Guide includes nearly 90 programs and initiatives across City agencies designed to enrich the lives of older New Yorkers
Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives Richard Buery and DFTA today released Age-Friendly NYC: New Commitments For a City For All Ages at Sunnyside Community Services in Queens. The report presents a comprehensive guide of City programs and initiatives designed to enrich the lives of older New Yorkers. As the population of New York City grows older — with adults ages 60 and above projected to account for 20.6 percent of the City’s population by 2040 — Age-Friendly NYC: New Commitments For a City For All Ages will help meet the demands of this demographic shift.
“New York would not be the city it is today without the invaluable contributions of our senior citizens – a debt we are paying down with programs to help them age in place,” said Mayor de Blasio. “The initiatives outlined in Age-Friendly NYC will build on the progress we have made in meeting the needs of our growing community of older New Yorkers. By preserving or creating affordable housing, keeping rents down, investing in geriatric mental health, and through many more initiatives, we can truly make this a city for people of all ages.”
The initiatives outlined in the report include existing programs of the de Blasio Administration that support the well-being of older adults, such as the Mayor’s Housing New York plan, a five-borough, 10-year strategy, which includes a plan to create or preserve affordable housing for seniors; raising income eligibility limits for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase and the Disability Rent Increase Exemptions; and ThriveNYC programming at senior centers throughout the City that provide on-site counseling and help remove the stigma of mental health issues.
Age-Friendly NYC includes nearly 90 programs and initiatives across the spectrum of the City’s agencies and community partners, including:
· Increasing baselined City funding for essential aging services by $84 million under the de Blasio Administration
· Expanding the City’s senior housing commitment by 5,000 to 15,000 units of the 200,000 total units in the Mayor’s Housing New York plan
· Providing universal access to civil justice and tenant legal services for New Yorkers who are facing eviction and have incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty level
· Focusing on geriatric mental health by embedding mental health practitioners in senior centers and addressing social isolation and depression faced by homebound older adults
· Creating multidisciplinary teams in the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island as well as strengthening existing teams in Brooklyn and Manhattan in order to better serve elder abuse victims
· Implementing Vision Zero education and enforcement initiatives that focus on the safety of older New Yorkers
“Through 86 initiatives, Age Friendly NYC: New Commitments For a City For All Ages demonstrates our vision for our City: a place where older New Yorkers can thrive as they age: in good health, safe and secure in their homes, and able to enjoy all that New York City has to offer,” said Richard Buery, Deputy Mayor for Strategic Policy Initiatives. “With more people reaching and living beyond age 60 than ever before, it has become increasingly important to make sure this growing population has the supports and resources they need. When the City becomes fairer and more inclusive to seniors, we all benefit.”
“I’m proud to lead the Department for the Aging’s work with our sister agencies in support of older adults through Age-Friendly NYC,” said DFTA Commissioner Donna Corrado. “Seniors deserve our support as they age in place. They still have much to offer society, and they contribute greatly to New York’s diverse communities.”
