The jaws of an excavator loaded the remains of the Colorado Springs Senior Center into a dumpster last week, clearing the site south of the Patty Jewett Golf Course.

The new $15 million senior center on North Hancock Avenue could start taking shape in July with crews aiming to open the new building in August 2025, said Henry Martin, the city’s director of support services.

Seniors helped guide the design for the new building that will replace the old converted grocery store, he said. The entrance will face south to help melt the snow, the rooms will be multipurpose and a large space will double as two pickleball courts, he said.

“I know everybody is excited to get back into the building,” he said.

The city dedicated $8 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to the project and is covering the rest of construction costs through other sources such as grants, Martin said. For example, Lyda Hill Philanthropies was a large donor to the project.

Asbestos abatement was the largest contributor to project delays ahead of visible demolition that started about 30 days ago, he said. Officials expected to break ground on the new facility last August.

Senior center classes and clubs had to move out last summer to make way for demolition and some programs have moved into the Westside Community Center and the Downtown YMCA, said Tom Lathrop, the YMCA’s operations director for the center. Some of those offerings include exercise, painting and technology classes, as well as lectures on senior-specific topics, such as Medicare, he said.

The new 23,000-square-foot building will offer a long-term home for a larger slate of offerings and casual social gatherings, he said. The center expects to welcome back its senior clubs and groups that used the building previously, such as the animated canasta card games, and restart cooking and weaving classes in the building. The center also expects to restart its daily meals in the new building through Silver Key Senior Services, a nonprofit in town.

“We want people to get out of their homes and connect with others and have that community,” he said.

Loneliness and isolation can contribute to health impacts such as depression and cognitive decline, according to the National Institute on Aging.

The Senior Center’s offerings are similar to those of other YMCA locations, but it doesn’t require a monthly membership fee, Lathrop said. Seniors just pay for the classes they want to take.

The city’s Senior Center is the only one in town but as the population ages, Lathrop said he would like to community to consider additional locations.

Nationally, the number of people 65 and older is projected to boom from 58 million in 2022 to 82 million by 2050, according to the Population Reference Bureau.

Colorado Springs has also become more of a destination for retirees, he said.

More information about the center can be found at CSSeniorcenter.com.

Contact the writer at mary.shinn@gazettedev.gazette.com or (719) 429-9264.