Ribbon cut at senior center as opening day nears

The ribbon was officially cut Wednesday at the Bay Ridge Center’s new home at 15 Bay Ridge Ave.

Community leaders, elected officials and residents spoke at the ceremony in the new digs.

The facility for older adults is 21,000 square feet, or triple the size of the previous location that opened in Bethlehem Lutheran Church in 1976.

The center will welcome the public Nov. 13. Visitors 60 and over will find state-of-the-art computer labs, music and exercise rooms and more.

Mayor Eric Adams addressed the crowd via taped video and congratulated the center’s members.

“This facility’s use of cutting edge technology as well as a gym specially designed for individuals aged 60 and up will help our older adult community live life to the fullest, maintain vibrant connections and pursue new experiences,” he said.

Todd Fliedner, the center’s executive director, launched a fundraising campaign last year aimed at elected officials and community leaders serving southwest Brooklyn. It raised more than $4 million, including a $2 million grant facilitated by U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis. 

The center has also secured sponsorships and collaborations, including with Pratt Institute’s School of Art, to provide programming for creative aging; Maimonides Medical Center, which is sponsoring the health and wellness center; and MSI Net, which will sponsor the technology center.

Malliotakis said it’s important for Bay Ridge’s seniors to have a place where they can socialize and increase their mental and physical well-being.

“I’m so happy to see now that these seniors are going to be in a much more beautiful site and facility that offers so much more than the previous one, and it’s so great to see how this organization has grown,” she said.

Fliedner said the new center is opening just in time because NYC Aging has projected a significant increase in the demand for older adult services in southwest Brooklyn over the next seven years.

“The new building not only expands our capacity to serve the growing older adult population in this community, but also gives us the opportunity to provide some incredible new programs and services like art and movement therapy led by Pratt students, strength training on machines specifically designed for older adults, and a fully outfitted technology center where they can learn to use computers or advance their tech skills,” he said.

Members will receive nutritionally balanced hot meals, have access to medical-grade gym equipment, take art and music classes, receive social services and hear wellness lectures, among other activities.

John Abi-Habib, chairman of the center’s building committee, said he is honored to support the neighborhood’s older adults.

“They built this community, and the new Bay Ridge Center is our opportunity to thank them for all they have contributed,” he said. “Older adults are essential members of our community, and the new Bay Ridge Center is a testament to how much we value them.”

Additional funds were received with help from former State Sen. Marty Golden, State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, Borough President Antonio Reynoso, Councilman Justin Brannan and former Assemblywoman Mathylde Frontus.

“This is what our seniors deserve and there’s no reason why this Bay Ridge Center does not now be a model for other neighborhoods across the city who have such a large population of seniors and older adults who want to stay home and live and grow in their neighborhood,” Brannan said.