Kitchener councillors delay decision on Rockway Centre

Supporters of the Rockway Centre, wearing yellow T-shirts, sit in Kitchener council chambers on Monday, May 27, 2013. (Ashley Cross / CTV Kitchener)

The future of Kitchener’s primary seniors’ centre remains up in the air.

City councillors voted Monday to look into a public-private partnership for the Rockway Centre, as they don’t have the funds available for a major renovation.

“We’re still looking at a dedicated seniors’ facility, but we’re looking at it in the context of something different that we haven’t looked at before,” says Coun. Kelly Galloway-Sealock.

The city had spent $93,000 on consultation and a study outlining possibilities for the facility and for programming aimed at seniors.

One of the suggested plans was to move seniors programming to the Forest Heights Community Centre in the city’s west end, which didn’t sit well with a number of seniors – many of whom showed up to the council meeting wearing yellow ‘Save the Rockway Centre’ T-shirts.

But with no immediate public funding on the horizon for repairs, an addition, a relocation or a new building, the Forest Heights plan will languish along with the rest of the options unless a private investor shows interest.

A city report says membership at the Rockway Centre is expected to decline over the next 10 years.