[nfbmi-talk] Here's A Newsline Fix

[Marcus Simmons]

I dare you send this to me. Do you think I'm old?
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Fred Wurtzel" <f.wurtzel at comcast.net>
To: "'NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List'" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>; 
<marywurtzel at att.net>
Sent: Sunday, October 03, 2010 2:30 PM
Subject: [nfbmi-talk] Here's A Newsline Fix


> For those of you missing Newsline, here is something from the Free Press.
>
>
>
> Seniors in Wayne, Macomb and Oakland counties will nearly double their
> population
>
> in the next 25 years -- from just less than 13% of the tri-county 
> population
> this
>
> year to 23.4% by 2035.
>
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> +CW18+CW269+CW4+CW27+CW20+CW276;
>
> It's a population explosion that will be mirrored throughout southeast
>
> Michigan
>
> , according to a forecast done by the Southeast Michigan Council of
> Governments.
>
> (Along with Wayne, Oakland and Macomb, the southeast region includes
> Washtenaw, Livingston,
>
> Monroe and St. Clair counties.)
>
> To look at it another way: In 2000, there were just three communities in
> those seven
>
> counties in which the 65-and-up population made up about 25% of the
> residents; by
>
> 2035, 86 southeast Michigan counties will have that number, according to
> SEMCOG.
>
> "It's a shift of monumental proportions," said John Paul Rea, who
> contributed to
>
> an in-depth look at the implications of aging in Macomb County through 
> 2030.
>
> In addition to expanding
>
> health
>
> care, that means improving and adding to mass transportation, establishing
> mixed-use
>
> and pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods and shopping centers to accommodate
> those who
>
> no longer drive, and continuing the evolution of senior services from the
> old model
>
> of card tables and quilting clubs to those that meet baby boomers' more
> active lifestyles.
>
> Several communities have begun to look at the way they support seniors --
> not only
>
> because seniors will need more services, but also because they represent a
> $16.6-billion
>
> chunk of southeast Michigan's
>
> economy
>
> .
>
> The Oakland County Senior Planning Coalition said it is hoping to tap into
> that economic
>
> potential by making, even branding, Oakland County as senior-friendly.
>
> Among the ideas: creating lending libraries for assistive devices such as
> wheelchairs
>
> and walkers, establishing time banks so seniors and others can exchange
> services
>
> and chores and finding ways to lure medical professionals with a focus on
> geriatrics.
>
> All this could help retain seniors in the area or even draw new ones,
> coalition members
>
> said. That's crucial, because retaining 100
>
> retirees
>
> results in more than $4 million in spending in the local economy each 
> year,
> according
>
> to the coalition's report, "Preparing for the Silver Tsunami, A Wave of
> Opportunity."
>
> "There's a tendency to say 'Oh no, (seniors) are going to need all these
> services.
>
> They'll need so much, they'll bankrupt us,' " said Jim McGuire, research
>
> director
>
> at the Southfield-based Area Agency on Aging 1-B, which covers six
> counties. "They're
>
> really a net gain to the community."
>
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