[bouldercouncilhotline] Hotline: Fwd: senior needs ignored

[cmosupport at bouldercolorado.gov]

Sender: Morzel, Lisa

Council,

I received the email below from one of my neighbors, Allen Goldstone, in north Boulder (Githens acres), concerning discussions held during Goose Ck Neighbors meetings.  Allen asked that I circulate his thoughts regarding what may occur on the city-owned Boulder Community Hospital site.  when i first read his letter, I was not sure to whom he was referring to in his letter as a self-selected group but asked and he confirmed it was the Goose Creek Neighbors, a group a varied interests.

I assured Allen that the city will have a public process that is independent of GCN and he can provide input at that time. I told him GCN is doing its own thing outside of the city or process the city is planning. His email is below.

Lisa

Lisa Morzel,
Member, Boulder City Council

303-815-6723
720-530-4080

"We interact with one another as individuals responding to a complex haze of factors: professional responsibilities, personal likes and dislikes, ambition, jealousy, self-interest, and, in at least some instances, genuine altruism.  Living in the here and now, we are awash with sensations of the present, memories of the past, and expectations and fears for the future. Our actions are not determined by any one cause; they are the fulfillment of who we are at that particular moment.  After that moment passes, we continue to evolve, to change, and our memories of that moment inevitably change with us as we live with the consequences of our past actions, consequences we were unaware of at the time." The Last Stand, Nathaniel Philbrick


Begin forwarded message:

From: Allen Goldstone <alleng123 at gmail.com<mailto:alleng123 at gmail.com>>
Date: February 19, 2016, 10:04:57 PM MST
To: <MorzelL at bouldercolorado.gov<mailto:MorzelL at bouldercolorado.gov>>
Subject: Fwd: senior needs ignored

Lisa
If possible please circulate this letter in response to Spence Havlick's article in the Camera about Boulder's growing senior population to the other Council Members.
thanks
Allen

Spence
I am so glad that you wrote the article in the Camera about planning for our City's growing senior population.
I am co chair of the County enclave known as Githens Acres.
I am a former Trustee of the Boulder Elks and serve on the self appointed committee that is working to help the City decide what to do with the hospital property on Broadway.

I have suggested that we evaluate whether the hospital property could be at least partially repurposed as an alternative to bulldozing it to serve some of the needs of the many seniors that have lived in North Boulder for the last 30+ years. I suggested that since the hospital sold the 1000 Alpine building and most of the doctors have left North Boulder, we might turn the old Emergency Department into a clinic which among other uses could serve our growing senior population.
I suggested that the hospital site would make a great location for at least some senior housing.
This would fit in well with the neighborhood and would give our seniors a place to move when they leave their homes.
My suggestions completely fell on deaf ears. I was told that what was needed on the hospital site was City offices and 400 square foot units for young workers of our tech companies. I certainly agree that we need to house this growing workforce but was shocked to hear that the prevailing opinion was that seniors should go elsewhere when they leave their homes.

A significant number of my neighbors in Githens are seniors and a number of my fellow Elks are seniors.  Many have health issues and cannot go to evening City meetings where it is not uncommon to have to wait until after 9:00 PM before they can have a chance to speak. The result is that seniors have little to no voice in City policy making.
Boulder's seniors have special needs and should be heard especially now when Boulder is rewriting its rules of engagement on housing and other key issues.

I believe the City could do a better job representing its oldest citizens but am not sure how this is going to happen
  in the current environment.
 Thanks again for speaking up for us.
 Allen