With a growing senior population, Gwinnett has plans to spend an estimated $11.2 million of recently approved 2017 SPLOST funds for senior services. The one-cent special local option sales tax is expected to generate $950 million over the next six years.
In the past, Gwinnett used 2014 SPLOST funds to obtain two food delivery trucks, three 14-passenger buses, and two cars for homemakers to use on visits to clients. In addition, three of the county’s four senior centers received capital improvements.
The 8,500-square foot Centerville Senior Center located in the Centerville Community Center gained a warming kitchen and dining room, game room, exercise area, craft room, common space, a computer area, and ancillary spaces. The Buford Senior Center was renovated to transform a former adult day care center space into an active part of the facility, expanded the dining room, and now has a small addition for new program space. The Norcross Senior Center was also renovated to upgrade the dining room, kitchen, and restrooms with new finishes and furnishings.
Gwinnett is currently working on recommendations for senior service facilities that would be funded by the 2017 SPLOST. Projects may only be used for capital improvements and could include renovation of existing senior facilities, construction of new facilities and purchase of additional vehicles.
Where within the county would you like to see senior services expanded? Can you recommend new facilities, improvements needed at existing senior centers or ideas for additional capital investments to help expand or add services for the county’s aging population? Send comments to communitynews@ajc.com.
LAST WEEK: DID POLL WORKER DO RIGHT BY ASKING MOTHER OF CRYING CHILD TO LEAVE?
A mother, a crying toddler and a polling place: That was a volatile combination in Decatur on Nov. 3, when a DeKalb County woman was directed to leave during early voting because her 2-year-old daughter was having a meltdown. She was told she could return later to cast her ballot, after the child calmed down. Mom posted her story to Facebook, where it quickly generated comments and “shares.” Was the poll manager right to eject mother and child?
Here’s what readers had to say:
This mother should not have been told to return later. Many people can't afford child care in order to stand in line to vote, and many don't know anyone who could provide high-quality care on an hourly basis. Also, transportation could be an issue. Even if these were not issues, a parent who has been in line to vote, and whose child is having a noisy meltdown, should be treated like an elderly or physically challenged voter and moved to the head of the line (especially if parent has multiple children to oversee). That would make things more peaceful for other voters and help the parent quickly remove the child from the area. The few minutes of distraction the other voters have to endure while the parent votes is not a major problem, and everyone should be empathetic. If we say we value children in America, we need to make some reasonable accommodations sometimes. Children could be cranky for many very understandable reasons, and their parents should not be punished at the polls. — Janice Arcuria
I totally agree with the poll manager for sending the woman home with her unruly daughter. Thank you for taking a stand in this ridiculously P.C. world and risking just this kind of scrutiny by asking her to politely leave and sparing the hundreds of other voters from suffering from several hours of listening to her out-of-control daughter's meltdown! Motherhood is difficult sometime, but after making years of arrangements for our own children, do not for a second think we are sympathetic, that we are expected to put up with your out-of-control child for several already interminable hours while we are patiently waiting to cast our votes. So, sorry; if you cannot afford a babysitter, you should have planned ahead and requested a free absentee ballot to be sent to you. — Peggy King
Yes! The poll manager made the right call to remove the crying child. When you are trying to make your voting choices, you should not have to do so with the distraction of an unhappy child. The mother should have made arrangements to go vote with her husband or a friend to keep the children out of the voting booth. The rest of us should not be inconvenienced by her poor choices. Thank you, poll manager. — Sharon Newcomb
I'm empathetic with parents of small children. I was a single, custodial father. And I regularly had to make alternative arrangements for my young daughter. Obviously, not all places are child friendly. Parents need to realize other people don't think misbehaving kids are cute. Especially noisy ones! The solution is simple: Make babysitting arrangements. It's all part of responsible parenting. If your child is creating a disturbance at the voting precinct, you should leave long before a poll worker is required to intervene. If you choose to take your children to places like voting precincts, first make sure they are well-disciplined and very, very quiet. I applaud the poll manager's judgment call. — Donald Varn
Absolutely the right call! — Grant Krueger
As a parent who has taken her children to every election since birth and watched them cast their ballots for the first time this year, I have to agree with the polling manager's decision to ask the mom to return at a later time. In the original article, the mother said the building and strange faces were upsetting her daughter. Her daughter was behaving normally for her age. If she was that upset, it should have been the mother's decision to take a break and return later, not the poll manager's. Voting is an adult responsibility. Polling locations are designed for adults, not children. As parents, we take pride in exposing our children to the duties and responsibilities of our lives with the hopes of raising responsible and civic-minded adults. However, her right to vote and her role as a mother needed balance. While I sympathize with the mother trying to get the job done, a child in tears is distracting. We are rightly conditioned to respond to children's needs. Ask anyone who has tried to grocery shop, eat at a restaurant or enjoy a public outing while a baby is crying. We want to fix it, and we hold deep empathy for the struggling parent. We've all been there. Ultimately, she was not denied the right to vote; she was able to return and cast her ballot. — Abigail Bridgeman
Why did they make the parents wait? I voted early in Gwinnett with my newborn in tow. They gave me VIP treatment by taking me right to the front of the line and getting me to a machine. A women behind me had a 2- and 4-year-old with her. Same thing – right to a machine. Maybe it's not fair to those waiting in line, but it sure keeps the peace and tension down. — Shana Cooper
Yes, the poll workers made the right call. Voters in the booths are trying to read through referendums that can be wordy and confusing, and they need to concentrate on what they're doing. This, of all places, should be quiet and free of distractions. No one was denied the right to vote, but instead the poll workers protected the right of others to vote without distraction. A polling place is a "grown up" place. That doesn't mean kids have to be barred from it, but their disturbances can't be tolerated. If this woman was in the public library and her kid started wailing, she'd be asked to leave there, too. If she was at a wedding or funeral or church service, she'd either be asked to leave or get some dirty looks if her child was wailing. — Mary Baldwin
This is an example of not being considerate of others in an adult situation. If I remember correctly, you can request a mail-in ballot, or you can ask family members, church members, husband, friends, baby sitters to look after a small child or children for a brief time to vote. The same thing applies to sit-down restaurants. If I am paying an exorbitant price for a meal, I don't want to listen to unruly kids crying or running around the dinning area. When my kid was small, I didn't take him to a sit-down restaurant out of respect for other patrons. People who have children should be prepared to make the adjustments needed for adult situations. McDonald's come to mind. — Tom Loftin
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