Senior Affairs Commission

ROSE CITY SENIOR CENTER 8 Mahan Drive, Norwich, Connecticut 06360 (860) 889-5960 • fax: (860) 885-1160 SENIOR AFFAIRS COMMISSION ...-­ Meeting of March 16,2015 ----­ r-",,\-__ iiI c=-..,~ Members in Attendance: Vice Chairperson Gen Bergendahl, Secretary Marga~fh Aldrich, and Regular Member Jacquelyn Randall. Absent were: Chairperson Olive Buddington, Regular Member Michael Lahan, and Alternate Members Frank Jacaruso and Jan Stewart. Attending staff member were Lee-Anne Gomes, Mike Wolak and Anne Barriere. Vice Chairperson Gen Bergendahl determined there was a quorum and called the meeting to order. Minutes: The minutes from 11-17-14 were approved as submitted. Communications: Michael shared that AARP 1004 sent a letter and a check for $300 as a donation for the use of the dining room, program bulletin board and kitchen facilities for their monthly chapter meetings. They also donated $150 to pay for the Norwich Bulletin which we receive daily. The estate of Ida Dilimetinian sent a check for $200 which she had directed to be given to the Senior Center in her will. Human Services Report: Lee-Ann shared some of her extensive to-do-list which includes all the feedback and suggestions from staff and seniors for the improvement of Human Services and the Senior Center. Meeting with division supervisors each month and a Friday Update which is sent to each staff member are active and ongoing. Each staff member now has an email address so they can receive the updates and any other department or City news at work. We are doing quarterly reports with goals and targets to meet. We've written the CDBG grants, we've reviewed policies. Every month the staff is given a different policy to review. This month we're doing Family Medical Leave so that people are refreshed on policies and if they have any questions they can be ask their supervisors. Lee-Ann says she has addressed the request by the Senior Affairs Commission to split off from the Human Services Department with a letter to the Charter Revision Commission and attended a meeting and spoken with them about why she thinks it is beneficial to keep the Human Services divisions together. A copy of the letter is enclosed. We've presented our budget. We've gotten the preliminary budget back from John Bilda, the Acting City Manager. The Senior Center looks great in there. A new van is slated to be funded out of the Capitol Budget and other requests by Mike are tentatively approved as well. We had sent a letter to our elected officials saying congratulations on their recent elections and these are the things that our department is concerned about. One of the things that the seniors put in there is on Senior Safety Zones for sex offenders to make sure no sex offenders are allowed to be in the area of the Senior Center. That bill did come up for a hearing and Senator Osten was the champion of that bill. A vote is still to be scheduled. We've added staff to Human Services by taking the funding for Lee-Ann's old supervisor position and reinstated a lost case worker position. This allowed Hallie to be return to that position at Human Services and Carolyn to return to her original position at Outreach Worker at the Senior Center. Also, all the case workers are meeting once a week to share and review programs available to all populations so all workers can access them directly for their clients. Here at the Senior Center, Lee-Ann has shadowed the drivers and the receptionist, spoken to the program administrator and office coordinator to learn about their responsibilities. She spent over an hour and a half with Mike touring and learning about the Center which included learning about the codes and his concerns for repairs and updates for the building. Lee-Ann has read all Mike's grants and is now familiar with them as well. Lee-Ann considers herself a 'doer' and likes to get things done so if anyone has any concerns or suggestions be sure to let her or Mike know. Gen asked Lee-Ann why she promotes the Senior Center staying under the umbrella of Human Services. Lee-Ann answered that she sees many efficiencies available by the divisions staying together. She describes family needs as not just being for children, young adults or seniors but a blend of all age groups. If we stay together, Lee-Ann sees this as a way of promoting a whole continuum with information flowing better and being better understood. Senior Center Report: Mike shared that we have some new and exciting things happening at the Senior Center. An architect has come through the building several times looking at different areas that need repair or improvement such as painting, flooring and some exterior stuff like surface cleaning and stucco repair. In side we hope to split the ceramic room into two areas so the hairdresser will have a dedicated space and the rest of the area will be available for other programs and activities. Most of these renovations should be done within the next few months beginning with the roof. Tomorrow we are holding our annual Corned Beef and Cabbage Fundraiser. We have currently registered 220 sit-down meals as well as 8 Take-out meals. Chairperson's Report/Legislative Report: None. Old Business: None. New Business: Just a note that this year we did a little snow shoveling program, matching up seniors and disabled folks who were unable to get out of their homes due to the snow and ice with some youth and unemployed adults who wanted to earn a little money and paid them with funds from Human Services for disabled adults or the Golden Wishes program for seniors. Lee-Ann hopes to formalize this program for next year addressing some transportation issues for the workers and possibly expanding to help those who can pay but have no one reliable to call. Another idea to help seniors in the winter is someone who can help them walking their dogs when the weather is bad. Next Meeting: Monday, April 20, 2015 at 9:00 a.m., at the Rose City Senior Center. Respectfully submitted, 11f~4~/acb Margaret Aldrich, Secretary MA/acb Regular meetings of the Commission are scheduled on the 3 rd Monday of Mar/Apr/May and Sept/Oct/Nov  t~~"C<~~ ~1~J.~: ..•.•.!f!! "".... " ", EsrAllUSI-lED 1659 CITY OF NORWICH CONNECTICUT 100 Broadway ALAN H. BERGREN CITY MANAGER Norwich. CT 06360 (860) 823-3747 Fax (860) 885-2131 October 1.2014 Senior Affairs Commission Members Dear Commission members: Thank you for your correspondence regarding splining the Senior Center off into a separate department. Your comments were also distribuled to the City Council. Chapler XlIl. Section 7 of the Charter of the City of Norwich specifically slates that "The Director of Social Services (Human Service Director) shall have supervisory responsibility for... the Norwich Senior Center... .". Therefore, the City Charter designates that the Senior Center is part of the Department of Social Services. In the process of developing my proposed budget over the last few years to present 10 the Council, I have always looked at whal the needs of the Senior Center are and as necessary, discussed any concems with the Director of Senior Citizen Services. My budget recommendations are based not on anyone overarching agency, but the specific needs of each division. The Director always has an opportunity to meet with me to address any items that he has and I have always treated his recommendations seriously. That will continue. The City Manager is the authorized signatory for most, ifnot all grants, etc. for the City; department heads are usually not authorized to sign documents on behalf of the City. The City Council authorizes the City manager to sign municipal documents. J am not aware of any situation where signing documents affected timely subminal. I appreciate that the Commission members took the time to provide comment during the budget process and encourage all our residents to become actively involved in supporting City agencies that provide important services to our residents. Si~ril!2e Alan H. Bergren City Manager ~ C: Mayor Deberey Hinchey City Council members Mike Wolak. Direclor of Senior Citizen Services Please note that the correct Charter reference is Chapter XIII section 6. The letter mistakenly refers to section 7. I apologize for the error. Alan m (1 '- -' -..... ",,_.J'­ rn U  ....., => .J..J z::? 0-"; __ 0 ---1 ,00:-:=:_. <..rJ :3'= :;p. ::0 n, r', :i~0 tV '..... "f =:=<! \---" Ul !f-~ :z.:C) ESTABUSHED /659 Or­ lJ -~- -.'--... -;111 CITY OF NORWICH ::0 ~ f>? ni. CONNECTICUT 0 w 0 . NORWICH HUMAN SERVICES 80 Broadway Adult & Family Services-Youth & Family Services-Rose City Senior Center Norwich, CT 06360 (860) 823-3778 Fax (860) 823-3793 December 31,2014 Dear Charter Revision Commission, The Rose City Senior's Center Senior Affairs Commission has requested to be annexed from the Department of Human Services. As the recently appointed the Director of Human Services, it is now appropriate for me to share my thoughts concerning this matter. The reasons cited by the Senior Center advisory board for wanting to become their own department are: that the number of programs and services offered warrant a separate department, that the current director is a capable manager and for expedience of signing documents. Please know that I feel a disservice to seniors and to the delivery of services in Norwich would occur should this request be granted. My vision for collaboration and coordination of services includes streamlined processes that would improve access for all Norwich residents, throughout the stages of their lives. By having one department services can be delivered more effectively, with less bureaucracy, and more cost efficiently. For example, a senior presenting at the RCSC for recreational opportunities may also be raising their grandchildren and be eligible for services from our Youth and Family Services division and from the Respite and Kinship programs offered by our Adult and Family Services division. By maintaining communication amongst the three divisions this can more readily be accomplished. Having separate departments can create silos where communication falters. Many ofthe programs offered by the RCSC can, and should, be offered to populations served by the other two divisions of the Department and vice versa. We look forward to creating a more direct linkage to services at the Center and in facilitating access to populations typically underserved, such as young elderly and minority communities. Creating an additional department head will have long lasting financial impacts in the City. Additional compensation must be paid in form of wages and benefits afforded department he~ds.  ESTABLISHED /659 CITY OF NORWICH CONNECTICUT NORWICH HUMAN SERVICES 80 Broadway Adult & Family Services-Youth & Family Services-Rose City Senior Center Norwich, CT 06360 (860) 823-3778 Fax (860) 823-3793 As noted by the City Manager in his response, the timely singing of documents has not been, and will not be, an issue going forward. Concerns regarding budget issues will be handled by the Manger and through public hearings to ensure fairness and that the will of constituents is carried out. We believe government should be seeking out ways to streamline, consolidate and collaborate, not create more independent entities. I believe there is more efficiency in staffing and functions that can still be obtained by continuing this umbrella agency. I certainly agree that the director of the RCSC is an extremely capable person and I look forward to working closely with him to meet the needs of this very important segment of our community. Please do not hesitate to call on me with any additional questions or concerns you may have. Sincerely, Lee-Ann Gomes Norwich Human Services  10 Country Drive Norwich, CT. 06360 October 21,2014 Les King Chairman, Charter Revision Committee 36 Boswell Avenue Norwich, CT. 06360 Dear Mr. King, Attached is a letter which was sent to the City Manager, Alan Bergren, May 30, 2014, signed by the entire Senior Affairs Commission members. The letter is self~explanatory and states our wishes for the Rose City Senor Center to be a separate entity as it was originally. It was unanimously passed at the October 20, 2014, Senior Affairs Commission meeting to forward the attached letter to you for the Charter Revision Committee to consider changing Chapter XII], Section 6 in the Charter by removing the Rose City Senior Center from being part of Social Services and becoming a separate department, with the director being a department head. The Commission thanks you in advance for your serious consideration in this important matter. We do hope the committee will honor our request. Sincerely, ......., -l = <.-n ....JJ 0 Margaret Aldrich, Secretary ::Z::;;~ = ::::> rlj Senior Affairs Commission 0-:;-..­ = '''-'''1 ~g ~-' ­ ~ ~ (.n i t ~ T C-) 0"­ -"ill U -----.. .... ::0 /' l)? lTl 0 w LJ