By Marianne Lincoln

I was contacted by the Spana-Park Senior Center Director, Beth King and told they have been asked to leave the Marymount location by the LeMay Collection Museum at Marymount. I am currently looking into this and making contacts. There is a great deal of fear, animosity and suspicion among the parties. Attorneys are involved, so I want to check with all sources before telling much more.

In the meantime, those of you who are seniors need to be aware the site will be closing.

The problem began with the closure for COVID protocol. There were issues with facility roof leaks, a leak outside in a gas line, the lack of an updated lease document, cancellation of grant funding through Pierce County Human Services, and the potential of using the site for a community center rather than a senior center. The story is complicated with a lot of he said, she said. The attorneys will have to work that out.

What I would like to say is the cancellation of funding from Pierce County impacted them significantly. The Director, Beth King is seeking a donor to help pay the phone bill of $463.03 so she can continue to monitor the organizations possessions that they have been unable to control while not onsite. Their video works off the Internet paid in the phone bill. Beth has stated the landlord is controlling access and they do not wish to lose possessions. Moving costs money and their funding was cut.

In order to move out, the organization needs a place to move their furnishings, appliances and material to, but they do not have a place to store them until they can find another location to set up. If you know anyone with available storage to donate, please contact them though Facebook.

Update: Councilmember Marty Campbell sent out a link stating Pierce County’s Department of Human Services, Aging and Disability Resources announced today the Letter of Intent (LOI) for Senior Center Services for the Parkland-Spanaway Area.

To be eligible for, and compete in, a formal Request for Proposal process, qualified agencies, corporations, organizations, or individuals must submit the completed Letter of Intent to Pierce County Human Services no later than 12:00 PM on March 10, 2023.  Completed forms must be directed to:

Nellis Kim, Social Services Program Specialist 3

Pierce County Human Services

4301 South Pine Street, Ste 446

Tacoma, WA 98409

Phone: (253) 878-0230

Email: Nellis.Kim@piercecountywa.gov

To read the complete Letter of Intent and learn more about eligibility and service requirements, visit Human Services online at Solicitations and Competitive Bids | Pierce County, WA – Official Website (piercecountywa.gov).