larger facility. - Building will begin hosting private rentals in the spring. Taking into consideration these trends and the Vision, Mission and Values, Staff created five Strategic Goals to focus on during the next three-years. The proposed Senior Center Strategic Goals are as follows: Strategy #1: Increase the number of volunteers and implement a program to enhance volunteer training and retention. Strategy#2: Improve ability to provide consistent, responsive customer service and continue to streamline office and building operational procedures. Strategy#3: Develop new programs and services, and re-package existing ones to meet the needs of all the segments of the senior market. Strategy#4: Develop means for minimizing increases in the subsidy provided by;the General Fund for the Senior Center in future Fiscal years. Strategy#5: Develop means to increase options for transportation to the Senior Center tounprove access to programs and services by all senior residents. Staff asked the Committee to comment on the trends and goals. The Committee did not add any trends or Strategic Goals to the list. Dublin Senior Center Advisory Committee Minutes of January 5, 2006 Page 3 of 5 The Committee then took a short break. Following the break Staff gave an overview of the City Council Goals and Objectives process. Staff reviewed the status of the Council Goals and Objectives assigned to Parks and Community Services during Fiscal Year 2005-2006. Then Staff gave discussed the Council Goals and Objectives proposed by Staff for Fiscal Year 2006- 2007. It was noted that no Council Goals and Objectives had been proposed for the Senior Center. The Committee was asked to think of objectives for the upcoming year that might help the City to accomplish the Senior Center Strategic Goals noted in the first half of the presentation, or improve Senior Center operations. Staff then helped the Committee to determine if those objectives could be accomplished within the City's current resources or if they needed to be added to the Council's list of potential Goals and Objectives for 2006-2007. During the discussion various concerns and recommendations were made by the Committee Members. It was determined that all of the Committee's recommendations could be accomplished with the City's current resources or requested as part of the Senior Center Operational Budget. No action was taken as there were no new Council Goals and Objectives identified for Fiscal Year 2006- 2007 related to the Senior Center. Other Business The Committee requested that the complete agenda packets for the Senior Center Advisory Committee and the Parks and Community Services Commission be sent electronically to each Committee Member. The Committee Members requested that the City Council agenda also be sent by e-mail., Staff indicated they would follow-up on the request. CM Edge requested that a letter of appreciation be sent from the Advisory Committee to the Dublin Senior Foundation for the contributions made to the new Dublin Senior Center in 2005. CM Edge also asked Staff to provide an update on the status of his concerns addressed at the last Committee meeting. Staff indicated that quotes were being obtained to install a larger sink in the Art room and increase the height of the toilet seats in the restrooms. CM Gifford requested that the bathrooms be clearly marked with a handicapped sign. CM Edge asked if additional Handicap Parking stalls are going to be installed in the parking lot. Staff indicated that increasing the number of handicap stalls would require modifications to the parking lot and re-striping of the parking spaces. This would result in a decrease in the number overall parking spaces at the site. Staff indicated that before modifications are made, more research and analysis needs to be conducted,which will be presented to the Advisory Committee at a future meeting. CM Woods asked about the attendance at the Senior Center and how many volunteers there are currently. Staff estimated that the average daily attendance at the new Senior Center has grown from 100 to 150. Staff noted due to the increased attendance at the Center, there has been a need for more volunteers in every program, and stated that there are approximately 100 volunteers who help at the new Senior Center. However, only a limited number of the volunteers work on a regular basis. Dublin Senior Center Advisory Committee Minutes of January 5, 2006 Page 4 of 5 Staff announced that the City has been given an Award of Excellence by the California Park and Recreation Society for the design of the new Dublin Senior Center. The Committee suggested creating a banner to announce that the Dublin Senior Center is an award winning facility. Commissioner Guarienti briefly discussed the December meeting of the Parks and Community Services Commission at which the conceptual design of the new Shannon Center was discussed in detail. Four options were presented by the Dahlin Group, the same architects who designed the new Dublin Senior Center. Guarienti noted that several Commissioners attended the City Council meeting in December at which the Shannon Community Center design was discussed. They observed that the Council Members had similar concerns and interests as the Commissioners. • CM Woods asked about the availability of transportation for seniors and the use of the existing Dublin Senior Center van. She was concerned that the cancellation of DART service by the Transit Authority will have an impact on seniors. Staff stated they would look into what services the Transit Authority will be implementing to replace the DART service and determine how the City can best respond to the changes. Commissioner Guarienti suggested that in order to accommodate more people as part of the Trips and Tours Program, Staff should explore the option of renting a 15-passenger van as was done prior to purchasing a van. This would allow the City to offer a single excursion to popular locations, rather than several individual trips. Staff indicated they would need to better evaluate the demand for trips and the most cost effective methods for meeting the demand. CM Edge suggested that Staff contact local car dealers to have the second vehicle donated to the Senior Foundation. CM Woods suggested that a day be set aside to survey seniors to find out their opinions in regards to the activities offered at the Dublin Senior Center. These focus groups could include evaluation of the lunch program, special events, transportation issues, and fees. Commissioner Guarienti suggested Staff purchase a marquis, electronic board, or kiosk for inside the Senior Center so seniors can be made aware of the daily activities offered at the Senior Center. He also suggested creating a new design and layout for the Dublin Doings Newsletter so it is better organized and possibly sent out every other month, rather than monthly. CM Payton asked about the gift giving program for needy seniors that was coordinated by Senior Support in December of 2005. CM Payton suggested developing a program where families may be able to invite seniors for a holiday meal at their home. Staff indicated that a member of the Women's Club suggested opening the Senior Center during a major holiday where Club members could volunteer to cook and feed seniors who have no family during the holidays. Staff was asked about information on the affordable senior housing complex in eastern Dublin. Staff indicated that approximately 300 of the 900 units that are being developed will be rented to seniors with varying incomes. Dublin Senior Center Advisory Committee Minutes of January 5,2006 Page 5 of 5 Adjournment Being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:30 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Ce. 1 a—4.44.0..-- Anna Hudson Recreation Coordinator APPROVED: Greer Payton Chairperson