GILROY
– A county agency is asking the city of Gilroy to help foot the
bill for a senior meal program to help offset its struggles from
the economic downturn.
GILROY – A county agency is asking the city of Gilroy to help foot the bill for a senior meal program to help offset its struggles from the economic downturn. But the city – anticipating several such requests in coming weeks while also facing its own revenue problems – faces tough decisions if it wants to pick up the tab.
Officials with the county’s Senior Nutrition Program have written a letter to the city asking for financial assistance with their program, which provides more than 34,000 meals a year to area seniors.
The program is designed to help preserve the health and well-being of seniors through nutritious meals provided in settings where they can socialize and access other services, said Betty Malks, director of the county’s Department of Aging and Adult Services. Nutrition screening projects across the nation have reported elder malnutrition rates ranging from 25 to 85 percent, she said.
But with the county facing a budget shortfall that could exceed $160 million – as well as increased transportation fees from other agencies facing their own financial problems – it has reduced ability to maintain its current level of support, she said.
“We understand that cities as well as counties are extremely hard hit in these increasingly difficult economic times,” Malks wrote. “However, only through mutual support can we hope to preserve some of these critical services for our communities’ residents.”
The county funds approximately 35 to 40 percent of the program’s costs, Malks said. The cost to provide the meals program in Gilroy is approximately $175,000 a year, including transportation costs. The city provides space at the Senior Center as an in-kind contribution.
But the request for cash comes as the city faces its own shortfall from slumping tax revenues and rising employee costs.
Individual city departments have already been asked to find ways to trim their budgets by 10 percent – and potential cuts could be much deeper depending on how the state manages its own shortfall. The city is expected to adopt its budget in early summer.
After distributing the letter at a recent meeting, City Administrator Jay Baksa warned the City Council that requests for social-services funding will be a common occurrence this spring as other agencies cut their own budgets.
“You can see where the ball will stop rolling on social services,” he said. “They’re going to end up on our lap, and I don’t know what we’re going to do with them.
“We’re as bad off or worse than the others. This is going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better.”
