Macon-Bibb County will celebrate the Grand Opening of its new senior center with a ceremonial ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday, November 19, at 10:30 a.m. The new Senior Center is located in Central City Park on Willie Smokie Glover Drive and is named for Elaine H. Lucas, Macon-Bibb County’s District 3 – and first female – Commissioner. The Grand Opening will be streamed live on the Senior Center’s Facebook page.

“Our community of senior citizens is very active, and they were an integral part in their new Center’s location and design. I, and our entire Commission, want to thank them for that and for their years in making our community a great place to live,” says Commissioner Lucas. “They have earned and deserve this new Center where they can come together, take classes, and lead a healthier lifestyle.”

Construction of the new Elaine H. Lucas Senior Center was funded by the voter-approved Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) and sale of the property where former Center was located. The total budget for the project was $2.7 million, was designed by the Sizemore Group, and was built by Warren Associates, Inc. The Elaine H. Lucas Senior Center location and design was made after three initial public meetings led by the Sizemore Group and follow-up meetings and input sessions with the Senior Center Advisory Committee.

The new Center is part of a much larger revitalization for Central City Park, thanks to the SPLOST. Between the new Center, major improvements at Historic Luther Williams Field to make for the successful Macon Bacon, and funds used to improve the Park’s fields, sidewalks, playgrounds, and more, the Park is receiving an approximate $15 million investment from the SPLOST.