In the 1970s, many teenage boomers practically lived at the mall, trying on clothes at The Gap, eating pretzels at Hot Sam’s and buying albums at Tower Records. Little did they know that by 2029, they mightConverting shuttered malls into what’s often called"senior housing" was one idea floated at the recent National Investment Center for Seniors Housing and Care conference in Chicago. The notion may sound far-fetched, but the reasoning behind it is real.
In that year, the researchers forecast, 60% of middle-income adults age 75 and older will have mobility limitations, 20% will have three or more chronic conditions and one or more functional limitations and 8% will have cognitive impairment. Some suggested bringing the price down for prospective residents by paying investors a lower rate of return, while securing tax incentives and abatements.
Some participants favored a mixed-use concept, where the housing would share space with commercial tenants, like a grocery store and offices, who would pay rent to the facility owner. Mace thinks the key to making any of these projects accessible to middle- income older adults will be finding affordable labor. But she believes technology advances could help reduce those costs.
Don't send them.... keep them with the family