Santa Fe begins drafting age‑friendly action plan after workshops, 500+ survey responses

The Quality of Life Committee heard an update June 4 on Age Friendly Santa Fe, a city effort to develop an action plan under the AARP/World Health Organization age‑friendly communities framework. Maria Sanchez Tucker, the city’s community services director, and Andrew West, the project manager under contract, described community engagement to date and next steps.

The update matters because the initiative will guide city investments and programs to improve livability for older adults and, by design, for people of all ages. The committee was told the effort will inform a draft action plan to be reviewed by residents before the city seeks formal AARP/WHO recognition.

West, a local researcher and consultant, said the city joined the AARP age‑friendly network last fall and began work on outreach in February. "We have started working on building our action plan and community engagement," he said. He described the initiative’s eight "domains of livability" — including housing, transportation and social inclusion — and how the city is using those domains to ask residents where Santa Fe performs well and where it can improve.

City staff reported the engagement program has collected more than 500 survey responses in roughly six weeks. The team held four "healthy aging" workshops in library locations and three listening sessions at city senior centers; staff said those events engaged more than 200 residents. Sanchez Tucker noted Spanish interpretation was provided at listening sessions and that a Spanish‑language listening session is scheduled for June 16 at the Teen Center. "We're trying to get the word out to our community partners so we can make sure that we have voices from every segment of our community," she said.

Preliminary themes from the workshops and listening sessions include transportation, housing affordability and availability of safe housing for older adults, and gaps in public information about existing resources. West said participants repeatedly raised difficulty navigating the city’s transit system, especially along the St. Francis corridor, and concerns about parking and walkability for people who no longer drive. He said residents also reported there are many services available but limited awareness of where to find them. "One thing we've learned is there's just not a lot of awareness around who to go to for what, where to even find those resources," West said.

West said AARP recommends focusing early action plans on one to three top priorities rather than attempting to address all eight domains at once. Based on early engagement, the team plans to prioritize transportation, housing and communication/information in the initial action plan and continue community review of draft goals and strategies over the summer.

Committee members praised the outreach and encouraged intergenerational connections. Councilor Amanda Chavez, who sponsored the original resolution that launched the city’s participation in the AARP network, said accessibility and inclusivity were central goals. "We should all have equal access to the city that we live in," Chavez said. Councilor Alma Castro asked committee members to consider involving youth in advisory‑committee work.

Next steps presented to the committee include data analysis of the survey and listening sessions, a gap analysis against the age‑friendly domains, drafting goals and strategies, and additional rounds of community review before staff return with a formal action plan for committee and council consideration.