Cass County Council on Aging’s $800,000 new senior center in downtown Dowagiac, for which the community is contributing $350,000 in a fund drive, should open in late March or early April.
COA Executive Director Bob Cochrane Friday showed the Daily News around the 7,100-square-foot facility adjacent to City Hall being created with three distinct storefronts — the pet store, dollar store and MESC offices facing Front Street; A&P, KFC and Daylight Donuts on the parking lot; and to the rear toward Depot Drive, where Big Eddie’s, Hungry Howie’s, Lyons’ meat market and the Art Guild’s Rose Gallery were once located.
A formal name for the senior center remains to be selected, Cochrane said.
Also in the works is a “marquee” sign outside listing events.
The previous building is all but unrecognizable inside, since it was gutted except for exterior walls and windows by Troyer Group in Mishawaka, Ind., and 17 subcontractors.
“It’s a whole new roof and interior. All new electric, plumbing, heating, air conditioning” Cochrane said. “We’re very pleased several of the major subcontractors are from Dowagiac and Cass County.”
He showed the main entrance reception desk staffed by volunteers, the cafe in the former restaurant area serving “light fare” such as an entree, sandwiches, soups and salad and the 900-square-foot education center at the third door for such fare as Brain Aerobics, the political discussion group Great Decisions, public-access computers and guest speakers on everything from Parkinson’s disease to financial concerns. There is wifi throughout the carpeted center decorated in earth tones.
A new technology feature Cochrane wants to incorporate will enable sharing a live program with the other center so people could drive to either.
The cafe “will be open to the public,” he said, “just like in Cass with differentiated pricing where seniors pay less than the general public,” which could be handy for city and Dowagiac Union Schools employees. “We’re not trying to compete with Zeke’s or Wood Fire. We think we’ll draw (new) people to take part in activities here who aren’t coming downtown.”
There is a small office for the center director. The position was advertised before Christmas, so Cochrane expects a mix of applicants and internal candidates from the Cassopolis staff. There are three paid staff positions.
COA’s volunteer force “ranges from 200 to 250,” he said. Hours will be 7 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday-Friday. Except for continuing to use Baymont’s pool, the new center will fold in COA programs offered elsewhere in Dowagiac.
“We have lunch a couple days a week” at First United Methodist Church. “We’ve been at (Lincoln School, now Encore School of the Arts), the Federated Church, the Elks Club. We’ve had a number of Dowagiac homes,” Cochrane said.
There is a small gymnasium for exercise classes, from aerobics and Zumba to line dancing. Two classes meeting three times a week will likely be expanded.
Another room is dedicated to physical fitness equipment, such as treadmills, ellipticals and free weights.
There are men’s and women’s locker facilities with showers.
By comparison, “We’ve got about 11,000 square feet of program space” at the Edward Lowe Center for the Council on Aging east of Cassopolis.
Parking availability sealed the deal for the COA, which also considered the former Goodwill next to Save-A-Lot, Woolworth’s, which was vacant when the search started; and the former Sears on West Railroad Street.