MCLENNAN COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — A beloved Waco dance group that has called the Sul Ross Senior Center home for 40 years will soon be moving to a new location.
The Boot Scootin Dance Club, which has gathered at the center every Thursday night for four decades, will relocate to the Waco Lions Den after city officials determined the current facility has deteriorating and unsafe conditions.
The decision was announced at Tuesday's city council meeting, where several seniors spoke in hopes of saving the center that means so much to them.
"It's a home away from home for a lot of these people, so it's going to be hard," one member said.
The city's decision came after officials identified several safety concerns at the Sul Ross Senior Center, including uneven floorboards that pose hazards to dancers.
"Sul Ross has its problems okay— there are places on the floor where my shoe catches the edge of one of the panels in the floor," a club member explained.
While some members are looking forward to the new venue, others are struggling with the emotional impact of leaving a place filled with decades of memories.
"I personally think it's very exciting, I've heard other people say it's a very extremely nice building, so I'm quite frankly looking forward to being there," one dancer said about the move to the Lions Den.
For many seniors, the center represents more than just a place to dance — it's where deep friendships and even love stories began.
Linda Gomez, who met her fiancé through the dance group after moving to Waco, expressed disappointment about the relocation.
"I met a man who introduced me to dancing at the senior center, and we're now engaged, and so, yeah, it's hard to see it go," Gomez said.
Another member shared how the center had been a source of community during difficult times: "Our friends are there. In fact, when my husband passed away, 138 visitors came to his gravesite—they're all friends of ours that we met there."
As the group prepares for this transition, some members, including Kym Kiddy, plan to work toward designating the Sul Ross Center as a national landmark.
Despite the sadness surrounding the closure, one member reflected on the situation with perspective: "It's a new beginning for people that don't have a lot of them left."
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