The new North Royalton Senior Center is finally completed and a grand opening celebration is planned. The Center has been in the works since 2022.
The project began with the April 19, 2022, North Royalton City Council meeting, where it was announced that the School District and City were in the process of securing an agreement to transform a portion of the former Royal View Elementary School into a City Senior Center. In 2021, Royal View, along with the former Valley Vista and Albion elementary schools were replaced with the opening of North Royalton Elementary School on State Road. The proposed Senior Center would take about 9,000 square feet of the 48,000+ square foot facility. The agreement between the City and the school district is in effect for twenty-five years. At that point, in 2049, the agreement can renew every year until either the City, or school district chooses to end it. The agreement states that the City pay $1 per year for the interior space and about 2,000 square feet of outdoor space. The City is responsible for maintenance and cleaning of their portion, as well as for their portion of the cost of utilities, such as sewer, water and electricity.
In October, 2023, representatives from Makovich and Pusti Architects gave a preliminary presentation to City Council regarding the potential of the upcoming Senior Center and their design process. The City then hired the Berea architectural firm for the Senior Center Project in the hopes of transforming a portion of the former Royal View Elementary School at 13220 Ridge Road into a City Senior Center. The design includes the main entrance to the building, with a patio off to the east side, with the thought of providing an inviting place for seniors. It also showed a little café off the main entrance, unisex rest rooms, a multi-purpose room, which was once the gymnasium, kitchen, craft/game rooms and a reconfiguration of the existing offices.
In July, 2024, the North Royalton City Council adopted legislation that rejected the bids for the Senior Center project, which were opened in early July. According to Antoskiewicz, all three bids received for the project exceeded the 20% allotment for the project and had to be tossed out, according to state law. Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz then rebid the project and in October, an ordinance was adopted that accepted the bid of Millstone Management Group, Incorporated as the best and lowest bid in the amount of $733,810.00.
The demolition of the project began in late October, 2024. In December, City Council then adopted an ordinance, introduced by the Mayor, that increased the amount of the original bid from Millstone Management Group, Incorporated, after costs increased for the Senior Center project. The legislation increased the not to exceed amount from $733,810.00 to $807,191.00, by including a contingency that had not been included previously, according to Mayor Larry Antoskiewicz. He said that as the demolition was taking place, the contractor ran into a few things. “When they were taking a wall down for the café, they found all the electrical lines for the building. They were going to put an I- beam up there to protect them, then we had to re-do the front. They also separated electrical panels in order to split the City’s portion from the School’s portion. I wanted them to separate the electrical, so there wouldn’t be any question with the Schools,” said Antoskiewicz.
Antoskiewicz was originally looking at the end of March, 2025 to complete the project. Initially, the Center was anticipated to open in March, then pushed to April. Legislation necessary to complete the project was stalled, as Council did not have enough votes to adopt the two ordinances, due to the absence of two Council Representatives. The two ordinances would give Antoskiewicz the authorization to purchase furniture and artwork. Antoskiewicz said that the delay of approval of the two ordinances pushed the opening forward, as it would take six-to-eight weeks from the passage of the ordinances for deliver. Now, the furnishings and artwork are in place and the new Senior Center is ready.
Residents are invited to attend the Senior Center Grand Opening on Wednesday, July 23, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. A ribbon cutting ceremony begins the celebration at 10 a.m., followed by an open house, where attendees can tour the facility. At 11:30 a.m., the Mayor’s Annual Senior Picnic will commence, with entertainment provided by the Bill and Nancy Show Band. The Senior Center at Royal View is located at 13220 Ridge Road.
“I really hope the seniors will enjoy their new facility and surroundings,“ said Antoskiewicz. “We worked very hard to make it senior-friendly, also with the opportunity to provide more activities and services, moving forward. I believe it’s been a long time coming for that group.”
By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer
