Trustees Say No Money for Bath Seniors

The question has been out there since September: Will the township pay to build a center for its approximately 3,000 senior citizens? Becky Corbett has been studying the idea since fall. She gave the local government's answer near the end of last night's meeting before an audience mostly filled with members of Citizens for Bath Seniors.  

"We don’t fund any special interests groups or programs," Corbett said. "We don’t; no room rentals, refreshments, copying, mailing fees or program supplies are provided through township tax funds.  In light of this, I want to continue by saying that the trustees are not neglecting nor ignoring our senior citizens."

Levy or regional approach is needed

After the meeting, Corbett said the only way a senior center would be built is if a majority of residents placed a levy on the ballot and approved spending tax money to pay for it. That's something that hasn't been successful in the past.

The list of expenses Corbett ticked off during the meeting as inappropriate uses for township money came from a February letter to trustees from the CBS group. The letter asked the township to pay for expenses the seniors incur when they meet in a local church.

Many communities in our area have these types of senior activities funded by local government, the letter stated. Bath Township needs to "step up to the plate" ... as it has provided funding for the recreational needs of the younger residents.

Corbett told the audience she has been meeting with groups in Copley Township and Fairlawn to see whether Bath seniors could be included in their activities. She invited the CBS group to share the Bath Township table at a Senior Fair scheduled for April 14 at the Copley Community Center. 

Richfield Village, which funds a senior citizens center with an annual $58,000 appropriation from council, permits Bath seniors to join its center for a $15 yearly fee. The membership covers a monthly calendar; activities like tai chi, bingo and yoga are extra.

Corbett said she also is working on getting Bath seniors included in events at the Fairlawn Community Center.

"We hope to put together a regional approach to meet our citizens' needs," Corbett said. "In today's world, a regional approach is becoming necessary."

Trustee Elaina Goodrich ran through a list of levies for a community and recreation centers have been consistently defeated at the polls since the 1960s. 

And when the meeting was open for comments, the only speaker on the senior issue also opposed funding a center. 

Not all seniors want center

Penny Marquette, 66, who was Bath township's fiscal officer from 2002 to 2006, said a township-funded senior center wasn't possible, and she said seniors already use up more than their fair share of resources.

"It's been said that the inheritance tax (a proposed source of senior center funding) belongs to seniors. I do not dispute that fact," Marquette said. "The inheritance tax is an unreliable source of funding ... It can't be used to support any ongoing project -- and I 've got the credentials to say, I have the right to say that."

Marquette told the group she had traveled all over the country after retirement and returned to Bath to live. She suggested the seniors find volunteer activities for companionship "you just can't know how many friends you'll make," she said.

A senior center would be comparable to building a resort in uncertain economic times, Marquette said.  "It is not politically or economically possible to create the equivalent of Sun City. It just cannot be done, I don't think, at this time."  

Citizens group will persist, plan next step

Seniors from the pro-center group did not respond to Corbett or Marquette's comments during the public comments section of the meeting. The group will ask for a recording of the meeting so they can plan a next step, 90-year-old CBS member Rosalie Steiner said.

Following the meeting, CBS member Pat Hopper, 65, said she was disappointed in the tone of the discussion. "To turn a request for a simple building into Sun City is a bit much, don't you think?"

Senior Pat McRowe, 69, said the group will continue its requests of the township, but it isn't asking for anything to happen tomorrow. "We are willing to wait and (build support) as Richfield did," she said. "What we're asking for isn't extremely expensive and wouldn't be the first service the township provided to one group. All the baseball diamonds were built for kids (which the township pays to maintain). Why not do something for seniors?"