State budget includes $7M for senior center

Jul. 2—TRAVERSE CITY — When Lillian Adler Ostendorf found out there's $7 million in a budget state lawmakers just passed, she was "absolutely shocked."

The Friends of the Senior Center member and frequent user of the building said it's been the center of a years-long effort to construct a better building in the city-owned beachfront park. Now that the goal should be in sight — the budget awaited Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's signature as of Friday afternoon, according to the state's bill tracker — she reflected on how many people pushed to make it happen over the years.

"I'm grateful, and I'll be even more grateful once I see the first shovel of dirt coming up," she said. "I look forward to sitting on the rocker on the porch that we want overlooking the bay."

Ostendorf recalled watching with excitement as senior center users gave their input on a proposed design, which architect Ray Kendra then presented at various city and county boards. Those meetings came and went but the current picnic pavilion-turned-senior center remained.

Grand Traverse County provides the programming, and the city and county boards both resolved to try again after their previous attempt to team up and fund a new building foundered in mid-2020, as previously reported.

Mayor Richard Lewis was prepped to ask the county board to consider asking Grand Traverse voters to raise the senior services millage, money that would help pay the debt for a new building, meeting documents show. He told commissioners in a memo that he asked to speak to county leaders after discussing the millage at recent ad hoc committee meetings.

Now, instead of asking whether city and county leadership would go along with Traverse City borrowing up to $8 million for a new building, then having county leaders place the millage ask on the November ballot, Lewis said he's expecting an altogether different discussion at the upcoming meetings. Both Tuesday's city and Wednesday's county meetings could have a more celebratory feel.

Rob Hentschel chairs the county board of commissioners, and said he was grateful to state Sen. Wayne Schmidt for leading the effort to get the grant in the state budget. It all but resolved the biggest sticking point of who should pay for the new building, the city or the county.

Money from the state is sure to remove the biggest obstacle to reconstructing the building at Barlow and East Front streets, both Lewis and Hentschel separately agreed.

So did Jim Carruthers, the city's former mayor and current Friends of the Senior Center president.

"It's been a long road and it's been harder than we wanted it to, but it's time, just with the demographics of the area and our growing senior population, our growing aging population," Carruthers said. "This is what the seniors wanted."

State Sen. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, said he requested the money, listed among the budget's $251,475,000 economic development and workforce grants, after asking both city and county leaders what they needed to make the long-debated project a reality.

He called it a good project that serves both county and city residents well, and one that stands on its own merits.

"But like anything, you know, we had some different personalities and there's all sorts of things that enter into it, and neither the county nor the city has unlimited money," he said. "Neither does the state, but when you have a good project and when you have people that were willing to work together and set aside whatever differences, this is what happens."

Schmidt said he played a small part, and credited local leadership along with his counterparts and in the state House of Representatives, Republican reps. John Roth and Jack O'Malley, for their efforts in passing the senior center grant there as well.

Seeing the money in the final budget was a pleasant surprise for Roth, who seconded Schmidt's request to place it in there, Roth said.

Spending hawks and others often label such set-asides for projects as "pork," although Roth said he saw both the senior center and another project to revitalize the former Cherryland Mall as badly needed. Another millage ask would have likely put the city "out on a limb."

"Our community was struggling on how to pay for it, for the senior center in particular, and what was the best way to do that," he said.

The second grant Roth backed will give $2 million to Traverse City Curling Club (of which this reporter is a former member, in full disclosure) toward its previously reported plans to build a curling rink in the mostly vacant shopping center.

The organization's goal is to raise $7 million overall, and Roth said the plan to revitalize the shopping center is sure to be good for economic development.

Both these and $6 million for a joint project with Bay Area Transportation Authority and Traverse City Housing Commission to build a busing system headquarters and affordable housing next door were among many spending priorities made possible by the state's flush financial position as lawmakers worked with Whitmer on the budget for November through Sept. 30, 2023, Roth said — Schmidt also credited the governor for working with the Legislature.

The list of people to thank for a new senior center is long indeed, with Ostendorf applauding brothers and fellow friends group members Robert and Richard Steadman, along with the rest of the group and so many more who pushed hard for the new building.

There's more work to do — rising construction costs and a recent, broad estimate of $7.5 million could mean the state grant may not be the last word on funding, Ostendorf agreed.

Lewis said the city has nearly $400,000 from past donations, plus the county pledged another $250,000.

Figuring out just how much construction will cost comes next, and Lewis said that'll require a follow-up with architectural firm Environment Architects. City Manager Marty Colburn said finalizing the project's scope and design comes next.

It'll be up to both governments to work out how to close whatever funding gap remains, Hentschel said.

That's especially true as construction projects are all but certain to have some unanticipated costs.

"So it's those cost overruns and things that slip through the cracks that you just have to count on happening and have the funds to cover the costs," he said.

Both boards must also ink a new agreement to share the building, Hentschel said.

He was optimistic that both boards can agree on how to finalize the funding and intergovernmental agreement details — he called the latter a "foregone conclusion."

"No one wants to be the guy that stops progress when we got this far," he said.

Carruthers and Lewis each separately agreed they're optimistic about a final arrangement coming together.

"I'm not saying there won't be some sticky points, but that's with everything and we'll work our way through it," Lewis said.