Many American Communities Ill Prepared for Aging Population

America’s cities, towns and neighborhoods are not ready to serve the needs of the nation’s surging older population, warns an AARP report released last week. Beyond 50.05—Livable Communities: Creating Environments for Successful Aging takes a fresh look at the adequacy of communities to serve the needs of persons of all ages, especially those 50 and older, and provides AARP’s prescription for improving them.   ;   The demand for livable communities – those that provide affordable and appropriate housing, supporting community features and services, and adequate transportation and mobility options – is made clear by a recent Census Bureau forecast predicting that between 2000 and 2030, as the baby boom generation ages, the number of people 65 and older will more than double in 26 states.   ;   The new AARP report, which for the first time establishes a link between the qualities of livable communities and Americans’ ability to age successfully, finds that people frequently give low grades to their community if it is lacking those qualities. Today’s shortcomings will be exacerbated as the number of older Americans surges in the next three decades.   ;   When older people are not engaged in their communities, they have