Popular Las Vegas senior center getting an upgrade

Las Vegas Review-Journal

6 years ago

A construction worker carries equipment at Cora Coleman Senior Center in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center according to the project superintendent. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

Construction work at Cora Coleman Senior Center in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center according to the project superintendent. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

Construction signs at Cora Coleman Senior Center in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center according to the project superintendent. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

A wall under construction at Cora Coleman Senior Center in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center according to the project superintendent. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

Chris Jones, project superintendent at Cora Coleman Senior Center, shows the construction site in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

A construction worker carries equipment at Cora Coleman Senior Center in Las Vegas, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. Renovations that include additional space are over 20 percent complete at the senior center according to the project superintendent. Erik Verduzco Las Vegas Review-Journal @Erik_Verduzco

For patrons, the Cora Coleman Senior Center is more than just an activity hub.

“It’s definitely my home away from home,” said Mary Knight, 65, who said she comes to the center at least three days a week. “We are like a family here.”

Located at 2100 N. Bonnie Lane in Sunrise Manor, Cora Coleman can easily welcome more than 100 people 50 and older on an average day.

Seniors like Knight have access to a gym, an indoor pool, a billiards room and a computer lab. The center also hosts classes on aerobics, line dancing and other activities.

Patrons say that even Cora Coleman’s largest activity room — where seniors gather to take classes, listen to guest speakers and hold holiday parties — is reaching capacity on a regular basis.

“It’s a great place, but in the last two years we’ve outgrown the current size,” said Tami Ruesch, a retiree who said she’s at the center nearly every day. “It was getting very crowded.”

So Knight and Ruesch were happy to hear that Cora Coleman would undergo an expansion and renovation. Construction began in late May and is expected to be mostly completed by December.

Workers are adding about 790 square feet to the center’s largest activity room and covering an open patio with a 1,200-square-foot metal shade structure.

“With a shaded area in the back, we can host barbecue on the covered patio,” Cora Coleman program supervisor Michelle Chamberlain said.

FAB Construction is responsible for the project, which is estimated to cost Clark County about $800,000.

“They’re putting the county’s money to good use,” Ruesch said. “It will make a world of difference. They won’t need to turn anyone away.”

Chamberlain said the center’s normal programming will remain uninterrupted throughout the project.

“Hopefully, with the expansion we’ll be able to accommodate more participants for our special events and fitness programs,” Chamberlain said.

Judy Pribble, 71, goes to the center weekly for classes, but she has taken a hiatus from exercising there due to the expansion.

“Once they closed it, it made it difficult for us to gather,” she said. “Now this expansion will attract more seniors to come in.”

Contact Michael Scott Davidson at sdavidson@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3861. Follow @davidsonlvrj on Twitter.