MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The first earth has officially been moved on a much sought-after new library and senior center which Middletown's supervisor said will be a crowning jewel for the southern gateway into Lake County.
In a Wednesday morning gathering county officials and Middletown area residents came together to celebrate the groundbreaking for the new Middletown Senior Center and Library, which will be located at 21256 Washington St.
The county reported that the 12,377 square foot facility will include 4,400 square feet for the senior center portion, a 5,450-square-foot public library and a 2,527-square-foot common area.
The new footprint will give considerable new elbow room to the senior center and library. The county said that the current Middletown Senior Center at 15299 Central Park Road is 2,100 square feet and the existing Middletown Library at 21267 Calistoga Road is 1,790 square feet in size.
The project couldn't come at a more crucial time, as the Middletown Senior Center has seen a significant increase in the call for its services over the past four years, said senior center Director Jacque Spiker.
“I think it's directly attributed to the recession,” said Spiker, who added that there is a need for senior centers to pick up additional services for seniors that government has cut.
Funding sources for the dual use facility include $545,000 from Community Development Block Grant Program income, $40,000 toward construction of the library from Indian Gaming Mitigation Funds and $50,000 for library equipment from USDA’s Rural Development Community Facilities Program. Most of the remaining difference will be covered by the county.
At the Wednesday ceremony Supervisor Jim Comstock estimated that the center's construction will be completed in 300 days.
Deputy Redevelopment Director Eric Seely will oversee the $3.6 million project, which the Board of Supervisors awarded last month to R. E. West Construction of Santa Rosa.
During his comments at Wednesday's ceremony, County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox thanked the many groups and individuals who worked to make the center's plan go from paper to reality – from the Board of Supervisors to Jacque Spiker, and from county library staff to the Middletown Rancheria, among others.
He said the project serves as an important reminder of what can be accomplished even in the most challenging of times when many share one common goal.
Comstock called it “a fabulous day for our county.”
He recognized Spiker for her dedicated advocacy for seniors, and thanked Cox for his support. “Kelly really loves Lake County, and all parts of Lake County,” Comstock said.
Spiker said she was extremely excited about the new center. So is her cook, Linda Gillian, who along with her crew has been serving 16,000 Meals on Wheels annually out of a small kitchen.
The quest to find a new center has been going on for many years, Spiker said, but things never quite worked out. Then, one day Cox showed up and asked if they would like to share the new building.
Over the last 17 months the Middletown Senior Center has raised $24,000 toward the project, Spiker said.
She also remembered four men who have died in the past year who made up part of the senior center's “family” either as board members or volunteers – George Clements, Neil Harmon, Bob Whitley and Earl Rayls.
County Librarian Susan Clayton quoted Lady Bird Johnson on the importance of libraries to their communities: “Perhaps no place in any community is so totally democratic as the town library. The only entrance requirement is interest.”
Gehlen Palmer, who for the last 17 years has worked as the Middletown Library's coordinator of services, said he experienced “a huge sigh of relief” to see the library project moving forward.
Palmer said Dolores Lundberg, a community member who died last year, loved libraries and visited Middletown's. In her will she remembered the library, leaving it nearly $11,000, with the check just recently arriving.
Spiker told Lake County News after the ceremony that from day one the county has invited her and the center into the conversation with the architect.
Spiker said her wish list was for a 6,100 square foot facility in order to accommodate needs for the community's senior-related needs for the next 30 years, as a more active generation of seniors takes center stage.
While that was cut down to 4,400 square feet, she said the building has been designed to allow for expansion for both the center and the library.
Spiker said that in its new building Middletown Seniors Inc. will have an annual rent of $1, the same as their current lease agreement. Spiker said they have put significant funds into repairing their current building, which she estimated is about 45 years old and is owned by the Central Park Association.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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