This was a cross departmental effort, led by the Human Services Department. City Manager’s Office, Community Redevelopment Agency, Development Services, Fire, Parks & Recreation, Police and Public Works, Human Services. The City of Hallandale Beach commenced its work on the Age-Friendly Initiative on April 20, 2016, with a Letter of Commitment signed by the Mayor. The Planning Committee went before the City Commission on August 1, 2018, to adopt the Needs Assessment and Community Action Plan (CAP) which was submitted for endorsement by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2018. Someone has to be appointed a Champion/Convener to serve as the Project Manager. This person will serve as a liaison with AARP and help to facilitate the other departments and stakeholders when they engage with their respective workgroups. Many of the CAPS were aspirational goals as this initiative was an unfunded mandate. There were very limited resources available which forced the Planning Committee to be more collaborative, innovative and streamlined.
The biggest challenge was convening the various workgroups under each domain. Some of the workgroups required Subject-Matter Experts (SME). However, engaging the community to participate in such a comprehensive initiative over a period of two years required a great deal of planning, coordination and leveraging of resources. Many of the listening sessions and community meetings were held at City Parks. The rationale was to bring the initiative to the four quadrants of the City making it easier for participation. There was a small budget for food because the meetings were staggered during mornings, lunchtime and just before supper to engage a larger cohort of participants. Gift card incentives were provided for seniors who completed the surveys. The events were made fun, with lots of multimedia, PowerPoint presentations, small group discussions and breakouts, etc.
