By Phil Keren
The Summiteer

The city of Stow kicked off 2025 by opening an 8,000-square-foot facility that will offer programs for senior citizens and provide a venue for parks and recreation department events.

 

Hundreds of people attended the grand opening and open house for the Stow Community & Senior Center, 5344 Fishcreek Road, on Jan. 12. There were performances by the Stow-Munroe Falls String Orchestra and magician Jason Alan, as well as basket raffles, giveaways and refreshments.

 

“The open house was very well-received,” said Kathy Lewis, Recreation Supervisor with the Stow Parks & Recreation Department.

 

Following the grand opening program, the city hosted a senior citizen event attended by about 150 people called “New Year, New Beginning.”

 

“We have a group of tried and true seniors,” Lewis said. “…We wanted to make sure that they had something of their own… “It was our way of inviting (the seniors) in and letting them see the space for themselves without competing with the crowds.”

 

The event had a jazz band performance, a new year’s countdown with sparkling grape juice and food.

 

“The (event) was hugely successful,” said Stow Mayor John Pribonic.

 

Those two events are just a sampling of the types of programs the city wants to host at the facility on Fishcreek Road.

 

 

The city previously operated a senior center for nearly two decades from a ranch-style house along Darrow Road. Noting that the city has a population of 35,000, Pribonic said he felt Stow needed a larger site to accommodate the needs of both seniors and the community as a whole.

 

The new center is inside the building that was the former home of Cornerstone Community Church. Due to a declining number of congregants, church leadership decided in late 2023 to close their doors and sell the building, according to Pastor Dan Page, who served as Cornerstone’s Lead Pastor for 22 years.

 

Before the pandemic, Page said the church had about 60-65 congregants, but that number dropped to 30-35 in the years following the pandemic.

 

Page announced his resignation from the church in September 2023 and then met with church leadership to decide whether a replacement would be appointed for him, the church would merge with another church, or if Cornerstone would disband. After leaders decided to disband, the building and land were put up for sale and the church received an offer that was under the asking price. Soon thereafter, Page said he received a phone call on a Friday evening from Pribonic saying the city was “very interested” in the building and property, and would be willing to pay above the asking price.

 

“I really tripped across this place just by accident,” Pribonic said. “The price was right.”

 

The city purchased the 8,040-square-foot building and the 5-plus acres of land from the church for $735,000. City Council approved the purchase on Jan. 11, 2024. Closing costs brought the final total to $753,500, according to Linda Nahrstedt, Park & Recreation Director. All the money the church received from the sale was given to mission organizations and missionaries, according to Page. Haven of Rest Ministries and Akron Pregnancy Services were among the recipients of the monetary gifts.

“I can’t tell you how much fun it was to give that money away,” Page said.

 

Pribonic said the city spent another $765,000 to update the 30-year-old facility. The architect who designed the remodel work —Dave Pelligra from Pelligra & Associates — also drew up the plans for the original structure.

 

Nahrstedt said the remodeling project lasted 11 months and noted the work was done by service department employees under the direction of Deputy Service Director Marc Anderson. The city hired outside professionals for jobs such as electrical work, plumbing, HVAC, lighting, flooring, painting, and design.

 

“The church did a phenomenal job taking care of this facility,” Pribonic said. “We updated it so we can use it for our purposes.”

 

Page added he’s pleased the building will still be used as a gathering place for community members.

 

“It’s the ultimate win-win,” Page said.

 

Page attended the grand opening event and said, “It was such a joyful atmosphere.”

 

 

City leaders say the new center offers a much larger space and more parking spots, and provides a dedicated venue for the parks and recreation department to host events.

 

The building can hold 299 people, has 80 parking spaces (six of which are handicapped-accessible) and is open for senior activities from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Special events happen on Fridays.

 

Lewis observed the parks and recreation department often provides entertainment and activities for residents, and noted the community and senior center will serve as the central site for many parks and recreation department-sponsored events. Lewis said her office will move activities such as yoga sessions, wine and design events, connect with nature programs, and children’s events such as Lego Day to the new center.

 

“It’ll primarily be used for parks and rec events,” Lewis said. “In the past, we never had a space that was strictly for parks and rec. We were kind of at the mercy of our rental facilities. If we wanted to book something, we had to go into our calendar and book it out so that weddings and baby showers and things like that didn’t take the date that we wanted.”

 

Lewis added the facility has updated technology as well as new tables and chairs. The more spacious environment will give more residents an opportunity to take part in events and activities.

 

“We are hoping that because we have a larger center…we’ll be able to get the seniors in here,” Lewis said. “Everybody that wants to participate can participate.”

 

 

There are three main rooms in the center: the Grand Hall; Media Suite; and Activity Hub.

 

The 2,400-square-foot Grand Hall can host an event with anywhere from 150 to 200 people.

 

“The Grand Hall is so flexible because that’s where we can have all of our yoga classes, we can do cornhole in there…we can do any number of things,” said Valerie Huddleston, Recreation Assistant for the Parks & Recreation Department.

 

The center has a 1,200-square-foot Media Suite with an interactive television and a warming kitchen. Some of the teaching classes will take place there. There is also a 1,400-square-foot Activity Hub that can host game sessions and craft programs.

 

Cindy Cloud and Rose Gallagher are two Recreation Assistants who are the “faces of the senior center,” Lewis said.

 

Both Cloud and Gallagher lauded the new facility for what it offers to the senior population.

 

“I think the new facility is state-of-the-art and is a wonderful investment for our seniors,” Cloud said. “The seniors have given so much to our community and it's nice for them to have such a beautiful new space for fellowship. I am hearing from the seniors that they love the new space and they are excited for what is to come. “

 

Gallagher agreed, and noted: “I am so grateful, as a senior myself, for all the people who worked so hard and long to make this happen. I look forward to working here and enjoying this new facility for many years.”

 

 

Lewis also noted the center can be used as a back-up location if an outdoor parks and recreation department event — such as the Easter egg hunt at Silver Springs Park — needs to be moved indoors because of inclement weather.

 

“We’ve had a few really cold Easter egg hunts in the past,” Lewis said. “Wet and rainy…Now we have the option to actually move it indoors if we need to.”

 

Lewis clarified the center will not be available for the public to rent and noted the city already has other facilities available for that purpose.

 

 

Now that the city will host many events at the community and senior center, its rental sites — Heritage Barn and Leona Farris Lodge — will have greater availability to the public.

 

“It does open up our rental facilities for residents and other people outside our community to go ahead and use,” Pribonic said. “It’s not a real big thing and that’s not why we did it but it does offer another increased revenue source for us.”

 

 

Pribonic said the original senior center on Darrow Road is “currently closed,” but added, “we have the intention of using that as a small rental space.”

 

“If you want to do a wedding shower or a baby shower or a birthday… this is something that we don’t have,” Pribonic said. “…This will offer another opportunity for people.”

 

Before it can become a rental space, the parking lot needs to be expanded and lighting needs to be put in. The mayor noted the Darrow Road center was only open during the daytime when it was available to senior citizens.

 

For more information about the Stow Community & Senior Center visit https://stowohio.org/601/Stow-Community-Senior-Center.