THE LAND OF OLD-AGE - SOCIETY CHANGING ATTITUDES TOWARD URBAN BUILT ENVIRONMENTS FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE

I explore the reciprocity operating between age relations and the buil t environment by presenting an age-sensitive reading of urban history in the U.S. By focusing on the segregation of the elderly, intergenera tional conflicts are shown to have clear territorial expressions. The resultant built environments of aging occur both by design and default . State policies are implicated in the creation of ageist built enviro nments. In some instances, policies explicitly aimed at the elderly re sult in age-segregated residential environments while, in other cases, policies directed at the built environment have profound implications for age relations. Further, private-sector views of the consumption p otential of elderly people also determine the types of residential env ironments available to old people. I argue that the urban built enviro nment is simultaneously a cause and an effect of ageist attitudes.