Senior haven

Diana Sahagun

Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2000 | 11:13 a.m.

Senior citizens could one day be playing cards, getting medical treatment and enjoying other services at what is now a Mormon chapel near Lake Mead and Las Vegas boulevards.

The building at 700 Lola Ave. is being eyed by city officials as a home for the city's first senior recreation center. The city has made an offer on the property, but the official of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City who was to make the decision is recovering from the flu.

Parks and Recreation Director Eric Dabney said he hopes either that official or someone else will decide this week. Two other offers are pending on the building as well, he said.

While the department waits, the city's redevelopment agency will consider at Wednesday night's meeting setting aside $100,000 toward the purchase of the property. Redevelopment Manager Kenny Young said that portion represents about one-fourth of the total price.

If the chapel is sold to the city, the Parks and Recreation Department will take over with programming.

Currently, there is no dedicated senior center in North Las Vegas. The city's lone recreation center at 1638 N. Bruce St. offers several programs for seniors throughout the day, such as computer classes and workout activities.

"In North Las Vegas we don't have a bona fide senior center, and we provide very limited space in the rec center to accommodate their needs," Dabney said. "Their numbers are growing, and we have run out of space in the rec center to offer programs for seniors and other age groups."

North Las resident Evie Kinney, 61, says the problem is that there are no advocates for seniors in the city.

"There is no place where the seniors can really get together and just be seniors and feel comfortable," she said. "Throwing them together with teenagers is just not a good idea. The seniors need classes, someplace where they can discuss mutual interests and mutual problems."

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, for the past five years Las Vegas has led the nation in the number of seniors moving into the community. The two fastest growing age groups of the Las Vegas Valley population are people over 65 and people under 21.

"It's a weird project," Young said. "We haven't done anything like this before ... but we're looking at how we can be creative with other city departments. It was a nice fit in terms of being able to put redevelopment dollars toward the project."

Young said the chapel, which is still being used, could be utilized "as-is" without any major improvements, from day one. It has a gymnasium, meeting rooms, and a huge kitchen.

The center will offer classes, transportation, and a place for medical health service providers throughout the valley to provide assistance under one roof, once or twice a week.

"We will benefit by working with the redevelopment agency," Dabney said. "We can set the tone and set the example by doing something positive in the redevelopment area and meeting a very critical need for senior citizens."

Resident Ed Gardner, 72, said he's never been to a senior center, but says he would if the city offered one.

"I would get into something like that, since I haven't got into the whole senior deal," he said. "If they had some card games you could sit down and play, it would be a good deal."