Council on Aging

City of Chicopee Council of Aging November 13, 2018 . Members Present: S. Tawrel, H. Lenart, K. Rousseau, S. Gelinas, E. LaFlamme, K. Labreck, L. Houle, M. Rider, C. Gemme, S. Michalik Staff: S. Manyak I. Call to order  The meeting was called to order at 4:45pm. There was no request to record the meeting. II. Public input  There was no public input for the meeting III. Review of minutes  Minutes were reviewed from Oct 9, 2018 and accepted as presented. IV. Business Reports A. Fiscal Report  The fiscal report for Manyak distributed to all members for October. S. Manyak noted that the center remains on target for projects. There was one unexpected expense related to replacing a mirror that was nearly $1000. A comment was made on cleaning of kitchen equipment and grease trap and Sherry verified that this was related to the daily of the use kitchen for the café. It would be very challenging to add a more functional kitchen to make sure there is fire suppression and other code issues. There is minimal space for storage for daily meals, and in particular no room for a walk in refrigerator  The report was accepted as presented. B. Executive Director’s Report  The Executive directors report was distributed to the group. S. Manyak highlighted some key points including that there are now 2 new full time janitors in place. Don Mead is full time and Dennis Walter is part time evenings and then Walter Borowiecki is a part  time janitor in the mornings. Don has just recently started and he is actively organizing the maintenance functions for RiverMills. They all report to Jay Croteau.  HVAC was in to review the systems in the building. They will need to take rooms off line in order to make some updates. The control valves in the AV boxes need to be replaced per Brian Johnson of EDM. Sherry has asked if the repairs can be made in the evenings or on weekends. They will work on sections of the repairs to make sure the rooms are not offline and impact programming.  The heat in Sherry’s office is still an issue. It was noted that the valve to the room is completely open but the heat was in the 50’s.  The newsletter was late once again. It had not been distributed by LPI. They have pushed the deadline back another week.  The report was accepted as written C. S.A.L.T. Report  The last meeting was November 9,2018. The 2019 poster contest topics were discussed but no decision was made but there are 5 topics that have been proposed. The letter is due out in January to classrooms.  Cpt Collins noted that there is a new e-cigarette called Jules and it is attractive to kids. There is the same amount of nicotine in one as in one pack of cigarettes.  There is a curriculum called life skills that is free to schools. It discusses different life situations for example hoarding. A future event is planned on this topic.  All the smoke detectors have all been distributed and there no more available.  Next meeting is January 11, 2019. D. Friends of the Senior Center Meeting  The last meeting was Friday on 11/9 at 10am and there was good attendance, however it was noted that most were executive board members.  It was noted that there are 64 fewer members this year and S. Michalik is trying to identify what the issue is related to this change.  A report on the Dan Kane event was discussed. There was a profit of over $5000 for the event. There are also funds coming in from donations through CEL.  E. Laflamme reported on the fiscal stability of the building fund and there will be a check provided to the city soon. He continues to work on some larger donations to meet the remaining $300,000 gap.  It was noted that the Friends should be independent of the RiverMills as far as financial needs. The COA board should be making the decisions regarding programming at RiverMills but the Friends can donate funds for the programs. Members of the board should not be soliciting donations because of this relationship. It can be confusing when people are on both organizations as board members. This should be a future agenda item. o This concern is related to donations from deceased members for the patio and a butterfly garden and the lack of progress. o It was suggested that a meeting between the COA board and the Friends board to clarify roles.  There will be a concert on April 12, 2019 at Collegian Court with Sarah the Fiddler as an additional fundraiser. Capacity will be 180 and tickets will be $20 plus the cost of the meal. E. New Car  The new car has been received and is in use. Currently regular staff are driving but volunteers will start driving it once the routines are established for the new vehicles. o A hand held radio is being used for communication at this point.  The transportation office will eventually move to the front of the building to allow for more space. Wiring for communication will need to be moved.  There are 2 charging stations now available. The next car will be electric based on this availability F. RiverMills Café report  A report on expenses and revenue for the café for October. There continues to be a lot of positive feedback about the food that is available. There was over $370 brought in for election day.  G. Holiday Party  The holidays are approaching and request for recommendations for the RiverMills board Holiday Party. o A number of members suggested the Collegian Court because the service and food was well received last year. o The event will be 12/11 following the COA meeting at the Collegian Court. o Members are asked to let Sherry know if they will attend so that we can notify the venue. H. Maintenance issue  There has been an issue of snakes getting in the building as the weather changes. Last week there were 5 snakes. o An exterminator may need to intervene. o This may be due to the construction next door. I. New business  A question was raised about the missing lights in the parking lot. J. Croteau is aware of the issue V. Meeting adjourned at 5:45 Submitted by Karen S. Rousseau