Pittsfield Starts To Prepare For Older DemographicsBy Andy McKeever, iBerkshires Staff 10:49AM / Thursday, April 02, 2015 | |
Roberta Orsi, left, and Gina Armstrong made a presentation to the City Council's Public Health and Safety subcommittee asking for support for their efforts. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The way things are going, almost 30 percent of the county's population will be over the age of 65 in just 15 years.
A countywide task force is now being formed to start looking at what the county needs to support the aging demographic.
On Wednesday, Board of Health Chairwoman Roberta Orsi received support from a City Council subcommittee on her efforts to bring a plan to fruition.
"We are trying to bring the stakeholders together to start this conversation," Orsi said. "We try to think of Berkshire County as a good place to grow up and a good place to grow old."
It isn't just a matter of the baby boomer generation growing old — though they will certainly make a big impact with 39,000 heading into retirement — but a trend across the county with life expectancy extending longer and generations having few children and the trend will continue over a number of generations.
"We want to start planning ahead," said Director of Public Health Gina Armstrong.
Orsi said the county needs to rethink its planning for transportation, housing, outdoor spaces, social participation, social inclusion, civic participation and employment, communication, and health services.
"By 2030 in America, there will be more people over 65 than there will be school-aged children," Orsi said.
In Pittsfield, there are 8,132 residents over the age of 65; 36.2 percent of them are between the ages of 75-84 and 16.9 percent older than 85. This is in contrast to the life expectancy of 65 when Social Security was set up.
Countywide, there were 24,386 residents over the age of 65 in 2010, which jumps to 31,003 in 2020, and 37,662 in 2030.
Orsi said there are two levels of retirement: pre-care independent years and dependent years. Orsi's hope is to extend the independent years to keep people in their homes.
"Everybody wants to stay home as long as they can. But to age in place, they need a community," Orsi said.
Not only does access to health care matter but also providing ways for older residents to stay engaged. In those independent years, the seniors are very active and there will be many of them.
An example is that the older generation drives less so areas should be planned with grocery stores, post office, and activities close together to reduce the need for travel, making it easier for seniors to get their basic needs met. The transportation system and housing should also be considerate as to the aging community.
"We're barely even able to keep up with the demand for senior care services now," Orsi said.
The first step for the group is to ask seniors what they would want in their community. The group has launched a survey for those over the age of 50 and so far has received 1,800 results.
"This creates a platform for the conversation," she said.
The effort that began in January 2014 has already received support for multiple councils on aging, boards of health, health care companies, and Mayors Richard Alcombright and Daniel Bianchi.
The group is following strategies laid out through AARP and the World Health Organization's Age Friendly Communities. It was accepted into the AARP/WHO program and are now submitting grant applications for funding.
The group hopes that within five years it will have an action plan ready for implementation.
"I think there has to be a better plan for [aging population]," said Ward 6 Councilor John Krol, who will be supporting the adoption of a resolution calling for the city to become aging friendly.
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