EAST LANSING, Mich. — The City of East Lansing has been selected by national non-profit agency AARP to take part in a phone survey project as part of the Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Program.
The phone survey will take place June 5-July 17 (these dates have since been changed to July 6-21) and residents, 45 years of age and older, will be selected at random. Residents that are contacted will be asked to complete a 25-minute phone survey in which they will be asked about their preferences on issues such as housing, aging in place, transportation needs and more.
In 2016, the City of East Lansing became the third city in the State of Michigan to become a member of the AARP Age-Friendly Network. The City is now working to become a designated Age-Friendly Community, as recognized by the World Health Organization. Through this designation, East Lansing would become eligible to receive resources that assist residents in living comfortably within their communities as they age. Initiative areas include housing, caregiving, community engagement, volunteering, social inclusion and combating isolation among older citizens.
Currently, the East Lansing Age-Friendly Community Committee, comprised of 15 seniors and City staff members, meets monthly to work toward receiving an Age-Friendly Communities designation. The designation process is expected to take three years.
Jim Levande, the chairperson of the East Lansing Age-Friendly Community Committee, encourages residents to participate in the phone survey.
“If you are a resident who is called, please respond. East Lansing’s Age-Friendly Community Committee needs the information produced by the survey,” said Levande. “Recommendations based on citizen input will be used to strengthen the initiatives outlined in the age-friendly criteria. Achieving the Age-Friendly Community designation will help us to gain resources and increase citizen opportunities across the initiatives.”
Community members can find additional information by visiting http://www.aarp.org/ and entering “age friendly” in the search bar.
Results of the phone survey will be shared with the public and referenced by the East Lansing Age-Friendly Community Committee. Residents are encouraged to participate if they are called. All caller information will remain anonymous.