MARYSVILLE – The smell of fresh paint at the Ken Baxter Community-Senior Center is a stark contrast to when it closed about five months ago because of a sewer backup.
When it reopens in the next week or so, it will look, and smell, like an almost brand-new building.
It features new paint, inside and out. The floors, which were damaged when the 1949 sewer line broke, are completely redone, mostly with tile but with rug in the Comfort Room, a quiet zone for playing cards and lounging. A donation from the Stillaguamish Tribe paid for a new kitchen. The bathrooms, of course, were redone. One wall had to be replaced because of structural damage.
Parks director Jim Ballew said April 14 that the color scheme was changed so it’s “more warming. It was kind of cold.”
Some of the building was re-insulated, and new, energy-efficient lighting was added.
“It’s a dramatic change,” Ballew said.
He said it had been about 10 years since the flooring had been changed anyway. It’s a high-use facility, with all types of classes, including zumba and yoga, taking place in the Garden and Fireside rooms.
“It was a perfect storm,” Ballew said. “We had an event, and the timing made sense.”
Visitors will also see a dramatic change on the outside, with a concrete plaza that will be poured April 15. That area will help with special events. A Community Development Block Grant also will help pay for four benches next to the building and five more in Comeford Park. Outside water and power also will be available now.
Ballew said the entire project took about two months longer than expected.
“We kept finding little things,” he said.
But people will enjoy the end result, he added. After the center closed, seniors were moved to the police annex at 136th. When the new Rotary Ranch opened, they started going there.
“The seniors are anxious to get back here,” he said.
