Age-Friendly DC Task Force Meeting George Washington University, Marvin Center Room 407

February 23, 20178:45am - 10:40pm

Role/Domain Member Attended Stand In Attended

Co-Chair HyeSook Chung x Christian Barrera

Co-Chair Steven Knapp x Renee McPhatter x

Outdoor Spaces Eric Shaw Andrea Limauro x

Outdoor Spaces Kathy Sykes None

Transportation Leif Dormsjo Tyra Redus x

Transportation Christian Kent Christiaan Blake x

Housing Polly Donaldson Jose Nunez x

Housing Deborah Royster

Social Participation Charon Hines Charlotte Flournoy x

Social Participation Ron Swanda x Shannon Redd x

Respect/Inclusion* Alexis Taylor Beatrice Schmitt x

Respect/Inclusion Mario Acosta-Velez x None

Employment Mary Terrell x None

Employment Romaine Thomas x Buddy Moore

Communication Archana Vemulapalli

Mike Rupert

Communication Stuart Rosenthal x None

Health Services Laura Newland x Garret King

Health Services Saul Levin Sejal Patel x

Emergency Prep DM Kevin Donahue Christina Murphy

Emergency Prep Linda Mathes Paul Carden

Elder Abuse Laura Green Zeilinger

Dr. Sheila Jones x

1

Elder Abuse Kathleen Quinn x None x

Economic Dev. Brian Kenner None

Education Jennifer Niles Aaron Parrott

Community Dev. DM Courtney Snowden

None

Also attending were: Councilmember Brandon Todd’s Deputy Chief of Staff, Dolly Turner and DC Council’s Committee on Housing and Community Development Committee Deputy/Policy representative, Nishanti Keerikatte.

I. Call to order – Steve Knapp called the meeting to order at 8:50am. He announced that the June Task Force meeting would be his last, as he is leaving his position as president of George Washington University.

II. Task Force Meeting Notes Accepted - Meeting notes were reviewed by Task Force members in the week following the November 17, 2016 meeting. No corrections were noted. The meeting notes were placed for the public to view on the Age-Friendly DC website (www.agefriendly.dc.gov)

III. New Business

a. Swearing in of the new Co-Chair and DC government Task Force member, focused on the Civic Participation and Employment domain.

MOTA’s Alan Karnofsky swore in the Mayor’s recent appointees to the Task Force, Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services, HyeSook Chung and DOES’ Special Advisor LEAP Academy Judge (ret.) Mary Terrell, filling vacancies left by the departure of Brenda Donald and Deborah Carroll.

b. Task Force Committee Updates and Discussion

The Age-Friendly DC Strategic Plan strategies were reviewed for progress.

Domain 1 Outdoor Spaces and Buildings

Nick Kushner, Age-Friendly DC Policy Analyst, presented the slide, as there were no Task Force members associated with the Outdoor Spaces and Buildings domain present at that time. (Stand-in Andrea Limauro joined the meeting later.)

2

Clarifying comments were added.

Strategy 1.1.7: DHS has undertaken a campaign to distribute 100,000 medication disposal bags, which neutralize medications and renders them safe to discard in the trash.

Strategy 1.1.2: The two projects are intended to bring awareness to street safety. The project near the Reeves Center is a tunnel which demonstrates the distraction caused by harassment that can lead to accidents. The project near Columbia Heights enables passersby to be photographed with patriotic cut-outs.

Strategy 1.1.3 Task Force member question, will the restrooms include gender neutral locations? Response: all DC single-stall bathrooms are by law gender neutral.

Strategy 1.1.6 There are discussions occurring with Good Foods Market and DCOA to explore options for additional DC residents who are homebound to receive meals.

3

Domain 2 Transportation

Tyra Redus made the presentation.

Clarifying comments were added.

Strategy 2.1.1: DDOT improved 370,000 square feet of sidewalk, 88 traffic signals and 83 bus shelters in 2016.

Regarding tree root damage to sidewalks, DDOT is addressing repairs within 30-60 days. Flexipave is being used instead of concrete, so trees roots do not damage the sidewalks.

Capitol Hill Village has a grant from DC Metropolitan Council of Governments to supplement public sources of transportation with village-offered private transportation. (With fourteen, DC has more village organizations underway per square mile than any state. Village members and volunteers support one another to stay put in neighborhoods they love, including providing rides.)

4

Domain 3 Housing

Jose Nunez made the presentation.

Clarifying comments added.

The Housing Trust Fund, annually funded with $100 million for affordable housing by Mayor Bowser, has made it possible to build more housing units. Age-Friendly DC has influenced DHCD to offer developers extra points for affordable housing that 60+ year old residents can occupy.

Domain 4 Social Participation5

Ron Swanda made the presentation.

No Clarifying comments were added.

Domain 5 Respect and Social Inclusion

6

Gail Kohn, Age-Friendly DC Coordinator and Verizon’s Mario Acosta-Velez, who heads the Age-Friendly DC Business Initiative, reported.

Clarifying comments added.

There were no color changes, nor metrics available to show progress at this meeting, but there will be at the June meeting.

Community Consultations are underway to ascertain what 1,000 DC residents have to say about their city, Age-Friendly DC domain-by-domain. Focus is on hearing from DC residents who were not heard, including LGBTQ, veterans, homeless persons and persons whose first language is not English, when the DCOA needs assessment was completed and published in January 2017,

GWU research is being conducted on feelings of well-being among DC residents 60 and over. The lead professor for this project, which is providing useful insights to Age-Friendly DC, is Sociology Professor Emily Morrison, who attended this meeting.

7

Mario Acosta-Velez explained that the Age-Friendly Business initiative review committee will be meeting in March to view hundreds of candidates nominated by DC residents. An awards ceremony is planned for May, Older Americans Month.

Councilmember Todd has sent a letter to his fellow Councilmembers asking for a friendly competition for each to identify 20 additional Age-Friendly businesses in their wards or elsewhere in the city.

Mario Acosta-Velez is working with DCTV to arrange an Age-Friendly Business program to enlighten viewers about the designation which identifies businesses that use Age-Friendly best practices.

There were questions about the criteria for the rating system for strategy progress, represented by red, yellow and green on the Age-Friendly DC Dashboard.

Response: Domain task force committee members make decisions about the assigned color. Those assignments are considered advice to the Task Force. Task Force members usually accept what task force committees have recommended.

Domain 6 Civic Participation and Employment

8

Mary Terrell presented the slide.

Clarifying comments added.

Department of Employment Services’ Judge (ret.) Mary Terrell made the presentation.

Clarifying comments added.

Older job seekers who participate in the DOES programs are provided additional training to help participants to have appropriate expectations about future employment, prepare resumes, learn to apply for positions at websites and receive interview coaching.

9

Partners working with DOES to recruit employment training class participants include DCOA’s wellness centers, Council of Churches, the Urban League and AARP (which also offers workshops).

All Domain 6 strategies are now recommended to be considered “green” regarding progress.

Domain 7 Communication and Information

Stuart Rosenthal presented the slide.

Clarifying comments added.A copy of the two-sided flyer, Reaching Adults 50+ More Effectively Through Print, is attached at the end of these notes. Or go to the website of the Office of the Chief Technology Officer for a full-sized copy. http://octo.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/octo/publication/attachments.

10

AARP also has a new representative on the Communications and Information Task Force Committee, Erica Stratmann.

Challenges with communication make it hard for DC residents to find services and products they would find useful. An example of this is DC’s Assistive Technology Program that offers helpful equipment and can arrange low cost loans to purchase desired items.

Funding for communication was discussed. It was noted that each agency works to communicate with older residents. One idea, should agencies pool their funds for this purpose and unify communications outreach to 50+ year old residents. It was also recommended that in particular the Department of Health be approached to participate. Councilmember Todd is seeking funds to broaden outreach to older adults. Deputy Mayor Chung will explore funding as well.

Domain 8 Community Support and Health Services

Laura Newland presented the slide.11

Clarifying comments added.

Domain 8.1.7 - The Mayor’s Cultural competency 4-hour training module for LGBTQ issues has been implemented. So far 181 staff in DCOA supported programming across DC have participated.

Domain 8.2.1 – USDA awarded DC a Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program grant for low income seniors to obtain fresh fruits and vegetables. Go to http://www.fns.usda.gov/sfmnp/sfmnp-contacts for details. Regarding this domain, Laura also noted that Capital Area Food Bank is helping to identify residents who need home delivered meals.

12

Domain 8.2.5 – DC is focusing on dementia-capable systems that make it easier for DC residents living with cognitive challenges to obtain services, as shown in DCOA’s performance report to the City Administrator’s office, publicly available (See Page 12: https://oca.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/oca/publication/attachments/DCOA_FY16PAR.pdf). Sibley Hospital is offering Club Memory across DC. Ward 7 has a “Saturday Respite” program, which gives caregivers a break.

In response to a question, about Domain 8.1.4 – Program for All-Inclusive Services for the Elderly (PACE) may still be funded in the FY18 budget, which would move this domain strategy from progress currently rated red to green.

In response to a question about Dementia Friendly, an Alzheimer’s Association program to recognize jurisdictions who strive for excellence addressing support and engagement for residents with Alzheimer’s or related diseases. Age-Friendly DC is coordinating actions with the Alzheimer’s Association to incorporate additional actions in the 2017-2022 plan.

Domain 9 Emergency Preparedness and Resilience

Nick Kushner presented the slide.

13

Clarifying comments were added

Strategy 9.1.2 – DOEE is working on plans for a heat survey, particularly focused on vulnerable DC residents

A Chief Resiliency Officer will be hired soon by DC government with funds from the Rockefeller 100 Resilient Cities grant.

Domain 10 Elder Abuse, Neglect and Fraud, a DC focus14

Kathleen Quinn presented the slides.

Clarifying comments were added.

15

Strategy 10.1.4 Conduct a study to determine the amount of ‘hidden’ cases of elder abuse that are not reported.

The Task Force agreed at the September 2016 meeting that a study was unnecessary, as studies elsewhere have shown that there are many more unreported than reported cases of elder abuse, neglect and fraud. For example, the New York state study found that for every known case, 24 were not reported. Instead of repeating this survey in DC, the Task Force agreed by voice vote that an effort to increase awareness of the signs and symptoms of elder abuse, neglect and fraud and actions to be taken when unacceptable behavior is observed, should be pursued.

The State of Maine has a model program intended to increase reporting and reduce elder abuse, neglect and fraud. The program impressed the Elder Abuse, Neglect and Fraud Task Force Committee. Maine will be asked how much the program cost to implement so funding sources can be pursued.

Open Discussion

Comments were made about the challenges of reaching 60+ year old residents and all adults with disabilities to become aware of services and financial assistance that are available.

Also how many people in DC know that the Age-Friendly City initiative is underway? Not as many as we would hope. Does the Age-Friendly DC message seem both too general and loaded with details?

How can we simplify so the public has a better understanding of Age-Friendly DC and what it means to persons of all ages, in particular 50+ and much older residents?

Discussion continued about ways people can be informed. Places frequented (i.e. grocery stores, beauty/barber shops and faith-based communities), media (i.e. TV, radio, websites) and signage were mentioned. But most of all word-of-mouth is noted by DC residents as the most important source of information.

Knowledge of Age-Friendly DC in DC government has been enhanced by Mayor Muriel Bowser, who included Age-Friendly DC as a priority project. Also helpful to awareness of Age-Friendly DC:

coordinating Age-Friendly DC with other DC plans, for example Sustainable DC, the Office of Planning Comprehensive Plan

and the City Administrator oversight, using performance plans and key performance indicators.

16

Still, many in DC agencies do not know about Age-Friendly DC.

Next Steps

Task Force members were reminded that implementation of the Age-Friendly DC strategies will continue throughout 2017 and beyond. However in June 2017 the report to the World Health Organization and its US agent, AARP on progress from 2012-2017 will be written this summer. It will be delivered in October. A detailed outline of the report will be presented for comments, additions and corrections prior to the June Task Force meeting. Therefore DC agencies responsible for implementation should be diligent about completing the work to show substantial progress.

Evaluation of changes in the city since 2012, is underway. For example the results of 2017 Community Consultations will be compared to the 1,000 voices heard in 2013. Each Task Force member was asked to arrange a Community Consultation with DC residents they encounter in the workplace or elsewhere. Due to time constraints, some will choose to attend already scheduled Community Consultations instead of arranging new ones.

IV. Old Business

Upcoming Events

Thursday, March 14 at 2pm, Age-Friendly DC Performance Hearing before the DC Council Committee on Housing and Community Development. All are welcome to testify and/or submit testimony.

Calendar

6/15/2017 from 10:00 AM- Noon , JAWB, TBA (or elsewhere)

9/21/2017 from 10:00 AM- Noon, GWU, TBA

11/16/2017 from 10:00 AM – Noon, JAWB, TBA (or elsewhere)

V. Adjournment –The meeting was adjourned at 10:40am.

17

18

19

20