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Resource Frontier Aging

Resource Frontier Aging: Trends and questions from a mature industrial town in northern BC Greg Halseth, Neil Hanlon Rachael Clasby and Virginia Pow. Resource Frontier Aging. Introduction Resource Towns - post WW II - change pressures Mackenzie, BC - population change Policy Questions

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Resource Frontier Aging

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  1. Resource Frontier Aging: Trends and questions from a mature industrial town in northern BCGreg Halseth, Neil HanlonRachael Clasby and Virginia Pow

  2. Resource Frontier Aging Introduction Resource Towns - post WW II - change pressures Mackenzie, BC - population change Policy Questions Discussion

  3. Resource Towns: Post - WW II period • Change from transient work camps to permanent towns • Two tensions transformed planning: - Liveable environment for workers - Keeping company costs down • Canadian model is Kitimat, BC - created in the 1950s for ALCAN’s new smelter - designed by Clarence Stein • famous for greenbelt suburbs such as “Radburn”, NJ

  4. Stein’s “Vision” for Kitimat “The purpose of Kitimat is the industrial success of the plant. That success will depend on the degree that workers are content, that they like living in Kitimat. Unless the town can attract and hold industrial workers, there will be continuous turnover and difficulty … The workers must find Kitimat more than temporarily acceptable. It must become the place they … are going to make their own”. Stein (1952, 3)

  5. Kitimat Quality of Life Principles 1) to build a diverse economy 2) to provide a wide range of housing options 3) to use neighbourhood design ideas to create a functional community 4) services for town of young families

  6. Kitimat Neighbourhoods

  7. Kitimat’s Shopping and Service Centre

  8. New Resource Towns (Since 1950s)

  9. Mackenzie Neighbourhoods

  10. Mackenzie “Downtown Core”

  11. Change Pressures I: Maturing Industrial Towns • Uncertainty - failure to move beyond staples production • susceptible to boom-bust • Jobs - end of new job growth • limited new in-migration - workforce settles into demarcated jobs • youth out-migration • Aging - under-used services for youth - stress of unmet service needs

  12. Change Pressures II: Restructuring • Economic - global competition • downward pressure on costs - corporate sector concentrating • labour shedding technologies - job reductions through capital substitutions • job losses via seniority lists • Social/Political - public sector retrenchment • service reductions/off loading to voluntary sector

  13. Implications of these changes for community? • Partnership with District of Mackenzie and UNBC’s Community Development Institute - scope and scale of needs for an older population • Community-based research - interviews, focus groups, survey • Services inventories

  14. Mackenzie, BC

  15. No net population growth ______________________________________________________________________________________________ Date Mackenzie Pr.George BC _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 1976 5,340 59,929 2,392,790 1981 5,890 67,559 2,744,467 1986 5,545 67,621 2,883,367 1991 5,796 69,653 3,282,061 1996 5,995 74,150 3,724,500 2001 5,206 72,406 3,907,738 _______________________________________________________________________________________________ Source: Statistics Canada

  16. Population Fluctuations (% change) ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Mackenzie BC ______________________________________________ 1981-1986 -5.9 5.1 1986-1991 4.6 13.8 1991-1996 3.5 13.5 1996-2001 -13.2 4.9 ______________________________________________ Source: BC Stats, Statistics Canada

  17. In-situ aging of the mature industrial workforce

  18. In-situ aging of the mature industrial workforce

  19. In-situ aging of the mature industrial workforce

  20. Population Aging Youth Dependency Ratio (as Percent) _________________________________________________________________ Mackenzie BC _________________________________________________________________ 1971 62.5 44.5 1976 57.3 36.5 1981 49.9 31.7 1986 46.9 30.4 1991 44.3 30.1 1996 38.1 30.4 2001 33.7 26.5 ________________________________________________________________ Source: Statistics Canada

  21. Growing % of Population 65 + Years ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Mackenzie Fraser Fort George RD ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 1971 0.4 3.0 1976 0.6 3.2 1981 0.7 3.1 1986 0.8 4.0 1991 0.9 4.9 1996 1.2 5.7 2001 2.3 7.4 __________________________________________________________________________________________ Source: Statistics Canada

  22. Retirement ‘Boom’ Coming Percent of Workforce - 45 Years and Older ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Mackenzie Fraser Ft.George RD _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1971 22.8 41.2 1976 18.4 38.1 1981 20.4 39.8 1986 26.5 30.6 1991 31.9 49.0 1996 38.4 57.3 2001 63.7 77.7 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Source: Statistics Canada

  23. Community and Policy Implications • Number of retirees: - doubled between 1991 and 2001 - expected to double again between 2001 and 2011 - friends and family community attachment; small town life • Infrastructure • Facilities • Services • Community

  24. Policy Implications: Infrastructure • Roads - crossing lights - winter snow and ice clearing • Sidewalks - wheel chair access - winter snow and ice clearing • Parking lots - winter snow and ice clearing

  25. Policy Implications: Facilities • Recreation Centre - high quality, but geared to youth • Schools - closures leave unused community assets - learning opportunity for aging population • Seniors’ Housing - town of detached single family houses - no seniors’ housing • flexibility as people age

  26. Policy Implications: Services • Health - higher use levels among elderly - role for technology to equip small clinics • Wellness - outreach services to assist people to stay in own homes longer - meals, house cleaning, yard work • Shopping - access and product range

  27. Policy Implications: Community • Time - retirement ‘bubble’ yet to come - most new retirees will be fit, active, well • Civil Society - voluntary sector can play a key role - need support • access to local gov’t space & services • meals, house cleaning, yard work

  28. Community Development Institute (CDI) 3333 University Way, Prince George, BC, Canada V2N 4Z9 http://www.unbc.ca/cdi Dr. Greg Halseth, Acting Director Phone: (250) 960-5826 Fax: (250) 960-6533 Email: halseth@unbc.ca

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