Meaty Senior Commission Agenda On Tap Tomorrow

FIRST SENIOR COMMISSION MEETING OF THE YEAR
The Costa Mesa Senior Commission meets again tomorrow morning, Tuesday, January 12, 2016, beginning at 9:00 a.m. at the Costa Mesa Senior Center, 695 W. 19th Street and has an agenda full of interesting stuff, HERE.  Since I'm still fighting this darn cold it's unlikely that I'll make the meeting - don't want to infest my fellow Senior Center members - but I'll give you an overview of what's up tomorrow.  These meetings are usually well-attended - us geezers do tend to pay attention, and vote. 

BUS RESERVATION SYSTEM REPORT
There has been much discussions during recent meetings about the operation of the Bus Reservation system.  The commission requested a study be done and the report of that study is complete, HERE.
It looks pretty self-explanatory - the system seems to be working quite well with VERY FEW exceptions.  Tomorrow's discussion will likely include some personal anecdotes about shortcomings, but the numbers reflect an effective system.

BUDGET INFORMATION
Next on the agenda is the report to the commission on the Senior Center Budget and Financial Analysis, HERE.  This brief report shows a budget for the Fiscal Year 15/16 of $902,785, and lists a few detailed items specifically because of commissioner inquiries.

MEMBERSHIP TRACKING SOFTWARE
The final agenda item is a report on the cost analysis of Membership Tracking Software - an issue that generated significant conversation among commissioners.  That staff report is HERE.  The report is thorough, but ends with a thud.  It tells us that there are no funds available during this fiscal year - we're half-way through it - even though the cost is piddling - $2,125.00.  I suspect that, if the staff and the commission thought this was important, there's plenty of cash left in CEO Tom Hatch's contingency fund to cover this very modest implementation cost.  Seems worth a conversation.

PROGRAM ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT
Yvette Aguilar's Senior Center Program Administrator's Report is always full of interesting information.  Here are some excerpts:

• The Senior Center will be closed January 18th and February 15th for holidays.  It will also be closed for maintenance February 3-5.
• Membership Renewal Forms were included in the January issue of The Chronicle.  Staff will follow up with those who do not respond and will remove non-respondents by February 26th.
• Upcoming special events include:
•      An Evening of Magic & Dinner - Friday, January 22, 4-6 p.m. $10
•      Sweetheart Dance - Friday, February 12, 4-6 p.m. $10
•      Knowledge & Health Fair Expo - Thursday, March 10, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
• Nine separate presentations/seminars are scheduled for January/February from Income Tax Assistance to Exercise.  Contact the Senior Center for the schecule.
• Membership as of January 4 was 1711 registered members of which 1133 are Costa Mesa residents.
• A total of 687 volunteer service hours were recorded for November and December.
• 723.25 hours were programmed for November.  691.25 hours for December
• There were 5,523 visitors to the Center in November, 4,867 in December.

YOU HAVE TO ATTEND IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE
Since these meetings are not recorded for later broadcast on CMTV - a mistake - you'll just have to drag your body to the Senior Center tomorrow morning to observe this group in action.