Livable Communities

A livable community is one that is safe and secure, has affordable and appropriate housing and transportation options, and offers supportive community features and services.

Once in place, those resources enhance personal independence; allow residents to age in place; and foster residents' engagement in the community's civic, economic, and social life.

Livable Communities is a framework developed by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).

Livable Communities have elements in common with both the World Health Organization’s Age-Friendly World and the Blue Zones Project; these models all have an underlying theme of creating a healthier community for people of all ages.

The 2018 Community Health Assessment is focusing on Livable Communities as a priority area.

An "Age-Friendly Community"

The World Health Organization (WHO) started this project in 2006. An Age-Friendly Community...

...is an inclusive and accessible environment that promotes active aging and emphasizes enablement rather than disablement; and
...is friendly for all ages, and the built environment (transportation, outdoor spaces and buildings, and housing) enables residents to better age in place, extending life and creating reports of increasing well-being.
Community features are divided into eight domains that are used as a framework for analysis and starting point for action by the towns, cities and counties belonging to the 'AARP Network of Age-Friendly Communities.'