BATON ROUGE — The East Baton Rouge Parish Council on Aging is finalizing its plans to renovate a former grocery store into a new space for area seniors, according to Business Report.

The renovation is reportedly part of the organization’s larger efforts to expand its services. Last week, the Council on Aging applied for a remodel permit for the complete interior renovation of the former Save-A-Lot on Evangeline Street near Elm Drive into a senior activity center. The permit application describes the scope of the project as including a kitchen, kitchen hood, restrooms, and new finishes and partitions to the roughly 16,000-square-foot building.

Angell Kennedy, the agency’s chief marketing and information officer, told Business Report that the new center, purchased in February, will broaden access to the Council on Aging’s programs and services.

“It will be designed as a welcoming community hub that will offer daily congregate meals, health and wellness programs, and social engagement activities aimed at promoting independence and healthy aging while creating meaningful connection among seniors in the community,” she said.

The facility will also feature a full-service Lotus Pantry—a senior-focused free food pantry—modeled after the agency’s existing pantry on Main Street. The pantry is supported by a partnership with the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Louisiana Department of Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain.

In June, voters renewed the Council on Aging’s dedicated 2-mill tax.