Officials meet to consider senior center schematic

CLOVIS - Members of the city's Senior Center Task Force met Wednesday afternoon to consider architects' latest rendering of schematics for a new senior center. But a vote to proceed will have to wait another week or so for the group to have a quorum.

Plans presented for the forthcoming Hillcrest Park Senior Center focus on accessibility and versatility, with a sliding wall in the dining area that can split the space containing 54 six-head tables into a separate section for activities while others eat. Architects from the firm NCA in Albuquerque said during their presentation in Clovis' City Hall that mid-century architectural concepts were at play in their designs, bringing in natural light and featuring heavy timber and brick in the building materials.

"We want to make it an inviting, soft environment rather than a harsh environment," said Project Manager Dave Puritz.

A larger kitchen space will allow staff to move from batch cooking, with the result of increased labor and resource efficiency. Solar power is still an option given roof space, said NCA's Robert Calvani, but the architects veered away from a pitched roof design since it had the effect of making the large dining area look too much like a gymnasium.

The project is still in schematic design phase, following which comes design development and the "beginning of construction documents," Calvani explained. That will have to wait until the task force can convene a quorum of its members, of which it was short on Wednesday, explained City Manager Justin Howalt.

There's not a tremendous rush on that account because the task force's anticipated application for funding on the project is not due until April, and it's expected to be a couple of years more before the new site is operational.