The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, A ug us t 16 ,2 01 8 | 28 905-877-1237905-877-1237Certified Mechanics on Duty Just ask! coupon ✃ TIRES! All Sizes All Brands We are Diesel Vehicle specialists! Fleet Maintenance/Programs available all auto & truck service Boost your starting power with DeKa Batteries! ✃ Car & Truck, ATV, RV, Motorcycles, Snowmobiles & More! Best Pricing on all Products 20 Armstrong Avenue, Georgetown We have Anco All Season Wiper Blades! Vehicles + TAX Most Vehicles $3995 only • Oil Change • Antifreeze Check • Lubrication • 52 point inspection • Battery & Wiper Blade Check • FREE FLUID TOP UPS SuMMer Special!* * Up to 6 Ltr. Limited time offer • Upgrade to synthetic for $15 extra. only $7.49/ea installed. Car & Truck, A All Sizes All Brands Silver 2018 Halton Hills Thank You for your trust & continued support! Acton are familiar to us," said Broostad, explain- ing that she doesn't real- ly want to move away from the community that she has lived in the ma- jority of her life. Last year, Broostad was nominated Citizen of the Year by the Acton Ro- tary Club for her long- standing commitment to the town, and countless hours of service with a number of local groups like Links2Care, the YMCA and more. Now, as her husband Lloyd faces some medi- cal and mobility chal- lenges, the couple has been faced with a tough decision. They are mov- ing to a retirement resi- dence in Guelph. "The dream is to stay in your home until the very last," she said, not- ing that sometimes, that is not the reality. After signing up for wait lists for the local assisted liv- ing residence in town, Broostad realized that she and her husband simply couldn't wait for their names to be called. Last month, she said she called and learned they were calling people that had been on the wait list since 2013. Broostad isn't alone in her predic- ament. Debra Hayes has lived in Georgetown for 22 years with her hus- band. "We can't afford to stay here," said the semi- retired homeowner who plans on downsizing. "We have to leave."She and her husband have searched for condos and apartments in town and have not been able to find an affordable option for their retirement. "We even looked at the McGibbon," she said- . Hayes says the steady flow of seniors leaving the community has un- spoken effects. "Seniors do most of the volunteer work in town," she said, noting that fundraisers and vol- unteer led programs will suffer as this generation seeks housing else- where. "We would like to stay in town, we really would, we like Georgetown," said Hayes. A recent Leger online survey asked over 1,000 baby boomers in Canada about their plans to downsize in retirement and found that 56 per cent felt they can't afford to downsize in their own communities. In Ontario, 40 per cent of respondents said they would be willing to move away from their current communities to find af- fordable housing. Halton Hills Mayor Rick Bonnette says the issue of seniors' housing has been a concern for the town for years and there are multiple units on the way. He says that there are currently 263 seniors' units and 45 'bungaloft' townhouses either in planning stages or await- ing construction in Ac- ton and Georgetown. "Acton is different," he said. "A lot of it, we're hamstrung, the town is greenbelted." He says the town is re- liant on infill develop- ment in Acton, like the 108-unit development at 125 McDonald Blvd. In that project, the develop- er has allocated for 20 bungaloft townhouses. "Bungalofts are usual- ly built and marketed to empty-nesters and se- niors," said the mayor, noting that for Acton to build a new project like the Legion apartments, would be difficult due to land constraints. The region of Halton accepted proposals for affordable housing pro- jects this year, and one proposal for a develop- ment in Acton was sub- mitted. Both projects to re- ceive funding were locat- ed in Milton, but there was one expression of in- terest submitted for 93 Mill St. in Acton, by Ac- ton Medical Care Ltd. for eight to 16 two-bedroom units. In order to qualify for the funding, the appli- cants would have to prove that they could meet key milestones and get a building permit, which would have taken rezoning for the area. The region says that the applicants were looking at other options for the development and the use of the site. As for Broostad, she's shocked that the exact problems she foresaw years ago simply aren't solved. "We still have nothing for seniors," she said. "This is where they want to stay." As she packs away de- cades worth of fine china and crystal glasses, she ponders what she can take with her to the new home in Guelph. "All levels of govern- ment have to help us with this situation," she said. "They have to go all over to find a place to live." NEWS Continued from page 1 STEADY FLOW OF SENIORS LEAVING COMMUNITY HAS UNSPOKEN EFFECTS SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT THEIFP.CA