Council on Aging Board

The City of Lowell • Council on Aging 276 Broadway Street • Lowell, MA 01854 P: 978.674.4131 • F: 978.970.4134 www.LowellMA.gov Council on Aging (COA) Advisory Board Meeting Minutes Monday, September 9, 2019 at 9:00am Council on Aging Conference Room 276 Broadway St, Lowell MA 01854 I. Roll Call: In attendance were Joyce Dastou, Mary Donnelly, Beverly Gonsalves (guest), Mindy Dopler Nelson (guest), Lillian Hartman (Director), Andy Hostetler (Chair). John King (guest), Eric Lamarche, John Lawlor, Vincent Milinazzo II. Pledge of Allegiance III. Approval of Minutes: Minutes were approved unanimously. IV. Chairperson’s Report: Andy reported that most of his efforts since the previous meeting will be discussed under old and new business. V. Director’s Report: Lillian submitted a detailed written report (see attached), from which she summarized the highlights VI. Items for Discussion a. Old Business 1. Age Friendly Lowell focus areas: Andy and Lillian briefly reported on a recent meeting of the Age-Friendly Lowell collaborative initiative that is currently underway. Given that gas explosions in Lawrence have delayed an earlier age-friendly project in Lawrence (conducted by the same principal investigator), the Lowell project is still in the planning phases. We have assembled an advisory board that will meet regularly, and we are currently in the process of finding recent assessments and assessment tools that address areas/domains that we will also focus on.  The City of Lowell • Council on Aging 276 Broadway Street • Lowell, MA 01854 P: 978.674.4131 • F: 978.970.4134 www.LowellMA.gov 2. Review of annual member survey: Survey participants report being mostly satisfied with current senior center offerings, although several participants requested more movies and better and more varied meal options, improved parking. b. New Business 1. Nomination of Amy Pessia, Greater Lowell Food Bank: The Board reviewed the inquiry letter and resume of Amy Pessia, and the Board unanimously agreed that her nomination should be forwarded to the City Manager’s office. Lillian drafted a nomination letter; she will forward an electronic copy to Andy 2. Go Lowell Bike Working Group: Andy was recently asked to represent the Senior Center on a Bicycle Working Group that is part of the larger, GoLowell transportation initiative. Andy recently attended the first meeting of this group, where he shared the safety concerns that many seniors have related to bicycle traffic. He also encouraged the group to include outreach to younger seniors, many of whom are avid cyclers. Andy also asked the Board to share any additional concerns with him to take back to the working group. Finally, he announced a public forum to be held by GoLowell at the Senior Center on Wednesday, 9.11 at 6:00 PM. 3. Age guidelines for senior center activities: Lillian reviewed the current age guidelines for center activities. Because of the presence of the Pollard Memorial Library Annex, there can be no age restrictions on who enters the building. BINGO is limited to adults 60 and over in keeping with restrictions set by the State Lottery and the Friends group. Lillian proposed that access be provided to individuals between 55 and 60 in certain activities on a space-available basis. With respect to meals, adults must be 60 or over to  The City of Lowell • Council on Aging 276 Broadway Street • Lowell, MA 01854 P: 978.674.4131 • F: 978.970.4134 www.LowellMA.gov receive the reduced rate, but they can bring a guest under the age of 60, who would need to pay the actual meal cost. 4. Senior center activities and outreach: Lillian announced that she was looking into different outreach opportunities at upcoming events, and she made a general solicitation for volunteers to table or otherwise have a presence on behalf of the center at such events. Most Board members indicated that they would be willing to do this. 5. Building rental policies: The Senior Center is often asked to host events after hours (for example, 6 to 8 pm). We have been offering the use of the space for free, even though we have to pay staff to do so, making them less available during regular business hours. Board members agreed that, in the future, the organizations hosting such events should be asked to pay for overtime hours. 6. Scheduling next meeting (Senior Center is closed 10/14): The next meeting will be one week off our normal schedule due to the holiday; we will meet on Monday, 10/21 at 9:00 AM VII. Adjournment: Eric made a motion to adjourn and Joyce seconded it.