DFTA to revise senior services overhaul

On Friday, December 19, the New York City Department for the Aging (DFTA) formally withdrew a plan that would have required citywide senior centers to apply for funding via a Request for Proposal (RFP) process that, opponents argued, would have led to the closure of many centers.
With his DFTA “modernization” proposal, Mayor Bloomberg aimed to create a system of mental, physical and social wellness centers across the city.
“Modernization will make services more responsive, flexible, and attentive to the needs of seniors,” Mira Browne, DFTA Deputy Director of Public Affairs, wrote in an email shortly after the mayor’s plan was announced. Browne said the plan was part of a far-reaching effort to strengthen senior services and prepare for the needs of the city’s aging population.
But opponents, ranging from senior services advocates to elected officials to the seniors themselves, said the plan would have ultimately harmed those the DFTA sought to help.
Shortly after Bloomberg announced his DFTA proposal, Bobbie Sackman of the Council of Senior Centers and Services of NYC, an advocacy group, said the RFP process would enable the DFTA to use “recycled money.” Sackman cautioned that the plan called for the DFTA to pull funds from one service in order to inject cash into services that fit under its modernization umbrella.
With support from around 30 City Councilmembers, including Speaker Christine Quinn, senior services advocates embarked on a letter writing campaign that ultimately landed 19,000 petitions signed by seniors on the mayor’s desk.
Sackman said the letters, written in English, Chinese and Spanish, combined with support from State Senator Malcolm Smith and other state and city leaders, assisted in the effort to curb the mayor’s proposal.
Also a big factor, however, was an unforeseen shake-up at the DFTA: the surprise resignation, on December 12, of Commissioner Edwin Mendez-Santiago, who cited personal reasons for his departure from the agency.
Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Linda I. Gibbs, who announced the city’s plan to re-evaluate the senior services overhaul along with Speaker Quinn and Aging Commissioner Designee Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, said a withdrawal of the current RFP will afford the new DFTA leadership the opportunity to re-group and “map a strategy for moving forward.”
“Lilliam and I will consult with the City Council and our community partners to ensure we are creating the best possible services for the largest number of seniors,” Gibbs said in the statement.
Sackman said she is hopeful that the postponement of the plan, which was applauded by elected officials on the city and state levels, means a fresh start for all interested parties, notably the seniors. She added that advocates and senior services providers hope to be able to sit down with the DFTA “and say ‘ok what is it we want for the future of senior centers?’”
“This time around, input form the seniors, providers and advocates will be listened to,” Sackman said.