Gloucester senior center fills 403 Medicare help slots, eyes later hours

Gloucester's Council on Aging board, which oversees the Rose Baker Center for Aging Well, took no big votes on Oct. 7, but its reports carried a lot for older residents to know, from Medicare help to free buses and a new class at 4 p.m.

What happened

• All 403 Medicare counseling appointments for open enrollment, which started Oct. 15, are booked and the waiting lists are closed. Callers are being sent to AgeSpan's regional SHINE office.
• Cape Ann Transportation Authority buses stay free through the end of 2027, and new wheelchair friendly bus shelters with etched Gloucester scenes are coming this fall or by March 15.
• The rebranding of the center is nearly done; a refreshed mission statement comes to a vote next month. A $10,000 gift will repaint the staff offices.
• The city's public health director said more than 205 septic systems have been brought into compliance, and 48 rental properties that did not renew their registry permits were headed to the Board of Health.
• The board will talk next month about shifting the center to the city's schedule, open late on Thursdays and a half day on Fridays.

Medicare season

The center's director said its social worker has scheduled every available SHINE appointment, the free counseling that helps people pick a Medicare plan, and the phones are still ringing. The regional office at AgeSpan is mailing people a Plan Finder form to fill out and send back. Members named other places with SHINE counselors, including Senior Care and Pathways, and the director said she will check which still have room.

Buses and shelters

Felicia Webb, the transit authority's administrator and a board member, said the new shelters keep the same footprint but have a half length bench so a wheelchair user can pull in out of the rain. The back panels will carry etched local scenes such as the Good Harbor footbridge, the Man at the Wheel and Stage Fort Park. The current shelters are 30 to 41 years old. She offered to buy a three sided sign for the center's bus stop, the busiest in the system, with a route map and schedules, if the city installs it. She also offered transit money for outdoor lighting at the center if the city will put it in.

Health Department report

Dominique Hurley, the public health director, said the septic compliance push has worked ward by ward, with only about three owners knowingly refusing; those cases go to the Board of Health. Half of the city's tobacco and nicotine retailers have been visited since the state's kratom ban and none had it on the shelf. On the rental registry, about 1,100 properties are in the system, and the number facing a hearing for not renewing dropped from 300 to 48 in a week; the fine can reach $500, but she said the goal is compliance, not penalties. The public health nurse has vaccinated more than 250 residents this fall at senior housing and other sites, and free shots are available for people without insurance.

Programs and the building

The director reported a new mindfulness meditation class on Thursday mornings, a Friday yoga class at the Sawyer Free Library that draws about 25 people, the Topsfield Fair trip on senior day and plans for museum trips closer than Boston. The Halloween party is Thursday, Oct. 29, at 11:30 a.m. A pizza and movie night is planned for November.

She wants to use part of the $10,000 gift to pay for custodial coverage so a Zumba style class can run at 4 p.m. for people who still work. Staff have asked about moving to the city's hours, which would mean shifting bingo and cribbage to other days; the chair said the mayor voiced no objection, and the board will weigh the pros and cons at its November meeting.

On the building, the board is still looking for a silent alarm system, a mural to hide the generator pipes, a fix for failing windows and better outdoor lighting. Generous Gardeners declined to take on the forecourt on Manuel F. Lewis Street, saying its volunteers are spread thin. The chair plans to ask the mayor about capital money for the windows and accessible doors.

The center's art program teacher is retiring after more than 30 years; she will stay through a January show of the program's work at the Sawyer Free Library and leave in early February.

What was decided

• Minutes of Sept. 2: approved by voice vote.
• Adjourn at 11:15 a.m.

What happens next

• Oct. 29, 11:30 a.m.: Halloween party at the center.
• Nov. 4, 9:30 a.m.: next board meeting, with the mission statement, the schedule change and how to help seniors with city services that moved online, such as the trash cart sign up.

Where to find the records

• Council on Aging agendas and minutes on the city website.
• October 2026 past meetings, with the recording.

Earlier coverage: Gloucester's senior center board to discuss rebranding the Rose Baker Center, and trust fund panel weighs old bequests (Oct. 3), which previewed this meeting.

How we did this: Cape Ann Current watched the meeting online and checked names against the agenda and the city's board roster. These are our meeting notes, not the board's minutes.