Milestones

On June 7, 2017, Age-Friendly Sarasota held a two-year celebration at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, with those involved in its successful momentum and those interested in the age-friendly movement learning about the next steps. AFS has completed two years of planning and research to assess the community's landscape and aspirations of residents to create a world-class livable community. The initiative is now launching a planned effort to engage people, businesses, nonprofits, government, and the media in the development of a more livable community through the AFS Action Plan. The Action Plan sets forth goals, objectives, and strategies for making Sarasota County more age-friendly. We are all stakeholders and no action is too small — everyone plays a part in co-creating our collective age-friendly future. Together, we embark on the Implementation Phase, beginning now through June 2020.

Access the Age-Friendly Sarasota Action Plan for details and to provide feedback.

Inspired by the Age-Friendly Sarasota initiative and presented as a gift by The Patterson Foundation, the Age-Friendly Festival — held on Saturday, October 28, 2017 at the Sarasota Fairgrounds — became the FIRST community celebration in the nation to focus on LIFELONG WELL-BEING while CONNECTING PEOPLE OF ALL AGES. Attendees enjoyed exhibits, experiences, entertainment, and educational presentations highlighting age-friendly practices and principles that optimize community assets and enhance quality of life #ForAllAges.

Learn all about the Age-Friendly Festival and its impact on the age-friendly movement in our community. We also hope to inspire similar events in other communities by sharing the festival's details on our website.

On October 9, 2018, the final version of the Age-Friendly Sarasota (AFS) County Progress Report was presented to and approved by the Sarasota County Commission.

The Age-Friendly Sarasota County Progress Report represents progress towards the goals, objectives, and strategies across the eight domains that were identified in the Age-Friendly Sarasota County Action Plan. This Report includes information from Age-Friendly Sarasota’s launch on May 6, 2015 through December 31, 2017.

From July 17 – August 17, 2018, the Draft Progress Report was available online for public input. Feedback collected was used to strengthen the Progress Report to include accomplishments fulfilling our shared aspirations.

On April 23, 2019 Age-Friendly Sarasota’s home state, Florida, became the fourth (and largest) state to receive the age-friendly designation from AARP, after New York, Massachusetts, and Colorado.

The Age-Friendly Action Plan is a living document compiled from many resources, including existing data, multiple surveys, focus groups, and input from community partners. Over the next few years, we welcome your ideas and suggestions as we work together to develop activities to meet our collective goals.

Access the Age-Friendly Sarasota Action Plan.