Senior Centers Brace for Cuts

Facility says some elderly may fall through the cracks By [David A. Garfinkel] The Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Senior Center lies in the shade of massive apartment towers on East 93rd Steet and York Avenue. In a bustling city, centers like this are oases for seniors who want to stay active. Groups of over 20 seniors gather in rooms to sit in chairs and use elastic bands to increase strength and flexibility or partake in yoga classes's â??around 160 programs a month, said Amy Loewenberg, the director of senior services for the Center. The Isaacs Center, which services around 1,200 people, is one of six on the Upper East Side that together serve more than 30,000 people over the age of 65. The center operates each year on a budget of around $450,000. The money mostly comes through the city"s Department for the Aging, padded by some smaller grants and private donations. But Mayor Michael Bloomberg"s proposed spending cuts include 15 percent of the Department for the Aging"s case management budget in 2011 and 30 percent in 2012. Case management consists of delivering meals or providing homecare to seniors. The cuts could, for example, reduce The Isaacs Center"s Meals on Wheels program. The department expects the cuts to result in at least 100 layoffs of these providers, greatly increasing the load of the remaining case management workers, according to the City Council"s report on the budget. The cuts target case management positions, which service the city"s most vulnerable homebound senior citizens. Loewenberg said those cuts will further strain senior centers, which will have to fill in some of the void. She also fears the next round of cuts will target the centers directly. â??Right now you"re talking about cutting to the bare bones, Loewenberg said. â??Well, you"ve cut into the bones now. East Side Council Member Jessica Lappin, who chairs the Council"s Aging Committee, called the cuts â??inhumane. â??It also costs more money to keep people in a nursing home, Lappin added. â??It"s much more efficient for us to provide them with one hot meal a day than to pay for a nursing home. Many of the seniors that attend centers are on a low or fixed income, which makes these free programs all the more important. Light breakfast and full lunches are served Monday through Saturday free of charge. â??There are those that come here just to eat, said Susan Bloom, 66. Bloom, though, particularly enjoys the views of the East River through the spacious windows in the lunchroom. But more important than free services is the opportunity to meet new people. Jose Antonio Arroyo, 83, and Frank Newbauer, 76, have been coming for around three years to play pool six days a week. They say they usually play with a group of around 20 people each day, rotating through games. Bloom, who has been attending the center for over two years, participates heavily in the art programs offered, and has had her work shown on the bulletin boards lining the hallways. â??They are very encouraging, said Bloom. â??It"s all positive things that make you say, â??Oh I want to do that." With proposed cuts in funding, the city"s Department for the Aging has left senior centers around the area with a cloudy future. They are cutting more and more programs, but there is becoming more and more of a need for these programs, said Drew Elizabeth Barnes, a social worker at the Carter Burden Center for the Aging at 1484 First Ave. The Carter Burden Center works with clients on health care issues. Jeanette Reed, a spokesperson for the city"s Department for the Aging, said the city"s senior center is increasing. The city, she said, has to keep up with the growing population and focus on the department"s priorities: â??Make sure they are able to get a meal, and make sure they are able to get to their senior center, she said. Loewenberg expects her center to carry on as planned, but knows that nothing is certain. â??We might see, she said, â??seniors start falling through the cracks.