THE CITY OF SENIORS
Who are we? Where do we come from? What do we do and how much money do we earn? Spectator reporter Steve Buist paints a detailed portrait of Hamilton in All About Us using the latest census data. Today, in the first of five parts, he explores our aging po
NEARLY TWO YEARS AGO, Hamilton’s motto sprouted an addendum. The city now wants to be known as “the best place to raise a child and age successfully.” It’s an acknowledgement that Hamilton, like much of the country, is getting older. And quickly.
If the city had an official colour, grey might be the best choice. Over the past two decades, the median age in Hamilton has risen by nearly six years.
In fact, Hamilton’s median age of 41.5 years is the highest of Canada’s 10 largest municipalities — and by a wide margin. The next oldest is Ottawa, at 40.1 years.
It’s a testament to the big bulge of baby boomers moving through the population but it’s also a sign of increasing longevity and the improved health of seniors.
There are about 93,000 people in Hamilton who are 65 or older, which is 17.3 per cent of the city’s total population.
That’s higher than the rest of the province, which is 16.7 per cent.
Within the next two decades, about one in four Canadians will be 65 or older.
What’s most notable, however, has been the stunning increase in the city’s super seniors. Over the past decade, the number of people aged 85 and older has shot up by 55 per cent.
“The city is starting to pay a lot more attention, and rightly so, to improve the city for older adults,” said Sara Mayo, a social planner with the Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton.
“The population is getting older but the older population is also much healthier than it was in previous generations.”
About 2.6 per cent of Hamilton’s total population is 85 and older. That’s higher than the provincial rate of 2.2 per cent. In Burlington, the rate of people 85 and older is 3 per cent.
WHILE
THERE REMAINS a huge imbalance between the genders, the number of men aged 85 and older in Hamilton has been rising rapidly. Between 2006 and 2016, the number of men 85 and older in the city jumped from about 2,800 to 4,800, an increase of just over 70 per cent.
But there’s another interesting phenomenon in Hamilton. While the city is getting older, there’s also been a shift among the age segments.
The number of millennials — those who became adults in year 2000 or later — are now the largest generation group in Hamilton, nudging aside baby boomers — those people born between 1946 and 1965.
There were 153,432 millennials in Hamilton, according to the census, compared to 146,674 baby boomers.
Millennials will help drive the economy and population growth, much as pre-boomers did following the Second World War.
What an aging city means
A growing proportion of seniors will have an impact on health services in Hamilton but also on housing, especially if the city continues to see the effects of an overheated real estate market in the Greater Toronto Area. Seniors on lower incomes could be displaced by higher rents.
“It’s one thing to be displaced when you’re young and more mobile,” said Mayo. “But when you’re older, it can have a much bigger impact on your life.”
Quebec, for instance, has legislation that protects seniors over 70 from being evicted if a landlord wants to use a rental unit for a family member.
There is also the issue of providing proper supports to help seniors remain in their homes, where possible. There’s likely to be a growing number
of seniors with health challenges that aren’t serious enough to keep them in hospital but could prevent them from living at home.
“Obviously, changing the motto is not enough,” Mayo added.
McMaster University researchers are part of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging, a massive crosscountry project involving 26 universities.
More than 50,000 people from across Canada between ages 45 and 85 were recruited and they will be followed for 20 years. The study will look at everything from social, economic and health measures to physical traits, lifestyle and behaviour.