Seismic evaluation is underway for a major renovation project of two aging veterans halls in western county. Construction is expected to begin in 2027 and be completed by 2030.
The project is made possible by a $10 million Community Resilience Centers Implementation Grant from the California Strategic Growth Council, awarded in April 2024. The County is sharing the funding with three partners: Gold Country Senior Services, Interfaith Food Ministries, and FREED Center for Independent Living.
“I have huge appreciation to the nonprofit community for joining forces with the County in getting this application in,” said Supervisor Hardy Bullock at Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting. “It was a very competitive process. Fortunately, the state stepped up to give us some serious cash.”
The bulk of the grant - $7.8 million – will pay for much needed repairs to the Grass Valley and Nevada City veterans halls. Seismic stability and accessibility will be prioritized.
About $1.4 million will go to community resilience services and programs, including those that serve older adults and people with disabilities, emergency services for seniors and food home delivery. The remaining $810,000 will go to data collection and indirect costs.
Leslie Lovejoy, executive director for Gold Country Senior Services, thanked the County for including the organization in the grant.
“We have always had a vision for our senior center to be a place where the community can come together not only during traditional times for activities and education but for emergencies,” she said. “This allows us to serve our community not only day to day but during emergencies where we will have food available, we will have warmth and cooling, we will have access to charging stations and we will have the ability to provide updates on emergency situations.”