PITTSBURGH, PA (October 4, 2021) The City of Pittsburgh has announced the proposed purchase of 80 Wabash Street, the building that houses the West End Healthy Active Living (Senior) Center.
The City has managed the senior center in this location for 21 years through a $60,000 annual lease with Smith & Bowen. The property will remain a senior center and it’s anticipated that within six years the lease payments will pay off the property. The Department of Public Works will work with the Department of Parks and Recreation, who manage the City’s senior centers, to do renovations to the building over the next several years to expand senior programming.
“I’d like to thank Mayor Peduto, Chief of Staff Dan Gilman, Public Works Acting Director Chris Hornstein and Parks and Recreation Director Ross Chapman for helping this become a reality for the seniors in the West End and nearby neighborhoods. The center has become an integral part of our community, including serving as a food distribution site during the middle of the pandemic. I’d also like to thank the staff of the senior center who work tirelessly to make this senior center a home away from home for our older neighbors,” said City Council President Theresa Kail-Smith.
The center serves hundreds of individuals and the weekly programming includes senior meals, instructor-led workshops, crocheting, painting, exercise activities and more. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the West End Healthy Active Living Center has served 12,620 Grab n Go meals to qualifying seniors. Through a program with Allegheny County, the center has distributed 70 free laptops and are currently hosting computer classes.
"The purchase of the West End Senior Center facility and adjacent property will afford the City an opportunity to reimagine what this center and its offerings might look like in the future,” said Louann Horan, Department of Parks and Recreation Assistant Director of Senior Programming. “Expanded programming, access to additional services and a thriving community of senior members is what we hope to realize. Acquiring this property now allows us to think more creatively and strategically about delivering improved services and support to our seniors."
The City will be purchasing the property for $374,000 total and the acquisition will be presented to City Council tomorrow for their approval.
