City Council Meeting

Catherine Readthe opportunity to participate and live independently. And whereas the City of Fairfax ensures that older Americans have the resources and support stay involved in their communities, reflecting our commitment to inclusivity and connectedness. And whereas the Fairfax City Young at Heart Senior Center at the Green Acres Center offers numerous and varied activities such as pickleball, book club, bingo, knit and crochet, day trips, and other programs for all active older adults. And whereas the Fairfax Village in the city supports the City of Fairfax older adults and adults with disabilities who wish to stay independent while remaining at home with sharing useful information, strengthening personal

Barbara Smithpublic commentHello. On behalf of the Fairfax City Young at Heart Senior Center Advisory Council, I want to thank the council, the city council, the mayor, Stacey Summerfield and the Parks and Rec Department, and especially Ann Chase and her staff at Green Acres for providing us seniors an opportunity to participate in fun and exciting activities and allowing us to champion our health. From Mahjong to Canasta to Cornhole to Bocce to Lunch and Learn to Senior Trips to Pickleball, our Senior Center has activities for everyone. I welcome those who are 55 and older to stop by this Friday, May 1st, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. for our Older Americans Month open house. We'll be conducting intros and demos on Bocce, Cornhole, and Pickleball.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to address the mayor and the city council. My name is Barbara Smith, and I represent the City of Fairfax Young at Heart Senior Center Advisory Council. Since February 28th, someone from the Advisory Council has provided public comment on the second and fourth Tuesdays in support of the proposed Willard Sherwood Health and Community Center project. We've all expressed our appreciation for the program and support received from the Parks and Rec Department and especially from Anne Chase and her staff at Green Acres. To summarize, I spoke about the aging conditions of Green Acres in both the parking and public transportation issues we encounter. Chuck provided the extravagant cost it would take to renovate or replace the current Green Acres facility.

Katie Johnsonpublic commentYou know I'm Katie Johnson Spring Lake Terrace. I'm here to thank council members Hall Peterson and McQuillan for asking the tough questions and I ask you to please continue to ask those tough questions until You are absolutely sure that we have the best possible outcome for the citizens of the city of Fairfax Financially and in the fairness of the percentage I have concerns especially with regard to our annual operating budget Relying on rentals is a gamble. It's not a guarantee. So we need to carefully carefully consider that Thank you for carefully crunching the numbers on the residents behalf a few thoughts are 60% of the seniors in our senior center our county residents Construction of high-tech medical offices with separate air systems are much higher than a basketball court in the rooftop pickleball court

Brooke Hardinstaffsure there was was considerable public input in the project on a wide range of topics some of those that come to mind were things like natural light that the building be be light-filled and airy and open and so things like the wall of windows that's located along the rooftop terrace the large windows that are in the gymnasium and the fitness rooms were incorporated to respond to those comments areas for meeting spaces both informal throughout the building and then more formal spaces and classrooms or something that were touched upon that the project provides seniors so there's a third floor in the facility and a rooftop space that would be dedicated for the senior activities and the senior center and we heard about