Testimony to
The Commission on Affordable Housing and Health Facility
Needs for Seniors in the 21st Century
November 7, 2001
by
Margarita Rey

I would also like to thank the commission for this opportunity to testify.

I have been a resident at Angeles Plaza for almost nine years, and this is a retirement senior housing. I want you to know that at the time I was in a wheelchair, very limited living spaces for people in a wheelchair.

One of the things that affected me the most was my economics because I was paying 50 percent more for my rent than someone that was not disabled.

You know, I just am so pleased to be here this morning 'cause I really didn't know you guys knew this.

We in the senior community feel like we're the only ones that talk this way. We just don't hear back. Even when I have conversations with our representatives in Congress, it seems like we do all the input, so this has really been gratifying for me.

We have to increase housing. We have to include 202 housing just by the mere fact that we are all aging and becoming more disabled.

Angeles Plaza, just for an instance, in my level, Angeles Plaza has got a list of names on a waiting list that is 1,600. You know, how large does this problem have to get before we start acting on it?

Housing and health care -- but you have to include transportation. That's the only way that we are going to make the services accessible to all of those that need them.

I don't want us to go back to the time of the SRO's. I remember those very well. And I remember, as we housed someone, a senior in an SRO, that we always -- almost felt like we had to supply a .38 at the same time, so safety in housing is a must.

I sometimes feel that this Congress wants to solve this problem by budget cuts. We were all alerted by this system -- we, the seniors and the needy, when we were willing to spend billions of dollars to cut taxes, and it was passed.

You know, the money is not there for us. It just not is credible anymore.

Seniors know that this is not our fight alone. All of you that are here are personally involved, and I guess that my message to all of you, to Congress, is to say how many times do we have to burn your wagons before you get it? Thank you.