The following letter was published in
the Beverly Hills Citizen:

Why Are 30% of Us Being Ignored?

Recently I listened to the presentation before the Council by the City's sports-oriented staff and consultant. Subsequently I received a copy of the questionnaire they prepared.

Other than the central location of the proposed facility and mention of a pool for aerobics, it is apparent that staff and consultants are extremely limited in their appreciation of the program and facilities needs of approximately 30% of Beverly Hills residents. Due to the demographics of our area, by the time this facility is up and running, the number may be closer to 40% of us.

These are our frail elderly, chronically ill, disabled and low income residents who lack a suitable means of transportation, especially on weekends.

I don't believe that any outreach effort was made to locate, much less interview, such taxpaying shut ins who are continually shut out of our community's activities.

Currently, there is no Dial-A-Ride service on weekends, so these residents can't get to the Farmers Market. And if they could, no battery-operated or student-driven wheelchairs are available to them. Similarly, these same alienated residents can't enjoy the concerts at Greystone, because for many of them there is no way to get there.

Our City has employed gerontologists, but has never given them the resources needed to establish and implement significant programs for the people they were allegedly hired to serve.

Before the City continues with its very inadequate so-called feasibility study, staff and consultants need to understand the requirements of those who are not among our able-bodied. They need to look at the outstanding examples nearby of programs and facilities which Beverly Hills should be emulating.

First, they need to meet with Culver City's head of Community Service, Don Rodgers. His 27,000 sq. ft. facility is said to be state of the art. Providing such a Senior Center facility and its programs is essential to Beverly Hills' understanding of how we could become a model city in regard to this now neglected segment of our population.

In addition, our staff, consultants and concerned Council members need to meet with Dan Gerski, executive director of OPICA, a Seniors Day Care Center at 11759 Missouri near Olympic and Barrington.

The timing for this inquiry could not be better. In preparation for a major White House Conference on Aging, the City and County of Los Angeles will convene an important conference at the L.A. Convention Center on April 7. For further information and to make reservations e-mail ecastill @co.la.ca.us

For additional ideas on meeting the needs of the 30% of our residents who have not been taken into account, check out www.aging.ca.gov, the website for the California Commission on Aging.

Hopefully yours,

Ellen Stern Harris
Executive Director,
Fund for The Environment 
Editor of www.BeverlyHillsCitizen.org
P.O. Box 228 / Beverly Hills, CA 90213