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7. How will the proposed regional senior center be governed? <br /> . The senior center task force is proposing that the four cities establish a thir- <br /> teen member joint powers authority. It would include representation from all <br /> four communities, as well as senior representation. <br /> 8. When would the proposed senior center be built? <br /> If the four city councils approve the senior center concept in early 1993,the <br /> senior center could be ready for operation in early 1994. <br /> 9. Will there be a referendum on the senior center issue? <br /> There could be a referendum in those communities that would need to issue <br /> bonds to cover their share of construction costs. If, however, communities use <br /> existing resources to cover construction costs, a referendum is unnecessary <br /> and may not be legal. In any event,there will be many opportunities for <br /> individuals to voice their opinions at the public hearing processes that are <br /> scheduled for the four city councils. Whether or not there is a referendum will <br /> ultimately be up to each of the four city councils. <br /> 10. What will happen if the regional senior center is not approved in <br /> each of the four cities? <br /> • It is difficult to tell. One thing is fairly certain; the project will need the <br /> support of the two larger cities (Fridley and New Brighton) in order to be <br /> financially feasible. Even under these circumstances,financial feasibility is less <br /> than guaranteed. <br /> I 1. What are the advantages of a regional senior center over individual <br /> senior centers for each community? <br /> In general,the overall advantage is that a regional senior center will allow <br /> economies to scale in the delivery of senior services that are not available in <br /> each of the individual cities. One thing is certain, our senior population is <br /> growing. There is also a growing variety of needs for those seniors, including <br /> the needs for nutritional programs, health screening, transportation, and home <br /> maintenance assistance. <br /> A regional approach to providing for senior needs avoids duplication of <br /> facilities, manpower, and equipment. It also allows for the pooling of resources <br /> for the facility, staffing and programming. If resources are pooled, there is <br /> better opportunity for optimizing the use of these resources. <br /> • Finally,one can argue that the regional approach is providing senior services is <br /> very much in keeping with the current trend toward consolidation of govern- <br /> ment units. <br />