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Residents and commissioners press Flint Hills/Golden Wheel on inconsistent senior meal service
Summary
Community members and commissioners raised concerns about inconsistent meals and staffing from North Central/Flint Hills (the agency that provides meals to Golden Wheel), discussed options to subsidize insurance or source meals locally, and asked staff to seek updated financial details from Flint Hills ahead of next week's meeting.
Public comment at the start of the meeting focused on the Golden Wheel senior center's erratic meal service and the center's relationship with North Central/Flint Hills Agency on Aging.
A speaker who led the public comment period said, "I honestly believe that they are not truthful about what they say, and they don't ever back up what they what they told us and what they've told you," expressing frustration with what attendees described as inconsistent delivery of meals and lack of follow-through on contingency plans.
Commissioners and several volunteers described recent ad-hoc measures to feed seniors when Flint Hills lacked a cook: one volunteer group prepared 124 meals on short notice. Commissioners discussed options including allocating $16,000 (an estimated insurance or wage subsidy figure discussed in the meeting) to retain a cook locally, sourcing meals from neighboring towns, or reviewing the Memorandum of Understanding with Flint Hills; one commissioner said the county had paid Flint Hills $3,957 last year for administrative costs.
Staff asked Golden Wheel and Flint Hills representatives to appear at the next meeting (Sarah from the Department of Aging was asked to attend) and to provide up-to-date financial statements and an explanation of who is paying which costs (insurance, cook wages, administrative fees). Commissioners requested a single summary of what the county currently pays Flint Hills and what a stand-alone center budget would require so they could evaluate whether untying from Flint Hills is feasible.
