Seniors applaud Fargo Park Board as it extends Broadway Station lease for 3 years
Some feared the Park District would close the senior center, but the extension gives the government entity time to find a more permanent solution.
FARGO — A north Fargo senior center residents feared would close this summer will stay open for three more years.
A room full of senior citizens clapped Tuesday, Feb. 10, at the Fargo Parks Sports Center as the Fargo Park Board unanimously voted to renew the Broadway Station lease starting Sept. 1. The three-year extension will give the Fargo Park District adequate time to find a long-term home for senior citizens who use the space at 1461 Broadway N., Park District Executive Director Susan Faus said.
“I’m so happy,” said Deb Mize, a north Fargo resident who led the effort to keep Broadway Station open.
The Park District leases space for Broadway Station from El Zagal Holding. A 10-year lease ended in August, but the Park District and El Zagal agreed to a one-year extension ending Aug. 31, 2026.
Rent for the space increased under the new lease. The base rent for 2025 was about $46,750 for 2025, said Jayne Gust, deputy director of administration for the district.
With maintenance and utilities, the Park District spent $97,405 on Broadway Station last year, Gust said.
Because of the increase, along with several building limitations and dwindling meal attendance, the Park District suggested it would not renew the lease for another year. The closest senior center is Trollwood Village, about a mile and a half north of Broadway Station.
Seniors who use Broadway Station voiced their opposition to the center’s closure. The space is a place to socialize with friends, play cards and create support for mental health and cognitive abilities for seniors, they told The Forum.
“I think what we have seen as a sleepy feeding site has proven to be a robust community center,” North Dakota Sen. Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, said during the meeting.
Almost 50 seniors attended Tuesday's Park Board meeting. Almost 30 rode a bus from north Fargo to the Sports Center, which sits on the edge of south Fargo, so they could attend.
Seniors feel welcomed at the Broadway Station, and that sense of belonging can’t be recreated at another location, said Carmen Berg, a resident who plays pinochle at Broadway Station.
“This location is not just convenient,” Berg said. “It is essential.”
Some criticized the Park District for prioritizing youth in south Fargo over seniors in the north part of the city. Park Board Vice President Jerry Rostad said that isn’t true.
The Park District gathered input about recreational activities for older residents in north Fargo. Using the center exclusively for meals is cost prohibitive, but the space is “much more than a meals site,” Faus said.
“What we really learned through the engagement process is Broadway Station is a community hub,” she said, calling it a “one-stop shop” for multiple services and socialization.
The Park District looked at 14 alternative locations for a north-end senior center, including churches, community organizations, recreation facilities and public spaces, Gust said. Many of the sites had limited availability for meals and activities, she said.
A three-year lease will cost $312,813, Faus estimated. She also presented a five-year option with an estimated price tag of $522,173.
The three-year lease “strikes the right balance” of maintaining stability, continuing services and finding a new location, Faus said.
She recommended that Valley Senior Services share some of the lease costs. Valley Senior Services receives federal funding so it can serve meals at several senior centers and through the Meals on Wheels program in Cass, Traill, Steele, Ransom, Sargent and Richland counties.
Berg asked the board to consider purchasing the building. The Broadway Station space isn’t for sale, board member Aaron Hill said.
Government entities shouldn’t lease spaces because they don’t have control over the properties, Hill said. He said he doesn’t want to kick the can down the road.
“That said, I don’t feel like shutting this space down is the right move either,” he said.
The district is looking at its long-term master plan for all facilities, Rostad said.
“This would be a good puzzle piece to fit within that master plan,” he said.
Staff will begin plans to find a long-term location for seniors in north Fargo, Faus said. Rostad and other board members thanked residents for voicing their concerns and ideas about Broadway Station.
“We should be clapping for you,” Rostad said. “You guys made this happen.”
Park Board President Vicki Dawson was not present for the meeting but said in a statement she supported a three-year lease.
Seniors who attended the meeting thanked Mize as they left the meeting. She said she felt board members listened to and heard seniors.
Mize said she wants to work with the Park District to find a long-term solution for north-end seniors.
“We have a lot of work to do in three years so we are not repeating this process,” she said.
By April Baumgarten and Isak Dinesen
