A Goal of Asbury Park: Aging in a City Designed For People

Yesterday I was in almost exactly the same situation as the writer of this article. I was sitting in my car checking messages in a vast grocery store parking lot in Red Bank, when a very elderly woman tapped on my window.  The woman’s car wouldn’t start and she didn’t have a phone. She asked me if I could try to start her car.  Luckily she had AAA, which I called for her, waited with her for a while, then left her hoping that the repair truck would indeed get to her within the hour as promised. The woman probably shouldn’t have been driving at all, and she wouldn’t have to if she could safely walk to the grocery store in Red Bank.

We have already come a long way in beginning to make Asbury Park a truly walkable city.  Some seniors are able to get out and navigate a relatively safe sidewalk to get to a market, or walk on the boardwalk and enjoy the pleasure of sitting by the beach or in a park in certain areas of the city…but not all.  We’re working on developing livable spaces and safe streets that provide and for the needs of the most vulnerable citizens.

THE ISOLATION OF AGING IN AN AUTO-ORIENTED PLACE

 
BY SARA JOY PROPPE

Read more…

https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2017/4/14/what-developments-mean-for-you-as-you-get-older

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