COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (KMTV) — Two organizations are teaming up to help older adults in Council Bluffs age in place by making their homes safer and more energy efficient.
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All over southwest Iowa there are conversations about housing — shortages, costs and taxes.
Iowa West Foundation CEO Brenda Mainwaring is also having those conversations.
"We have been talking about housing forever, you know, that housing is a top priority for our community," she said.
Now, Iowa West is reaching out across the river to work with Omaha nonprofit HomeWoven. The focus is helping seniors stay in their homes.
"It's a river, not an ocean," said Mainwaring, preferring to think about the region as a whole.
Jim Clements is HomeWoven's CEO: "As people age, they need different modifications for safety and then, also, can we improve the energy efficiency so that you have warm, stable homes."
Clements said roughly a third of Council Bluffs seniors are spending 30% or more of their income on housing, and that's considered too much.
Katrina Markel: "You have your nest egg in your home, so being able to make that accommodate aging in place, that's a big deal to people."
Mainwaring: "When you've lived in a house — or even an apartment for, potentially, decades — that's where your friends are, that's where your services are, that's where your life has happened, and so the desire to stay there as long as possible, I think, is just simple human nature."
"We're investing in the homes, we're investing in the neighborhood, so it's generally not only good for the house, but it's good for the block, and it's good for the community," said Clements.
Safety modifications, he says, can also prevent emergency calls. Many of the houses in Council Bluffs are more than 80 years old, meaning they're more likely to need repairs.
"Considering the housing stock in Council Bluffs and the need for rehabilitation, it's a great partnership," Mainwaring said.
Neighbors interested in the Council Bluffs program can reach out to Homewoven.org.
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