Wednesday, September 30, 2009

College Hill - Where People Go To Die ?

College Hill is the home to at least 2 retirement/nursing home facilities, Llanfair and Twin Towers already. Now, Episcopal Retirement Homes wants to build a facility On North Bend just west of Hamilton Avenue. The College Hill Forum doesn't want the new facility. Dunno what they do want....
But can a neighborhood base itself on such businesses & their clientele ? The proposed facility is for low income seniors but, most seniors kinda are anyway just because they don't work. It is meant for independent living so the folks would be able to go out into the community and they would not be far from the business district. Twin Towers has a large independent living population that might not want to walk to the business district but could certainly drive there or use the bus. Both Twin Towers and Llanfair take their residents out on "field trips" on a regular basis.
Would a concentration of nursing homes in one neighborhood attract businesses like funeral homes, drug stores, prosthetics dealers, bingo halls & physical therapists ? Could College Hill be the place to go for steamed food ? Might Northside hipsters like the nearby location for their aging parents ? Would the city be well served with such a neighborhood that it could develop the infrastructure to cater to the elderly ? Is this a way to build a vibrant neighborhood ?
Or would it just become a ghetto of the elderly ?

No comments: