This item addresses the closure of the elder congregate meal site located at Stella Maris House (Stella Maris), an adult living facility located at 8638 Harding Avenue. This item was originally raised at the June 8, 2016 City Commission meeting by Commission John Elizabeth Aleman. At the July 13, 2016 Commission meeting, representatives of Little Havana Activities and Nutrition Centers of Dade County, Inc., the meal site provider, explained that the cause of the meal site's closure was the loss of Local Service Program (LSM) funding from the State of Florida.

While the City has provided interim funding through July 22, 2016 to ensure that meals continue uninterrupted at Stella Maris, the Alliance for Aging (Alliance), the agency that monitors elder meal services in Miami-Dade County, has advised the City that program participants have been advised that they can receive services at the South Shore Senior Center (Senior Center). The Senior Center's meal program is operated by Jewish Community Services of South Florida (JCS). Stella Maris residents are free to receive ongoing meal services at the Senior Center. While JCS can provide transportation from Stella Maris to the Senior Center, it must first obtain consent from a minimum of 15 Stella Maris residents who are willing to accept this service. As of this writing, the transportation component has not been resolved.

In addition to offering ongoing services at the Senior Center, the Alliance for Aging has certified that 12 of the Stella Maris residents currently receiving congregate meal site services are in fact eligible to receive homebound services (which provides for the delivery of meals directly to the elder person's home). The Alliance has referred these eligible residents to the Miami-Dade County Community Action and Human Services Department (Miami-Dade County) to ensure that meal services remain uninterrupted with the service commencing when the Stella Maris congregate meal site officially closes.

At the July 13th meeting, several Commissioners inquired as to when funding for the meal sites would next become available. According to the Alliance, the next funding opportunity is expected in 2017.