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Commission for Older Adults urges council to adopt needs-assessment recommendations and consider term-length change
Summary
Jeanne Davis and Karen Jorgensen of the Aurora Commission for Older Adults presented the commission’s 2024 annual report and asked council to commit to implementing the city’s older-adult needs-assessment recommendations and to consider extending commissioner terms to three years.
Jeanne Davis, chair of the Aurora Commission for Older Adults, and Karen Jorgensen, vice chair, presented the commission’s 2024 annual report to the PRPLOS Committee, summarizing a city-funded older-adult needs assessment, outreach work, programming, transportation engagement and fraud-prevention efforts. They requested council support to implement the assessment’s recommendations and asked that city code be changed to extend commissioner terms from two to three years.
Davis and Jorgensen described the needs-assessment effort led by consultant JSI and city staff. The commission said the city released a public survey in August of the prior year in six languages and made paper copies available at recreation centers and libraries; JSI and staff are finalizing a report that includes recommendations and implementation benchmarks.
The commission highlighted its events and outreach work: commissioners hosted a Walk and Roll event at Del Mar Park on May 16 with nearly 100 participants; sponsored the 2024 Aurora Forum for Older Adults where Council member Medina led an open discussion; conducted a speaker series in partnership with Aurora Health Alliance and Anschutz Multidisciplinary Center on Aging; and staffed outreach tables at community events.
On advocacy and operations, the commission said it formally requested a change to commissioner terms from two to three years, noting that the change requires a city code amendment. The commission also reported improved communications and marketing visibility and said it intends to continue recruiting volunteers and partnering with libraries, recreation centers and external organizations to reduce isolation and create intergenerational programming.
Transportation and legislative work were also discussed: the commission said it is engaged with the city’s micro-transit pilot program and noted a Regional Transportation District (RTD) grant that increased pilot funding to $850,000 across three years; the commission plans a transportation workshop for older adults on Oct. 13 and will maintain legislative monitoring through the Colorado Center on Aging.
The fraud, abuse and prevention committee reported monthly updates from the Aurora Police Department and plans to attend the 2025 Senior Law and Safety Summit and distribute materials on common scams and fraud prevention.
The commission closed by asking council members to (1) commit to implementing and measuring the needs-assessment recommendations, (2) collaborate with the commission on older-adult issues in each council ward, and (3) consider older-adult impacts in city planning and operations. Council members thanked the commission and offered invitations for commissioners to attend ward meetings.
