TriCounty Active Adult Center debuts new facility
The new TriCounty Active Adult Center has some big plans for area residents of a certain age seeking a place to enjoy themselves.
The new facility at 288 Moser Road hosted its open house Saturday, April 1, for interested residents to take a look at some of the exciting and plentiful opportunities available for their free time.
“This provides a safe haven for individuals over 50,” said Tom Spann, board president of the TriCounty Active Adult Center. “You only have to be over 50 to be a member. It provides a sense of community as well as offering programs that teach healthy living style. Pretty much anyone can use the information that we are providing. But the goal is to provide a safe haven for seniors to be every single day, provide meals and provide an education for healthy living.”
The new building, which used to be the Pottstown Health Club, provides enough space for over 90 different activities to take place. Proposed programs, some of which have begun already, include flower arranging classes, foreign languages, music lessons, yoga, cooking classes and much more.
“We just want as many people possible to come in and see the building and the programs and things that we’re able to offer,” said Sue McIntyre, the program’s director.
Directly past the entrance to the new center, residents were able to walk inside and see the facility’s dining room, complete with a side cafe area. They could then venture up to the second floor where they were met with a wide open room designed as a track for exercise. Adjacent rooms on the second floor include a classroom, a game room and a library. More rooms for other activities were also open on the third floor.
The new building and all its bells and whistles were not an overnight process, however. In
addition to generous donations from the public, the board was able to make the facility operational through the longtime work of two executive directors.
“It’s been a long and challenging road to get here,” said Brian Parkes, current executive director. “But the outpouring of support from the community has really been remarkable.”
The group had moved around from being located at 310 High Street to moving to the YMCA building for 13 years. Upon a change of ownership at the YMCA, the group purchased their new building on Moser Street and continued to raise money for it as they operated out of the Berean Bible Church, 2675 East High Street.
“We intended to be there (Berean Bible Church) just a short time but it ended up being more than three years,” said Bradley Fuller, former executive director who served until March 2014. “We wanted a facility that was close to 422 ... When we purchased this building we wanted a building that would be large enough to grow into rather than grow out of.”
The board appears to have achieved that goal, with more than 16,000 square feet of program and office space to use at the new location. The TriCounty Active Adult Center is also now one of the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania, according to Fuller.
The board of directors are hoping that the facility will be a place that the older adults in the community deserve and that it will continue to grow into a community center that will offer something for everyone.
“Obviously we serve older adults, age 50 and better, during the day. We want to expand into the evening to provide opportunities for people that might still be working but that might still want to participate in things like an age appropriate exercise class or educational seminars,” explained Parkes.
“So short term, we’re going to be expanding our hours and bringing in some new programs ... We want to grow this into the premier center for older adults in the tri-county area and want to be a focal point of the community. We want community groups to use this in the morning, for businesses to have meetings here, people to have weddings or anniversary parties here. We have rooms available for rent and so we’re looking forward to inviting the community in on weekends to really maximize the use of the space and have the opportunity to use a building that the community built.”
The TriCounty Active Adult Center currently has more than 3,000 members residing in the tri-county area. You do not need a membership to make use of the facility but $20 yearly memberships are available for residents who want to take advantage of member privileges.
To learn more about the TriCounty Active Adult Center visit www.tricountyaac.org.