Joe and Carol Vezendy’s new bathroom.
In America, getting older has long meant moving.
Moving to Florida. Moving to a retirement community. Moving out of state to live with your kids.
But what if you don’t want to leave your home and community? What if you don’t want to abandon your social network, your city, your lifetime of friends?
Count Harrisburg-area residents among the growing number of Americans nationwide giving serious thought to those questions and taking steps to “age in place.”
What exactly does that mean? According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “aging in place” is defined as “the ability to live in one’s own home and community safely, independently and comfortably, regardless of age, income or ability level.”
For Joe and Carol Vezendy of Lower Paxton Township, it means all of that and more.
“Joe and I were looking for those things we thought you needed in a home when you get older and need to take care of someone, which is often part of aging in place,” said Carol, who, like Joe, was a caregiver for a spouse lost to illness. “We were both married and decided to stay in my house and make it our house.”
According to an American Association of Retired Persons/Harvard University study, the United States faces a critical shortage of affordable housing for its 50-plus population, which will grow to 133 million by 2030—a 70 percent jump since 2000.
The study notes that only 1 percent of all housing stock in the country has recommended universal design features, such as a step-free entry, multiple countertop heights, wide doorways, lever faucets and a curbless shower with a handheld, adjustable showerhead.
About 10,000 people will turn 65 each day for the next 15 years, says the study, and almost 90 percent of them will want to remain in their homes as they get older. So, the issue of where—and how—to spend one’s senior years will only grow in importance.
More Prepared
Jim Mirando Jr., for one, wants to help people adapt their living environments as they age.
Mirando is president of Lemoyne-based Excel Interior Concepts & Construction, which is finding a growing business from baby boomers who wish to stay where they are.
“The idea of aging in place is definitely a trend, stemming from the aging of baby boomers who are getting to the age where they are thinking more about their health and wanting to stay healthy,” said Mirando, who is certified as an Aging-In-Place Specialist by the National Association of Home Builders.
Founded in 1970 by his father, Jim Mirando Sr., Excel began as a home developer, but has, over time, developed an expertise as a remodeler.
“We like to help make homeowners feel more assured that whatever comes in their future, they will be more prepared,” said Mirando Jr. “For others, it’s more about loving where they live, wanting to stay there, and making it nicer for them to live there.”
The Vezendys contracted with Excel for their remodel. Work on the master bathroom began in mid-October 2014. It included removal of a bathtub and small shower, replacing it with a large, walk-in shower with a safety base bench seat, safety grab bar and handheld shower wand fixture.
“We didn’t want it to look like a handicapped bathroom, and it does not at all,” Carol said. “It’s a very pretty bathroom, with storage, a higher sink and higher toilet, which is the trend today. Had we not gone through our own experience, I don’t know if I would have thought about those things.”
Where You Belong
Aging in place doesn’t necessarily entail a home remodel. It also can mean downsizing, but staying within your community.
That’s what Bob Hostetter did when he moved into Riverview Manor, a condominium building at Front and Harris streets in Midtown Harrisburg. For 18 years, he lived in a charming house in the historic Shipoke neighborhood, but, as he got older, found that it was becoming too much for him.
“I love Shipoke,” Hostetter said. “It absolutely broke my heart to have to leave it.”
A combination of ongoing maintenance and the need to traverse steep steps leading to the second story of his Colonial-era townhome eventually took their toll. So, two years ago, he moved about two miles up Front Street, to a sixth-floor condo unit where—just like in his Shipoke house—he enjoys breathtaking views of the Susquehanna River every day.
“I am so privileged to have sweeping view of the river,” he said. “So many people see it as something they need to get across and don’t see it as magnificent, beautiful and living, which I do.”
Besides the view, Hostetter, who will be 79 in July, has an architecturally pleasing living space, complete with a refurbished bathroom and a new, walk-in shower, all contained on one level.
Most importantly, he has remained a part of his community, where he is very involved, including as an active member of the Rotary Club of Harrisburg.
“A very real part of one’s decision of where to live is determining what degree do aesthetics—and other overarching factors like people and sense of community—play in deciding to stay here, versus moving to Florida,” he said. “I know so many people and am known by so many people. And that’s important to me and to other people who have invested a great deal in the community where they live—to enhance it and strengthen it.”
As part of his commitment to the community, Hostetter used to open his Shipoke house whenever the neighborhood was featured in Harrisburg Young Professionals’ annual home tour. He now has done the same thing at his new home, letting people tour his condo during Historic Harrisburg Association’s Candlelight House Tour last December.
Through this, he hopes to show the diversity of housing options in Harrisburg and how wonderful living in an urban setting can be.
“Hundreds of people came up to see it,” said Hostetter. “There are so many extenuating factors that go into making a very complete and comfortable decision about where to stay, but, to me, it’s where you feel you belong.”
To learn more about “aging in place,” visit AARP at www.aarp.org or Excel Interior Concepts & Construction at www.excelremodeling.com.
