The ‘other’ senior center

Laura Sturza

While the Don Tuttle Senior Center might not offer as many

programs as the Joslyn Adult Center, some seniors think the smaller

facility is a better fit for their needs.

“At Joslyn, there’s so many people that you really don’t get to

meet them all,” Burbank resident Alice Reiner said. “[At Tuttle],

it’s like going out with a friend, where everybody knows everybody

here.”

The City Council recently approved using a federal grant to fund a

$190,000 expansion of the Tuttle Center, which will increase the

space from 3,000 to 4,000 square feet. The work is expected to be

completed in two years.

The Joslyn Center is 19,000 square feet, and is open daily. Tuttle

is open only on weekdays. At Joslyn, about 2,500 people participate

in programs each week, while about 250 use the smaller center.

“I think it will bring in a lot more people,” site manager Sylvia

Guerra said of the expansion.

The facility serves lunch to about 50 people each day, but Guerra

hopes to double that number. The added space will also allow the

center to expand its programming, which includes bingo, singing,

chess and exercise classes.

Though Carmen Lopez lives closer to the Joslyn Center, she has not

been there. Having discovered the Tuttle Center a year ago, the

62-year-old Burbank resident takes the bus to Tuttle about three

times a week to have lunch and take exercise classes.

“There are a few people who speak Spanish,” Lopez said. “[People]

are very friendly.”

For information about the weekday programs offered at Don Tuttle

Senior Center at 1731 N. Ontario St., call 238-5367.