How About a Retirement Village?

Charlie Munger has withdrawn his application to build Green Hollow Square.
People are pretty speechless so far, but in coming weeks we will likely hear a lot from both sides — opponents claiming victory for blocking a project they believed would add to local traffic and parking woes — and from supporters who fear the site will slide into decline, creating blight here in Brentwood.
It occurs to me there’s an idea that could maybe get people unstuck and move the debate forward.
We live in a rapidly aging society. It is said the population of those reaching retirement age will double between now and 2030. 2030 is only 17 years away.
How about a world-class retirement village where Green Hollow Square, a retail center, was to go?
There could be a mix of nice condos for those senior citizens who want to live independently; many units could be set aside for those who need to be in an assisted living facility; there is plenty of room on the property for healthy allocation of affordable retirement apartments.
There could be a central dining hall, medical and nursing facilities, an area for entertainment, another area for activities of all kinds so the oldsters can stay physically busy and keep their minds active.
Think about it: When we become old and it’s time to move into a retirement home, where will we go? I’m not aware of any retirement facilities in Brentwood. Are you?
So, if there is no alternative, those of us in need of a retirement facility will be shipped off elsewhere. But then we will have to leave the neighborhood we love, and we’ll be leaving friends and family behind. With a retirement village plunked down in the heart of Brentwood, we can all stay right here.
One of the great things about a retirement village is that it wouldn’t add to traffic and parking problems. Most of the residents of this new facility wouldn’t be driving around much, and it wouldn’t be a destination site the same way a retail center would be. Our senior citizens — “ and you’ll be one soon enough — could stroll San Vicente, shop close to home, continue to frequent their favorite restaurants.
And those of us who live here could visit often.
I don’t know the specific economics of these things, but surely a retirement village could be a nice money-maker for the right investor. I hope Charlie Munger or whoever comes along next to spearhead a project at this location will give this retirement village idea real consideration.
I don’t know that Charlie will ever retire, but maybe he’ll want to live there, too!
I think most Brentwood residents would agree SOMETHING decent should go into that location, otherwise the area really could slip away into something problematic. If blight sets in on one block, it could spread from there.
If opponents of a proposal say they don’t like an idea, it would be helpful if they could say what they think an acceptable alternative would be. As a community, we can’t just be against things. Once in a while, we need to be for something. These developer battles should not turn into civil war, pitting neighbor against neighbor for several years at a stretch.
I suggest, that whatever gets proposed next, we lock the right ten people in a room and then not let them out till there’s a plan we can all live with. If they can’t figure it out in a day, chances are they won’t figure it out in five years, either.
And if a proposal can’t achieve consensus in a day, maybe a developer should think twice before spending the next five years paying lawyers, architects, consultants, community outreach people and the like to try and win over opponents. It’s big waste of time and money.
I think a big retirement village is something we could all rally around.