The Graying of Canadian Suburbs

Résumé du livre

The residence patterns of Canada's elderly, those 65 and older, shifted significantly from 1971-1991. First, was the metropolitanization of the elderly; that is, the more rapid growth in numbers of the elderly who live in metropolitan areas as compared to those living in non-metropolitan areas. Second, was the suburbanizaion of the elderly within metropolitan areas. 1991 saw, for the first time, more seniors living in the suburbs than in core cities of Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs). Both of these shifts parallel those that occurred in the United States in the late 1970s. Metropolitan aging is occurring across the country. In 1991, the concentration of the elderly in nearly half of the 25 CMAs was greater than the national average. CMAs both new and old, and located in all parts of Canada, are experiencing extensive aging. This aging also involves major increases in the numbers and proportions of the very old, those aged 75+, a population group more prone to frailty and in need of support. From 1971-1991, the concentration of the elderly population grew in each suburban zone as well as in core cities. The most dramatic aging was in the Inner Suburbs. The fastest rate of growth of numbers of elderly occurred in the Outer Suburbs. The more distant Suburban Fringe also experienced a progressive aging of its population. The number of the very old (75+) in the suburbs increased more than twice as fast as they did in core cities, thereby underlining the pervasiveness o.