Clayton senior center says it needs a larger home

CLAYTON — On weekdays in May, an average of 82 people squeezed into the 3,407 square feet that make up the Clayton Center for Active Aging.

They come for line dancing, cardio drumming, cornhole, bingo, trivia, crafts, musical performances, karaoke, health screenings and meals.

And they come in increasing numbers.

“For the month of May, our check-ins were 1,811 people, and we registered 14 new participants,” Diana Skinner, president of the senior center’s advisory board, told the Clayton Town Council recently.

Clayton is North Carolina’s fastest-growing city, gaining five new residents a day, Skinner noted. “They are coming for the lifestyle, cost of living, economic opportunities, and what follows many of these newcomers are the grandparents,” she said.

Their numbers will only grow as the last Baby Boomers retire.

“Between now and 2027, there will be 4,100,000 people turning 65 in this country,” Skinner said. “Many of them will relocate to this area.”

And many of those will come to the Clayton Center for Active Aging.

“We need more space to effectively service the increasing numbers of seniors moving to this area,” she said.

Town leaders are aware of the need, and at a meeting earlier this year, they said seniors were welcome to use space and programming at the Clayton Community Center.

“While we appreciate the offerings of the Clayton recreation center, the programs that they offer, for the most part, are not geared to the physical activity level for seniors,” Skinner said.

She asked the Town Council to join the Center for Active Aging in a building tailored for seniors. “Please consider in the future partnering with us to provide a larger facility so Clayton will be known as a town that takes care of all of their citizens,” Skinner said.

Mayor Jody McLeod, who attended that meeting with seniors, was sympathetic. “One of my biggest concerns was that seniors were being turned away from participating because the facility wasn’t large enough,” he said,  “And I thought, that’s a shame.”

But the mayor defended the town’s offer of existing space. “We’re trying to offer what we have access to … so that nobody gets turned away,” he said. “I think every kid deserves to play. It doesn’t matter if they’re 8 or 80.”

The council has to be wary of spending town tax dollars on projects that benefit people who live outside the town limits, McLeod said. He asked Skinner what percentage of senior center users live outside of town. “That’s a very important number,” the mayor said.

McLeod said any request for building help should also go before County Commissioners. “They’re the ones sitting on $250 million in reserves,” he said.

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