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Shared Space Benefits Young and Old |
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"When we decided to combine the senior and childcare centers, we knew there would be some cost savings and programmatic advantages," says Syndi Zook, executive director of the Champlain Senior Center in Burlington, Vermont. "What we didn't realize was how deep the bond between the children and the elders would eventually become." The McClure Multi-Generational Center, which opened in March 1999, takes a novel approach to meeting the needs of what Zook calls "the two fastest growing segments of the population"—young children and senior citizens. Home to both the Champlain Senior Center and Children's Space, an accredited, nonprofit childcare program, the 14,000-square-foot multigenerational facility sits on a former brownfields site in the heart of the Old North End Enterprise Community. Burlington is 1 of 136 urban and rural communities nationwide participating in the Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community program, which relies on tax incentives, technical assistance, and federal grants to spur private investment and create local partnerships for revitalization. Slightly more than half of the McClure Center's $2.3 million construction budget came from 250 private contributors. "Almost everyone can relate to pressures we face finding the best care for our kids and our parents," notes Brenda Torpy, executive director of the Burlington Community Land Trust, the center's developer. Tenure has advantages. "The groups were helped by the fact that they had a long history in the community," says Torpy. The organization running the senior center has been in existence since 1966; Children's Space began operating in 1984. "They had well-respected, though not well-monied, boards," comments Torpy, "and the concept of a multigenerational facility was attractive—it struck a chord in our community." Combining the two centers under one roof helped with fundraising. "There were quite a few capital campaigns going on," says Zook. "It wouldn't have worked as well if we went out separately and competed for funding." The groups spent approximately 5 years in what Zook calls preproduction. Before seeking funding, they spent time educating the public about their work and their mission. Fiscal accountability. "The public wants human services," says Zook, "but they want human services that are fiscally responsible." She notes that the Champlain Senior Center and Children's Space have worked hard to become cost-effective. Through their shared facility, the two centers have been able to reduce operating costs while improving quality. "We only need one copier, one cleaning company, one TV/VCR on wheels, one piano on wheels," says Zook. Construction of the Multi-Generational Center was also cost-effective, according to Zook. "Given the cost of renovating the buildings we were in, it made just as much sense to build a new building." A new lease on life. The Burlington Land Trust had been involved in the cleanup of several brownfields sites when it learned of the two centers' relocation needs. "We had a 1-acre site that we thought would work," notes Torpy. The property, managed by a local bank, had been the site of a laundromat and had been contaminated with a cleaning solvent. The land trust had tried unsuccessfully to locate a food shelf and a business incubator for technology on the lot. After months of extensive meetings among the three entities, the two centers hired the land trust to develop the new multigenerational center. With $75,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds as seed money, the groups began a capital campaign that raised $1.2 million. The groups also secured $350,000 from the proceeds of tax-exempt bonds and an additional $350,000 from the sale of the old senior center. The land trust purchased the former brownfields site with its own funds for slightly less than $120,000. According to Torpy, the bank that owned the lot had already done much of the cleanup. Fundraising took less time than organizers envisioned. "We held a number of focus groups prior to the campaign to determine the feasibility of our fundraising goal," says Torpy. In less than a year the funds were in hand. According to Torpy, the bottom line is that "we've got a very civic-minded community here in Burlington." Such philanthropy and the unique appeal of a multigenerational care facility has enabled staff to raise the needed $860,000 each year to operate the McClure Center. Fees for childcare and contributions from federal, state, and local governments cover slightly more than half of the $630,000 annual budget for Children's Space. Fundraising and grant writing bring in the rest. The Champlain Senior Center raises all of its $230,000 from outside sources. A variety of services. The Multi-Generational Center provides daycare and preschool programs for children ages 6 weeks to 12 years. More than 200 families, many of them low-income, use the childcare center, which is open from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. each weekday and has modified weekend hours. "The extended hours have gone a long way toward moving women from welfare to work," says Torpy. Children's Space has been enrolling students for its new Head Start program, which recently opened. The Champlain Senior Center, which provides an activity-based program for adults at least 60 years old, reaches more than 500 people each year and provides approximately 10,000 meals annually. The center recently began offering adult daycare to the more frail members of Burlington's senior community. Each day at the McClure Center children and seniors come together, either formally or informally. "In addition to our ongoing daily literacy programs [in which seniors read to the children], we bring the groups together for a variety of classes, such as art," says Zook. "We program on three levels," says Cynthia McCarthy, assistant director of Children's Space. "There are regular, planned activities such as 'Book Buddies,' one-time events such as this summer's multigenerational barbeque, and collaborative efforts whereby an outside organization comes in and offers programming." McCarthy points to a recent 6-week course, Food, Fun, and Learning, which taught preliteracy skills to preschoolers and provided nutrition counseling to adults. Community benefits. Eighteen months into this intergenerational experiment, Zook remains excited about the McClure Center's prospects. She notes that the interaction among the seniors and children has had an unexpected payoff. "The parents of the children are captivated by the elders. In many cases parents have practically taken the seniors into their families. Many parents invite them to dinner and bring them gifts at the holidays. It's been a real plus for the community." Such interactions are not the only community benefit. The McClure Center features space designed specifically with the community in mind. In addition to a computer library, the center has two conference rooms and a large multipurpose room, which has been booked solid since its doors opened. "We're in an area of town without many businesses or banks—places where people can go to meet," says Zook. "So the Girl Scouts and AA [Alcoholics Anonymous] meet here, as do an adoptive parents group and the co-op association from apartments just around the block." "Community outreach is built into both our missions," says McCarthy of Children's Space. The community space not only helps us to fulfill those missions, she says, but it lets residents see what Children's Space is doing for them. McCarthy notes that the senior and childcare centers have used the community space to build goodwill by hosting a number of activities, such as community dinners and movies. The future of the McClure Center is bright, according to Zook. "It's a love affair over here," she exclaims. "Not only does the community appreciate what we do, but we really enjoy being here." For more information, contact: Syndi Zook, Executive Director, Champlain Senior Center, (802) 658–3585; Brenda Torpy, Executive Director, Burlington Community Land Trust, (802) 862–6244; Cynthia McCarthy, Assistant Director, Children's Space, (802) 658–1500, ext. 19. Or see: What Works! in the Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities, Volume IV, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2000.
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