Chattanooga’s Baby Boomer population is growing nearly ten percent faster than the rest of the country, according to statistics from the Ochs Center for Metropolitan Studies. Nearly 1.7 million people in Tennessee will be 65 years or older by the year 2025. Baby Boomers are typically considered adults born between 1946 and 1964.

“This is a call to action for all leaders to prepare to meet the challenges that our communities will face in the next 15 years,” said Linda Bennett, executive director of Choose Chattanooga and one of the local organizers of the Livable Communities conference held on Tuesday at Brainerd United Methodist Church. “It is also an opportunity for Chattanooga to shine if we rise to meet the challenges,” she said.

Nearly 200 individuals gathered to discuss the greatest challenges facing the area and debated the best action to take in meeting those needs. The quality of life topics outlined in Tuesday’s Livable Communities event included building for the future, lifelong learning, a place for everyone and healthy living.

Attendees include city officials, the library, health care, social service providers, builders, business owners and representatives from local non-profit organizations.

Chattanooga was selected from hundreds of cities nationwide to host the conference, which was part of a national initiative by the Partnership for Livable Communities

“The main effort of today’s Livable Communities Conference is to bring together community leaders to take positive steps towards creating a livable region with no age boundaries,” said Steve Witt with the Southeastern Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability.

“This is hopefully the beginning of a cooperative and detailed dialogue about quality of life issues for everyone in Chattanooga, in which the library would like to play a key role in promoting and educating residents,” said Nancy Cogar, senior service coordinator for the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Bicentennial Library.

Goals of Tuesday’s event were simple: To raise awareness and engage the community, initiate collaboration between public-private-non-profit and government entities and define the next steps in this effort.

In a summary report, national organizers stated that “if communities are resourceful, innovative and prudent these challenges will be eclipsed by the enormous share of social and human capital that will be made available by the largest, healthiest and best educated and most affluent generation of older adults in American history.”

Local sponsors for the event include the Southeast Tennessee Area Agency on Aging and Disability, Choose Chattanooga, the City of Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Morningpointe, the Greater Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce and the Tennessee Multicultural Chamber of Commerce.

The conference was sponsored nationally by the MetLife Foundation, Partners for Livable Communities and the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging.

Local grants will be awarded by the sponsors to fund further initiatives in the Chattanooga area. Grant applications can be made via the website and awards will be made in late July, 2009.