Thursday, March 28, 2024

Are we there yet?

Posted

The City Council wants to market Granbury as much as possible as a great place to retire, but isn’t yet sold on a state-run, pay-to-play program created for that purpose.

The work and the costs involved in participating in the program are factors, as well as the fact that Granbury already is known as a great place to retire.

The council did agree to have city staff research the cost of having an outside consulting company handle the burdensome application process.

Operated under the Texas Department of Agriculture, the Go Texan Certified Retirement Community Program touts benefits that include a statewide marketing campaign aimed at retirees, businesses and developers.

The program also identifies a community’s strengths and weaknesses as it pertains to attracting retirees.

Member cities are selected through a review and scoring process conducted by an independent advisory committee.

The program isn’t free. It costs $5,000 to apply and another $5,000 to get re-certified. Recertification is done every five years.

At its regular council meeting last week, the City Council was given an update on the situation. During a previous discussion, the council had tasked staff with researching the feasibility of applying for the program.

Since then, staffers sent surveys to 37 member cities that are listed on the Go Texan Certified Retirement Community website, according to Assistant City Manager Michael Ross.

The purpose of the survey was to gauge the benefits received by those cities.

Thirteen cities responded, with four indicating that they had renewed the designation after the initial 5-year certification, Ross said. Seven indicated that their city “may not have” renewed.

MORE INFO WANTED

Council members Trish Reiner and Greg Corrigan, both of whom work in fields related to the elderly and the retirement community, expressed interest in finding out more information before a decision is made.

Corrigan made a motion, seconded by councilman Tony Allen, for the city to research questions raised by the council and to contact an “outside agency” about costs to handle the work.

Ross had indicated that the city would likely need to go with a consulting firm, or have interns do the work.

He also said that, based on information gleaned from other cities, the research involved could take “three months to four years, depending on the time available to dedicate to the work.”

City Manager Chris Coffman said that what Ross described “sounds more like strategic planning,” which might require the appointment and facilitation of a committee.

He said that the state would expect documentation of such things as Lake Granbury Medical Center’s Senior Circle, activities at the Hood County Senior Center and church activities.

“You’ve got to have somebody research all that to be able to do that,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a little bit heftier labor costs than a couple of thousand bucks.”

Reiner, however, said that “a lot of resources here” already communicate and that gathering the required information might not be “as costly as we think, if we use the resources that we have wisely.”

Councilman Tony Mobly said that he is concerned about “measurables” and that the amount of research involved might amount to “a blank check.”

He stated, “Are we just writing a check to a statewide agency to put a check mark by our name and put an insignia beside the city’s (logo)?”

During the discussion, both Coffman and Ross indicated that Granbury already has a top rating as a retirement community.

kcruz@hcnews.com | 817-573-7066, ext. 258

The program identifies a community’s strengths and weaknesses as it pertains to attracting retirees.