e-News from Older Dominion Partnership

Articles & Reports

Making Suburbia More Livable

The Atlanta Regional Commission is launching what the Wall Street Journal describes as one of the most ambitious efforts in the nation to transform cul-de-sac suburbs into "lifelong communities." The planning agency for the 10-county metro area, is working with architects, developers and local officials to create places where "people of all ages and abilities can live as long as they would like."

The initiative is driven by the recognition that sprawling, auto-dependent suburbs do not promote independent living and social connectivity among seniors. Hiring one of the leading practitioners of the New Urbanism design movement, the commission is strategizing how to transform cul de sacs and shopping centers into compact, pedestrian-friendly communities where most of life's needs are within easy walking distance.

The Atlanta experiment and others like it described in the WSJ article could provide a template for the redevelopment of suburban communities in Virginia. Read more.

Smart Growth Meets the Age Wave

If you're looking for a blueprint for building the kinds of communities described in the article above, check out "Growing Smart, Living Healthier," recently published by the Environmental Protection Agency. Proper urban design can help seniors live independently longer by creating an environment where they stay more physically active, more connected with family and friends, and more engaged in the community.

Zoning policies in many Virginia municipalities make it difficult to create the kind of places that the EPA study describes. Age Wave principles need to be incorporated in local zoning codes and comprehensive plans.

Nashville Plans for Boomer Wave

As the population of Nashville ages, don't expect to see a lot of old-timers sitting on the front porch plunking on the banjo. Nashville planners foresee a wave of Baby Boomers working longer and staying civically engaged -- and they want to make sure the city is ready for them. The year-long Nashville Livability Project is addressing transportation, housing, health, workforce, civic engagement and safety issues in the context of the Age Wave. The Tennessean.com has the story. Read more.

Hospital Utilization among the Who?

The impact of the fast-growing population of elderly Americans on health care expenditures has been widely studied, but the impact of 55- to 64-year-olds -- the "near elderly" -- will be significant, too, argue Allison Russo, Lauren M. Wier, and Anne Elixhauser, in an article, "Hospital Utilization among Near-Elderly Adults, Ages 55 to 64 Years," published by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.

There's a lot of useful data in the article, but we do take exception to the nomenclature. "Near elderly?" Whoa, is that an ageist remark? Most people aged 55 to 64 consider themselves "middle-aged" -- they won't go near the word elderly. As for people aged 65 to 74, very few regard themselves as "elderly."

We're guessing that the authors are under 55. Perhaps an appropriate descriptor for them would be "verging on near elderly."