Survey shows support for more senior services in Eagle County
There's a lot more work to do before voters see a proposal
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A brand-new survey seems to show support for financially supporting programs for older county residents, but it’s too soon to tell what that support means.
The Eagle County Board of Commissioners on May 27 heard a presentation from Bill Ray of WR Communications. Ray presented the brand-new results of a county-commissioned Healthy Aging Survey that included information on whether residents might support ballot measures on issues such as additional funding for Castle Peak Senior Life and Rehabilitation. That 44-bed facility is currently the Eagle River Valley’s only skilled nursing and long-term care facility.
• 61.7%: Survey respondents who said keeping Castle Peak Senior Life and Rehabilitation open is “very important.”
• 67.5%: Survey respondents who would be “very” or “somewhat” supportive of a dedicated property tax to raise $5 million per year to build senior housing rental units at Castle Peak.
• 85.3%: Survey respondents who said Eagle County needs a skilled nursing and assisted living facility.
• 89.3%: Survey respondents who said it’s “very” or “somewhat” important for Eagle County to work to keep Castle Peak open and accessible to local residents.
Source: Eagle County, WR Communications.
The facility is currently owned and operated by Cassia, a Minnesota-based nonprofit. That organization in the past has asked for county assistance to financially help the facility.
The survey asked a number of general questions, including whether the county is generally on the right track — 51.6% agreed — and the biggest issue facing the county. Housing and affordability topped that list.
But those general questions then led into more specific questions about aging, and services available for older adults in the county. While there’s little, if anything, county officials can do, 57% of respondents expressed a great deal of concern about the future of Social Security and Medicare.
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Those questions then led into questions about Castle Peak. The survey found that people in Eagle and Gypsum are far more familiar with the facility than people in the eastern portion of the valley. About half of the survey respondents in Vail and Avon hadn’t heard of the facility.
Still, the survey shows strong support, at least in theory, for tax support of services for seniors. That includes support for Castle Peak.
One of the more interesting ideas is one that would use a temporary property tax levy to raise $5 million per year for 10 years. That money would fund construction of senior housing rental units at Castle Peak. The rental income from those units could then generate money to provide income for operations at Castle Peak.
While the survey showed initial support for public support of senior services, Ray cautioned the commissioners about reading too much into the results.
Ray said if county officials decide to ask voters to increase taxes, they’ll need to do more “outreach, education and community engagement.”
Subsequent surveys would need to include actual ballot language and not just general questions, he added.
In wrapping up the presentation, Eagle resident Joanne Rock asked if the survey means there’s a ballot measure coming in November.
“We don’t know,” Commissioner Tom Boyd replied, adding that he and his fellow commissioners are looking now to “find out what are the priorities of our community.”
