MOUNT HOPE—No one seemed sad to see the unraveling carpet, the broken appliances and the wet carpet smell of the former Mount Hope Senior Center gone at the ribbon cutting for the redone Center on March 8.
After a month of renovations, the Senior Center has all new, stainless steel appliances, a new glossy wood floor, a serving window in the kitchen, an elegant wall to hide extra tables and chairs behind, and wheelchair-accessible bathrooms.
“Considering it’s a senior center, that’s pretty important,” said Senior Club member and Village of Otisville Trustee Diane Loeven.
And it’s not just the 146 members of the Senior Club who are going to benefit from the renovations. The Town rents it out for events as well, which, now that it is redone, they hope will bring in more revenue.
The Town has been saving for the renovations for the last few years, said Mount Hope Supervisor, Chad Volpe, and while the final cost is not calculated yet they are currently about $6,000 under budget.
“We saved the money, taxes aren’t going up,” Volpe reassured the seniors.
The Town has spent about $24,000 on the renovations so far, but still has some things to buy and some to return.
Everyone laughed when Volpe brought out a red tulle ribbon for the ribbon cutting that looked like it had seen better days .
“As you can see we put a lot of money into this building, that’s why the ribbon looks that way,” he joked.
While it was only the interior that was redone, Phyllis Scherf, a long-time member of the Senior’s Club, said the renovations made it seem bigger.
“Now we have to get acclimated to it … I can’t find a thing,” she said with a laugh.
“It’s incomparable,” said Jerry Cook, also a Senior Club Member. “We even have a beautiful dance floor and I can’t wait to try it out.”
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