After a fully booked presentation held Monday night on the state of housing for seniors in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Coun. Gary Burroughs says the next step for the senior housing options group is to connect with council and get the ball rolling on offering the town’s aging population more places to live.
“They’ve done their part, it’s really up to us,” Burroughs said in an interview.
During Monday night’s Learn & Live presentation on senior housing, Cindy Grant spoke to a full crowd of around 70 residents on the ongoing housing discussions and the latest findings of its survey.
Late last year, Grant hosted a series of sessions to discuss the group’s housing options survey conducted earlier in the year and take in more NOTLer feedback.
By 2031, the age group of 65 to 74 will increase by 13.5 per cent in all five villages of NOTL and by 2041 the age group of 75 and over will increase by 73 per cent, Grant said.
“This town is getting old,” Grant said during her presentation.
The survey found the majority of NOTL residents are living in single-family homes, with 55 per cent of respondents answering that they are currently considering changes but have no plans in place.
“Overwhelmingly, people know they need to do something,” Grant said.
Key factors for seniors considering a change were easy access to health care, a range of services and amenities, staying in the community and maintaining social relationships.
Grant noted next steps include meeting with experts and developers to see what options are moving forward.
“We have met with a few developers and of course the first question is ‘Where is the land?’” Grant said.
In order to meet needs, some of these residences may not be in Old Town, Grant said.
“God ain’t making more land in Old Town,” she said.
She noted that if residences are to be built in Glendale or other villages, the town must ensure that public transportation improves.
Following the data presentation, which included a number of options ranging from resources for aging in place to full-blown new developments for retirees, Grant took time for suggestions from the audience.
Ingrid Regier, a resident at Radiant Care Pleasant Manor, voiced concerns over one of Grant’s options that included working with developers to build new accommodations.
“Developers are there to make money,” Regier told The Lake Report in an aside.
One of her biggest concerns was surrounding parking availability at these potential new developments.
“Did anybody ever mention affordability or housing?” Regier asked Grant.
Regier described the chaos caused by the lack of parking at Pleasant Manor, specifically when a resident died and a celebration of life was held on the property.
“There was no parking.”
Regier stressed that land for parking spaces needs to be considered when making proposals.
Grant said the group is many steps away from a discussion about parking.
“I know we’re many steps away but until we be proactive about it, we’re cooked,” Regier said.
Grant said parking would be added to the necessary infrastructure list.
The Lake Report asked Burroughs what he thought about the importance of parking for these potential residences.
“There’s lots to worry about,” he said. “I don’t know what the solutions are.”
“They’re assuming that people who are in homes don’t need vehicles, but they have visitors.”
Burroughs noted the several properties outlined during the presentation as potential locations for senior housing, including the old hospital and the old Laura Secord Public School in Queenston.
Burroughs said both sites have potential.
“There has to be, first of all, involvement from the town,” he said.
Burroughs was the only councillor to attend the presentation Monday night, noting that Coun. Sandra O’Connor could not make it.
