Hochul’s plan must include safe, age-friendly housing

While we applaud Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan to make affordable housing a top priority in her agenda this year, as mentioned in her State of the State address, AARP New York is concerned that she didn’t provide details on how the state’s growing 50-and-older population fits in with the stated goal of building 800,000 new units over the next decade to solve New York’s housing crisis.

Residents age 50 and older account for more than a third of the state’s population. They provide an economic stimulus New York can ill afford to lose, pumping $600 billion a year into the state’s economy.

Yet many older New Yorkers are hitting the road, taking their Social Security and pension checks with them. The state comptroller’s office reports that 21 percent of state and local civil service retirees receive their retirement benefits in other states.

You can be sure many of them are among the nearly 500,000 New York residents who moved out of state over the past two years, a first-inthe nation figure cited in Times Union reporter Joshua Solomon’s story on the governor’s plans to improve housing.

Leading the nation in outmigration should be more than enough incentive for the governor and state lawmakers to find solutions to the ongoing population drain. Here’s another: New Yorkers age 50plus are a driving force for our state’s vitality. Ensuring they have safe, affordable and agefriendly housing must be a priority for all our leaders in Albany.

Beth Finkel New York City The writer is state director of AARP New York.