Council reviews Columbia Learning Center makerspace lease and proposed senior‑center lease terms

City staff brought two facility lease items to the June 4 work session: a lease amendment with the Columbia Learning Center for a makerspace expansion, and a proposed five‑year senior center lease.

John (staff member) said the Columbia Learning Center lease amount reconciles with the approved budget; the figure includes the existing $400 lease plus the additional space cost. “The number is correct. It's reflective of the budget. It's accepted by the Columbia Learning Center and it's here for your consideration,” John said, and he invited councilors to visit the facility.

On the senior center lease, staff said the senior center administrator has accepted the lease terms but the lease still needs approval by the senior center board, which recently changed meeting days. Staff described the senior center lease as similar to previous terms: a five‑year term, an obligation to operate the building as a senior center, provision of space for the meal program, semiannual reporting and routine maintenance obligations. Staff said the meal program is valuable to the broader community and that public works provides grounds and routine building support.

Why it matters: the agreements affect community programming spaces, senior services and how the city partners with a local nonprofit learning center.

No formal council vote was recorded during the work session; the senior center lease remains subject to the senior center board’s approval.