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Terrell may be touting retirees
Panel explores possibility of city applying to become certified retirement community
By Tricia Scruggs: reporter@terrelltribune.com
An exploratory panel of local community members is eyeing the prospect of Terrell becoming a hot spot for seniors.
Though no official plans have been made to apply to a Texas Department of Agriculture program that would designate the city a certified retirement community, city spokeswoman Lynnette Nadeau recently presented to City Council an overview of the program and how it could benefit Terrell.
“It’s a long process,” she said, explaining that preliminary steps won’t be ready for council’s review until sometime next month.
Created with the passage of House Bill 1982, the CRC aims to help communities attract current and potential retirees. It also is a push to draw more tourists to Texas towns.
Fifteen pages of guidelines note that forming a panel is the first step in the process. Among the current panelists are professionals in the business, education, health care, real estate and nonprofit sectors.
“The panelists are working really hard and have brought in some fantastic information that will help us with the CRC ...,” Nadeau said.
Retirees tend to have a more significant economic affect on the communities in which they live than do residents below age 55 and typically this population spends more of its money locally and uses more services, according to city-furnished research data.
Nearly two dozen towns and counties in Texas have already obtained the CRC designation, which must be re-applied for every five years. Among them are Athens, Franklin County and Gun Barrel City. Richard Wendel, CRC committee chairman in Gun Barrel City, recently told the Cedar Creek Pilot that the fee, either $5,000 or .25 cents per census-counted resident, is worth the investment.
“They tell us that a retirement couple will spend about $32,000 in the community per year,” he said. “That means less that has to be raised in taxes.”
Cities carrying the designation also benefit from statewide marketing campaigns and consultation as well as tax breaks or incentives.
Though no official plans have been made to apply to a Texas Department of Agriculture program that would designate the city a certified retirement community, city spokeswoman Lynnette Nadeau recently presented to City Council an overview of the program and how it could benefit Terrell.
“It’s a long process,” she said, explaining that preliminary steps won’t be ready for council’s review until sometime next month.
Created with the passage of House Bill 1982, the CRC aims to help communities attract current and potential retirees. It also is a push to draw more tourists to Texas towns.
Fifteen pages of guidelines note that forming a panel is the first step in the process. Among the current panelists are professionals in the business, education, health care, real estate and nonprofit sectors.
“The panelists are working really hard and have brought in some fantastic information that will help us with the CRC ...,” Nadeau said.
Retirees tend to have a more significant economic affect on the communities in which they live than do residents below age 55 and typically this population spends more of its money locally and uses more services, according to city-furnished research data.
Nearly two dozen towns and counties in Texas have already obtained the CRC designation, which must be re-applied for every five years. Among them are Athens, Franklin County and Gun Barrel City. Richard Wendel, CRC committee chairman in Gun Barrel City, recently told the Cedar Creek Pilot that the fee, either $5,000 or .25 cents per census-counted resident, is worth the investment.
“They tell us that a retirement couple will spend about $32,000 in the community per year,” he said. “That means less that has to be raised in taxes.”
Cities carrying the designation also benefit from statewide marketing campaigns and consultation as well as tax breaks or incentives.
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The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of terrelltribune.com.
HBphq321 wrote on Dec 29, 2008 1:52 PM:
" Retire in Terrell....Are you CRAZY! How sad, but who in their right mind would want to retire here when you can't even feel safe enough walk your dog in the park or worry that the drug addict down the street will beat the life out of you for a couple bucks and your car. Sadly these are only 2 examples from the past year of how BAD Terrell really has become. Terrell Officials… Don’t be the mother saying “Not My Child” and sweep it under the rug. If you can prove that Terrell can be a safe place to live, maybe I would consider. But being a person who has tried to apply for one of those “Open Positions” at Terrell PD……Please, don’t make me laugh! "
jumper wrote on Dec 27, 2008 2:46 PM: