American Cities Brace for Huge Influx of Elderly

By Haya El Nasser, USA Today

May 14, 2007

Communities across the USA are scrambling to brighten street signs, widen sidewalks and redesign housing to gird for a demographic earthquake: 35 million more seniors by 2030.

Planning for older Americans on such a scale is a new experience for most cities and towns. A survey last year showed that 47% of communities had begun addressing the special needs of residents ages 65 and older, a population the Census Bureau expects to grow three times as fast as the nation as a whole.

The first wave of seniors will hit in four years when the oldest of 79 million baby boomers reach that milestone. The National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, lead sponsor of the survey of about 1,800 communities funded by MetLife Foundation, says it gets at least 15 calls a week from cities and counties worried they aren't ready.

"For so long, the focus was on community planning mostly for young families and children," says Sandy Markwood, CEO of the association, the umbrella group for local agencies that coordinate services for the elderly. "The light bulb is going off." What some are doing:

.Changing zoning. Cobb County, Ga., created the nation's first "residential senior living zoning district," which allows more homes per acre to be built near grocery stores and other services.

.Redesigning roads. In Richmond, Va., older volunteers found that sidewalks were missing near a key hospital and identified intersections that were hard to cross.

.Allowing "granny flats." Santa Cruz, Calif., hired architects to design residential units that can be added to existing houses to accommodate older relatives.

.Enlarging road signs. The Michigan Department of Transportation is reducing glare on green highway signs and making yellow ones brighter.

The focus on seniors "is just now percolating to the top," says Nashville Councilwoman Diane Neighbors, a member of a National League of Cities committee looking at these issues.

"Folks are beginning to realize what impact the increase in the number of boomers is going to have on their community."