Centre for Policy on Ageing



The city of Laguna Woods — a case of senior power in local politics
Author(s)	Ross Andel, Phoebe S Liebig
Journal title	Research on Aging, vol 24, no 1, January 2002
Pages	pp 87-105
Keywords	Practical politics ; Pressure groups ; Retirement communities ; United States of America.
Annotation	On 2 March 1999, a gated retirement community known as Leisure World, incorporated with three adjacent facilities for older people and several businesses to form Laguna Woods, the first city in the US almost exclusively populated by older people. An immediate threat to the community's lifestyle - the building of a nearby airport - set off city incorporation, and enabled the residents to fight the airport more effectively. City-generated revenues are mostly dedicated to satisfy the needs of older residents and to finance age-relevant services. This case suggests that, when crises arise, "able seniors" may become influential political activists. Although the senior power model may not be robust at federal or state levels, it may become more so at local level. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-020416224 A
Classmark	VL: PME: ROA: 7T
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing

...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.