Social services, health, fitness top the list of priorities for an expanded facility.

Looking for direction as they develop plans for the new Bainbridge Island Senior Community Center, architects surveyed as many people as they could.

They turned to neighbors. They asked the city. But mostly they sought help from Bainbridge seniors who, through their widespread response, didn’t disappoint.

In all, 318 answered the call, indicating through the survey that social services, health and wellness services and exercise and fitness facilities are among their highest priorities for the new center.

The needs don’t stop there. A new living room, classroom and performing space – even a new billiard room – also made the list.

Surveys in tow, architects then crafted the three alternatives presented Thursday at the Bainbridge Commons.

“We want to come up with a solution that best marries the strongest aspects of these different designs,” architect Rex Bond told the 35 or so people in attendance.

All three options would be roughly 13,500 square feet and would incorporate larger restrooms, better access for the disabled and a large, multi-purpose room that would accommodate up to 180 people.

The current senior center, including the commons and adjacent health clinic is 4,486 square feet and offers activities and services to about 1,100 members.

The BISCC gains about 18 members each month.

Knowing that, and knowing the island’s senior population is rapidly growing, senior center board members in September kicked off efforts to replace the current structure, just north of Waterfront Park.

Brought in to lead design was a team from ARC Architects, led by Bond. The designs presented Thursday were based on information gathered at two previous meetings and from the survey.

Comments from yesterday’s meeting will influence the preferred alternative, to be presented – along with preliminary costs – at a meeting next month.

The city owns the current building, but the Bainbridge Island Metropolitan Park District pays for the staff.

Funding for the project has not yet been solidified, said BISCC director Jane Allan. Fundraising would likely begin early next year, once costs for the building are known.

The targeted completion date for the project is 2010 or 2011.

Architects faced some design constraints. Paramount was the desire to keep the center at its current location. Also stressed in all three alternatives was the protection of trees on the property and of the popular playground area.

Option one is the only single-story alternative of the three. Much of the services, including administration, the thrift store and an Internet cafe, would be located on the west end of the building. Meeting, classroom and performance space, and the multi-purpose room would be to the east. Members and guests would enter via a patio at the southwest corner of the building, or down a set of stairs that would descend from Bjune Drive. Some audience members were wary about the stairs at the north entrance.

It would include 17 parking spaces, just one more than the 16 spaces now available at or near the center.

Option two, with 29 spaces and underground parking, would offer the most parking of the three options. In that plan, the thrift store, health suite and administration would all be on the lower level, facing out toward the park. The kitchen, cafe, restrooms, reception and the majority of activity space would be located upstairs, accessible via stairs and an elevator or through a patio at street level on the north end of the building. Many in the crowd liked the idea of more parking, but weren’t as fond of having to maneuver in and out of a parking garage.

Option three, also two stories, would include a large entrance from the north.

Cars and buses headed east on Bjune would swing south down a new, possibly covered, driveway toward the building, where people could be picked up or dropped off. Reception, dining, restrooms and the multi-purpose room would be upstairs.

The thrift store, arts and crafts space and health services would be downstairs, as would a smaller entrance from the south. One idea, Bond said, would be to feature the large staircase near the north entrance.

“We could make the stairs a fun event,” he said. “There could be places to stop along the way to rest or people watch.”

Some suggested adding a deck over a portion of the parking lot – 20 spaces would be available in all – to the west of the building.

Predictably, Bond said, parking will present one of the project’s biggest hurdles.

He hasn’t yet spoken with the city about parking, but believes 43 spaces would be needed to match the current level available.

“So much is in flux right now,” Bond said, referring to projects with Winslow Tomorrow and Waterfront Park. “We don’t want to go too far down the road in the wrong way.

“We want to be involved in whatever discussions they’re having.”

BISCC director Jane Allan said she felt good about their progress so far, adding that the likeliest scenario would involve a combination of all three designs.

“I think we got some good feedback,” she said. “Some liked the single-story option, others didn’t. Outdoor spaces were also important to people.”

Many suggested a restroom that would be accessible from the outside, even when the center is closed.

Bus access and keeping the living room and cafe areas close to one another were also topics of discussion, as was the possibility of eventually reversing the flow of traffic on Bjune and Brien drives to enabler easier drop off.

The designs will be on hand for viewing at the senior center until the end of next week. Allan encouraged people to review them and comment and to attend the meeting in December.

“We hope more people will come down and participate,” she said.