| This beautiful new retirement
community is located a block from downtown Burbank,
California and offers something a little different
for those retirees with artistic souls. The
emphasis here is on creativity and indulging in the
arts, and the development itself has won awards for
its eclectic style and architecture. Many
residents are former (and current) actors, writers,
painters, singers and sculptors, but others have
been inspired by moving to the Senior Artists'
Colony and have just started to discover their inner
muses. |
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This community was founded through a partnership between the City of Burbank
and a non-profit group called More Than Shelter for Seniors that works to
"provide life-enhancing programs to low-and moderate-income seniors."
The Colony, which has been cited by the National Endowment for the Arts as a
model for creative aging, is one of a new breed of retirement developments that
understands that keeping seniors active and engaged is one way to reduce
depression and medical visits as they age. Endless rounds of golf are not
for everybody, and here participating in art programs has a significant
beneficial effect as like-minded artists express themselves through performance
arts, writing, painting and more. Most residents are in their 70s and
above, and although there are no assisted-living services, all of the art
programs are free.
While many of the amenities, including a business center, a swimming pool
and sun deck, a library, a game room, fitness classes and a clubroom for
special meetings, are fairly standard, other amenities, such as outdoor
courtyards for performances, a computer media arts room, a theater and
screening room, digital filmmaking equipment and an editing bay, galleries for
art displays and a planned art walk for displaying residents' artwork, are what
make the Colony unique.
And the monthly calendar of art classes and events, encompassing everything
from writers' workshops to acting classes to singing lessons, is designed to
"spark the creative spirit" and is what ties the community all
together. Residents have also started and run a theater group, an
independent film company, a fine arts collective and an intergenerational arts
program in partnership with the Burbank Unified School District and a
resident-run internal cable TV station. This is indeed an active
place.
Burbank is north of Los Angeles and the headquarters of many television
production and other media companies. It is a primarily
upper-middle class area, and approximately 35% of the population is aged 45 and
better. Crime rates are below the national average, and the weather is
typical of southern California with summer temperatures in the 80s and low 90s,
winter temperatures in the 60s and 70s and plenty of sunshine.
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