Town Meeting approves Senior Center, drug program

SAUGUS – Neither seniors nor kids went home empty-handed during Monday’s Town Meeting.Members passed two articles, one aimed at keeping the Senior Center open and a second aimed at keeping a drug prevention program at the middle school running. Together, the articles will cost taxpayers $45,000.Council on Aging board member Peter Bogdan pointed out the number of silver-haired residents in the audience.”They’re here for this,” he noted as the article seeking $30,000 for the Senior Center came to the floor.The Senior Center operates essentially on grants. COA Chairman Richard Barry reminded meeting members that it lost its budget a year ago and the COA and Friends of the Senior Center emptied its coffers to keep the center going.”We didn’t realize we’d be in the same position this year, with no budget,” he said.While the center pulled together an impressive array of grants, it fell $30,000 short for fiscal year. The center is a hangout of sorts for hundreds of senior citizens but it also runs a highly successful lunch program that includes in-house meals as well as meals-on-wheels. Barry is quick to note that the meals-on-wheels program also doubles as well-being checks for shut-ins in town.The center also provides transportation for seniors to nine area hospitals.”We’re not an unknown entity,” Bogdan said. “We’re a viable part of the community and we won’t go away.”Youth and Recreation Director Greg Nickolas put in the plug for his need for $15,000 to continue a drug prevention program at the middle school.Nickolas said the fact that the town’s youth struggled with drug issues was no secret and he could provide cold, hard statistics to prove it. The good news he said, is it wouldn’t take a lot of money to try to turn things around.”However we’ve fallen short about $15,000,” he said. “We need it to finish laying the foundation. It’s extremely important program at the middle school and it’s wisely invested dollars.”Meeting members supported both articles 40-5 and 42-3 respectively, with little debate.The Senior Center, however, is not done. It will be back on Nov. 17 for the special Town Meeting within Town Meeting, where it will seek another $100,000 to keep the center open.When Gov. Deval Patrick made his budget cuts earlier this month the Senior Center saw its $200,000 grant cut in half, which effectively cut its budget in half.