The Mountlake Terrace City Council Thursday night is set to discuss a request from the Mountlake Terrace Community Senior Center to forgive past-due rent for the Ballinger Clubhouse — where the senior center is located — and provide a rent reduction going forward as the senior center works to address the financial impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak.

“Our biggest hurdle will be the lapse of room rental income,” wrote departing Executive Director Lisa Norton in a letter included as part of the council agenda packet. “Due to the rules of (the state’s) phase 1-4 and social distancing, rental bookings for weddings, memorials and celebrations are not happening and original events booked for 2020 have sadly been cancelled or postponed until late 2021.”

The senior center is asking that its monthly rent of $1,500 be reduced to $500 a month starting in August 2020, to be reassessed in spring 2021. The center is also asking for forgiveness of the amount it owes for rent from March through August 2020.

Norton said the senior center is working on a federal CARES Act contract from Snohomish County that will provide federal money from July through November 2020 — which will cover salaries and wages only. “The staff will be able to continue our nutrition program and also implement a new program that is a phone call welfare check on isolated seniors,” Norton said. “Our hope is that by the end of December other sources of revenue will trickle in.”

Other items on the Thursday, July 2 work/study session agenda include:

– An update on CARES Act funds.

– Review of a resolution authorizing the city manager to execute a contract with the state Department of Commerce for Coronavirus Relief Funds.

You can see the complete agenda here.