New Transportation Center breaks ground
Posted on August 26, 2010
The Groundbreaking Ceremony for the long awaited Transportation Center took place Thursday, August 26, 10: 15AM at the construction site on Railroad Avenue. Congressman John Tierney among other elected officials and guests were present.
The Transportation Center is a joint project of the Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority and the city. The MVRTA will build the two story building to serve as a transportation hub for the city. The city will occupy the majority of the building with its Health and Human Services functions including Senior Services, Youth Services, and Veterans Services.
The Transportation Center, to be named the Senator Nicholas 1. Costello Transportation Center, will provide Amesbury residents with fully accessible space for programs, services and public meetings. The Senior Center will occupy the majority of the city’s designated space and include rooms for programs and group meetings, a fully accessible computer lab, a dining area for meals and large presentations, quiet space for individual activities, clinic room for health programming and more. Co-locating the Veterans Services office will create a one-stop-shop for seniors who otten utilize both senior and veterans programs. Building on the city’s intergenerational programming success, the Youth Services office will also be located in the building.
The project was conceived in 2000 as part of the MVRTA’s capital plan. In 2001 the location was selected and the MVRTA agreed to include a senior center into its building plans.
The project is expected to cost $7 million for building and site work. Funding for the project is through federal and state transportation programs, with the city paying for the interior fit-out of the spaces it will occupy. Instrumental in obtaining federal funding, Congressman Tierney was an advocate for the project that will enhance public transportation for the area and incorporate sound economic development for the city’s Lower Millyard. Governor Deval Patrick, Senator Steven Baddour and Representative Michael Costello also played key roles in securing state funding and approval for the project to proceed. The Municipal Council approved the Mayor’s request for $1.5 million for the fit-out the city’s space at their February 23, 2010 meeting.
The new Amesbury Senior Center will be the heart and soul of the Sen. Nicholas J. Costello Transportation Building, now under construction in the lower Millyard. When completed in the Fall of 2012, it will feature a beautiful Great Room with seating for up to 100; new chairs, tables, flatware and plates for our daily lunches; and a sparkling new kitchen with modern appliances. We’ll have a library room filled with our favorite books and magazines, furnished with comfortable chairs for reading and a conference table for meetings. We’ll have fitness equipment, including a treadmill and stationary bike, in our health and wellness room. We’ll even have a pool table, new computers, and work tables and materials in a new arts and crafts room.
Funding for overall construction of the Transportation Building has come from a number of sources (see article in our News section). However, responsibility for outfitting the Senior Center — including the purchase of new furnishings and equipment, and the creation of a special fund for replacing appliances and furnishings as they wear — has been undertaken by The Friends of the Amesbury Council on Aging.
David Hildt to chair fundraising campaign
Posted on January 1, 2011
The Friends of Amesbury’s Council On Aging has announced that former Mayor David T. Hildt will serve as Chair of their upcoming Capital Campaign to raise $250,000. The funds are earmarked for completing interior decorating and purchasing furnishings for their new Senior Center, which is currently under construction.
“We are very excited to have Mayor Hildt’s active involvement and leadership of our efforts,” said Betty Dion, President of the Friends of Amesbury’s Council On Aging. “While serving as Mayor, David worked tirelessly on our behalf to obtain both political and financial support for our new Senior Center. We are grateful that he is now willing to continue his support by leading our fund raising campaign.”
The mission of the Friends of Amesbury’s Council On Aging, a recognized 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is to raise money and provide support for Seniors’ programs, services, and activities offered by the ACOA. The capital campaign is, of course, a special effort to support completion of the new Senior Center that will require community-wide support.
“The campaign will be organized in two phases,” explained David Hildt. “The planning for Phase 1 – “Name That Room”- has already begun. We will seek grants from banks, larger businesses and other organizations. For a significant pledge, which can be paid over three years, philanthropists and corporate donors will be offered permanent naming rights to the Senior Center’s most popular rooms.”
“Phase 2 will be a public appeal for cash gifts and pledges, and is scheduled to kick off in February 2011. Donor categories will include: Gold – $1,000 & above; Silver – $500 to $999; Bronze – $100 to $499; and Friend – $10 to $99. Pledges will be accepted and payable over two to three years,” Hildt said. “In-Kind – Donations of time and services to help the COA “settle in” to the new Senior Center will also be most welcome.”
David Hildt is currently the Executive Director of Adelante Inc., an academic enrichment, test prep, community service and scholarship program for youth in Lawrence, Massachusetts. A resident of Amesbury for 35 years, Hildt served as Mayor for two terms, from 2002 to 2006, and was a member of the Amesbury School Committee for 12 years.
He graduated from Georgetown University and spent three years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Brazil. Upon returning to the U.S., Hildt became the Program Director for Boston School Volunteers. He later worked as a writing consultant, and as Interim Director of the Lawrence Public Library. With a lifelong interest in education, Hildt has developed courses for adults in English, employability skills and family literacy for immigrants and refugees.
While Mayor, Hildt was an active member of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, and in 2005 he was named president of the Massachusetts Mayors Association. He is a former board member of the Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center, and he currently serves as Vice President of the Board of Trustees of the Essex National Heritage Commission.
“I know that the dream for a new transportation center and senior center began with former Senator Nicholas Costello when he served as Amesbury’s first Mayor,” said Betty Dion. “Mr. Hildt also did a lot of the heavy lifting when it came to obtaining funds from the Commonwealth and navigating the project through its political and regulatory processes while he was Mayor. We are so pleased that he will lead our Capital Campaign.”
Mayor Hildt will work closely during the Campaign with Friends’ President Elizabeth Dion and Vice President John Jennell, as well as Annmary Connor, Director of the Amesbury Council On Aging. The new Senior Center will be located within the Senator Nicholas J. Costello Transportation Center, which will serve as Amesbury’s transportation hub.
Be a Friend to Amesbury Seniors
Membership in the Friends of Amesbury’s Council On Aging is not restricted to seniors; it is open to persons of any age from any geographical location. Members, which currently number over 3,000, work to raise money to support many activities and programs offered at the Amesbury Senior Center that are not budgeted for by local government. For more information about becoming an active or contributing member of the Friends, call Carol Doherty, Membership Secretary at 978-388-4065 or apply online at http://www.amesburyma.gov/government.cfm?subpage=212816.
About the Amesbury Council On Aging
The COA’s mission is to advocate for older adults, to identify their needs, to meet their health, economic, social and cultural needs, to encourage maximum independence and to improve their quality of life.
The Council on Aging functions as a Board of Directors. It is comprised of fifteen citizens from Amesbury and the surrounding communities who have demonstrated a concern for and a commitment to Amesbury seniors. The Directors are appointed by the Municipal Council.
“A Friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are”
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