Senior Center Construction Nears Completion; Kitchen to Close for a Week
Rosie Walter, senior services director, provided a quarterly update to the Saline County Commission covering July through September 2026, highlighting ongoing construction and a temporary kitchen closure at the senior center.
Walter said the west side entrance was lost during parking lot construction, prompting the AMBUCS Breakfast Bandits to build a ramp on the east side free of charge. A Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) project included a change order involving removal of perimeter sidewalks, a new zero-entry sidewalk, and demolition and back-filling of a mechanical tunnel beneath the west parking area with engineered soil. A previously unknown utility tunnel with concrete walls was also discovered and had to be removed.
The project added 18 additional parking spaces on the north side along with new sidewalks. Walter estimated the parking lot and landscaping work could be completed in no more than three weeks. She said solar panel installation, awarded to Hutton, cannot begin until the CDBG work is completed and paid for due to grant regulations.
Walter said the center's kitchen will need to be shut down for about a week during construction. To maintain meal service, the center arranged shelf-stable food from a vendor met at a Meals on Wheels conference, and plans to prepare soups and cold-cut sandwiches in-house. The Saline County sheriff will help deliver the food. She said a date would depend on the construction schedule.
Walter reported 32,739 meals served during the quarter and 95,051 meals through the third quarter, with 98% subsidized. She said the figures represent growth over the same period in 2025 and 2024 despite the renovations. She also noted a $5,000 donation from the McCune & Middlekauff Foundation to support holiday gifts for homebound seniors, and said last year's fundraising letter campaign raised a little over $93,000.
Walter added that the senior center is working with United Way and Sunflower Adult Day Services to identify temporary space following a fire, potentially offering a room at the senior center on a temporary basis. Commissioners praised the center's staff, volunteers and community collaboration.
