Don't miss Wednesday's discussion of housing options for NOTL seniors

When a survey on housing options for Niagara-on-the-Lake seniors was completed and its results analyzed and made public earlier this year, there were few surprises.

Volunteers with the Senior Housing Options Group had met and discussed the issue amongst themselves, and moved forward with the survey. Cindy Grant, one of the organizers of the group, said at the time that anecdotally, and through informal discussions about the issue, the group felt that when seniors were ready to downsize they found there were few suitable options in NOTL. Some were having to leave town to find the kind of housing they required  — as much as they wanted to stay in NOTL, there was nothing that fit their needs. But the group wanted to be sure they were on the right track, and devised the survey, aimed at NOTL residents 55 and older, to help quantify the problem.

There was nothing unexpected reflected in the survey results, said Grant. They showed that there were little or no suitable alternatives available for those hoping to downsize and stay in NOTL.

The next steps, she said at the time of the survey’s completion, would be a community forum to bring everybody up to date, and to talk about how to proceed from there.

Those sessions are underway. One was Monday night, and there are two more scheduled. There is a meeting Tuesday evening, Oct. 29, in the Mary Snider Room in the Centennial Arena in Virgil, and on Wednesday, Oct. 30, in the Queenston Public Library on Queenston Street in the village of Queenston. Both are from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

There is no formal presentation planned, although there will be a summary of the survey and its results, and then, as occurred Monday night, residents can talk about what they are looking for in housing options.

Grant has already spoken to the economic development committee at the region about the need for housing options, and to two town planning staff members about the survey results, receiving good support from both.

Once she has feedback from these sessions with residents — she has plans to also hold them in St. Davids and Glendale — she will circle back to the region, especially for a conversation about efficient, reliable public transportation.

She also plans to put together a summary of the information that has been collected, and make a delegation to town council, she said.

She has had brief discussions with local developers, but they are not going to be the solution, she told The Local — what is really needed is for a builder of retirement homes that offer some level of assisted living to have a look at NOTL.

“Our committee, this project, can’t actually do anything. We’re just creating awareness of the issue, getting people talking about it, and making the connections with those who can do something about it, including those who are already building retirement homes. Council has to create the environment to make something like that happen.”

Grant explains that what is needed is “attainable housing,” or in the case of seniors, “a different kind of housing that meets the needs of a specific population.”

And in NOTL, that means retirement homes with the amenities people want, built by those who have the knowledge, resources and experience to do that, she said.

Peggy Walker is a local senior who joined the housing option committee because it was a discussion that interested her personally. She has lived in her current home on the river in Niagara-on-the-Lake since 1983, and told the The Local she really doesn’t want to leave it, but realistically, she knows the time is coming when she will have to. She also has to accept that the solution won’t be in NOTL Instead, for her, it will mean moving closer to family.

“I’m not in a hurry,” she said — she is still independent, busy, active, drives herself wherever she needs to go, including her fitness class, and helps friends by driving them.

“I’m not leaving now, I’m not in a hurry to go anywhere, but I am trying to be sensible about what the future brings.”

Sitting in her sunroom overlooking the Niagara River it’s easy to understand why she would like to stay right where she is. Although the Niagara Pumphouse Arts Centre borders her Ricardo Street property on one side, and King’s Point the other, her view is the water, and if she walks to the end of her dock, she can see beachfront in both directions, to one side past the condos all the way to the sailing club.

A lighthouse is her nearest neighbour, between her and the historic pumphouse, but the activity there is minimal.

All this to say it’s a quiet, peaceful setting, Walker explained, with a home that appears small from the outside but is actually quite spacious inside, one that exudes charm and character and is “perfect for one person, but with room for people to come for a visit.”

As much as she loves her home, really, she said, “it’s the river I don’t want to leave.”

She isn’t the least surprised about what the survey on housing options found. It is a reflection of what she and her friends have discovered — that their options are pretty limited.

“Some of them have already moved,” she said, choosing retirement homes, some with assisted living, “but not around here.

“Seniors are living longer, and are more capable of walking, and they’d like to find living options that would allow them to walk to the places they’d like to go,” said Walker. “But they can’t find that in Niagara-on-the-Lake. I’m okay with where I’m going. If I’m not here, then I want to be near family.”

That means, for her and others, moving away from health care and other important services, their church, any volunteer work they may still be enjoying, as well as leaving behind friends who are important in their lives.

She said if she had a word of advice to seniors moving to town now — and they are doing so at younger ages — it would be not to procrastinate, but to look ahead for options for when they can’t stay in their own home.

She said she’s hoping to see the survey results may be the basis for change, providing more options for the future, “but that’s not going to happen in time for us.”

And realistically, it’s not going to happen in the Old Town. Having been part of Monday’s meeting at the community centre, Walker said most of those who attended were Old Town residents who feel the same way — they would like to see housing options nearby. But with a lack of property left for building, she realizes that’s unlikely to happen, and if the solution that comes along happens to be in Virgil, she agrees with Grant that good public transportation will be especially important for those who want to continue to enjoy all the Old Town has to offer.

Peter Gill is another senior who discovered limited options. He and his wife Judy had their name on a long waiting list for the Hunter Road property in NOTL, which provides life-lease housing for those 55 and older, but by the time the Gills were offered a space, they had moved to a two-bedroom apartment in St. Catharine called Healtherwood they like, convenient to NOTL, and with another building that offers assisted living. If needed, nursing staff can provide assistance, such as when Peter fell, hitting his head against the side of his car. and was able to get the help he needed quickly without a trip to the St. Catharines emergency room and the long wait which is always expected.

“We really wanted to stay in NOTL,” he said, having friends in town and being involved in the community, including volunteer work they enjoy, but the time had come to downsize — if they had left it too long, they were afraid it would have been a much more difficult move.

They looked at several places in St. Catharines and Niagara Falls, “and we chose Heatherwood. It had everything we wanted.” Except being in NOTL, but they are still able to take part in local activities, he said, and they do.

“We’re comfortable here now. We have an apartment that’s a good size, and everything we need. But we’d still consider going back to NOTL if something came up that interests us, comparable to what we have here, and if the timing is right.”