Ground Breaks on Senior Center Expansion

Town officials on Tuesday celebrated the expansion to the popular Thomasena Stokes-Marshall Senior Center.

The $1.3 million expansion will double the Von Kolnitz Road facility to nearly 15,000 square feet. The expansion comes on the four-year anniversary of the facility's opening.

Town officials praise the facility, which was originally built for roughly 400 members but has seen its use explode to 2,000 or so daily users, town officials say.

The expansion is funded with a $17 million budget surplus from 2011, according to town records. Originally the construction estimate was $1.7 million, and town leaders expected to raise an additional $200,000 for new exercise equipment through donations.

The actual contract was for $1.3 million, which negates the need for the fundraising effort.

The construction will double an often-crowded workout room with various cardio equipment to 2,400 square feet. The center will also get an additional three multi-purpose rooms.

The facility is named for Councilwoman Thomasena Stokes-Marshall, the town's mayor pro-tem and longest-serving councilmember. She is an outspoken advocate for the center.