PANAMA CITY -- It was the sound that probably caused Francis Aldea to toss and turn: the metallic clack of lightweight walkers on the sidewalk and the whir of electric wheelchairs in motion. In this vision, seniors were crowding downtown walkways -- and worse, not spending any money.

"Nobody's going to shop," she said.

Aldea, actually a senior herself at 93 years old, was among the vocal opponents to plans to make the Marie Hotel, at 490 Harrison Ave., an affordable senior housing development. Downtown merchants were mobilized against the development, including an official rebuke from the Downtown Improvement Board.

"What is the vision of downtown determined by the Downtown Improvement Board?" Gulf Coast Aquarium owner Heath Kent said. "If it's to provide revitalization and gentrification, then affordable housing is not what it's supposed to be. (Downtown) needs young, affluent couples."

Most people, like Elegant Endeavors owner Jane Lindsey, were not against the idea of senior affordable housing, but they did not want such an apartment complex downtown.

"It's OK to admit that we need people downtown with expendable income," Planning Board member Waylon Graham said.

However, Panama City Commissioner John Kady and merchant Dwight Hicks were adamant against any affordable housing, senior-specific or not, in Panama City.

"I don't think the city needs more low-income housing," Hicks said.

Since leading the call for a low-income housing moratorium this past spring, Kady maintains Panama City has a disproportionate percentage of affordable housing in Bay County.

"We need to balance out wages, ages and consumer spending," Kady said. "We need to spread low-income housing throughout the city and throughout the county."

No perspective was provided for the seniors themselves, with the exception of Royal American officials repeating a quote from Council on Aging Director Beth Coulliette.

"What we're seeing is a shortage of affordable housing," Coulliette said recently. "Seniors have spent many years giving so much to the community. I think it is time we as a community step up and provide for them."

Apartments for seniors are full

Janet Radcliff resents many remarks made about people like her and other residents of St. Andrews Towers, located at the south end of Harrison Avenue -- remarks such as the elderly not having any extra money to spend.

While they might not have much disposable income, Radcliff stressed, a majority of their spending is concentrated in downtown.

"The residents take advantage of the many restaurants available, also enjoying the evening performances by local artists at Trigo and Millies," she wrote in a letter to the editor. "Groceries are available to us at Grocery Outlet and Dollar General. The beauty shops along Harrison are reachable for our women who use scooters or walkers. Many residents enjoy performances at the Marina Civic Center as well as at the Martin Theatre."

Radcliff has been living at the Towers for four years and that's where she met her husband, Frank, who is a pastor of the Towers chapel. While Radcliff still moves well, living at the Towers has its advantages. One day, Frank was walking in front of the 14-story apartment building on a summer afternoon and collapsed. A quick response from the Towers staff and emergency personnel ensued.

Fellow resident Sue Wolfert, a retired certified public accountant, needed a smaller residence, and the 542-square-foot apartment at the Towers was a good fit. She broke her back five years ago walking on a deck of stairs outside of her mobile home. She still wears a corset-like brace but is persistent about walking for exercise. She previously was told by a doctor that she would never walk again.

The Towers differs from other affordable housing complexes because it provides some safeguards for residents. All bathrooms have rails in the shower and alongside the toilet. Every bathroom and bedroom is equipped with a pull cord to alert the office downstairs of a medical emergency. The staff at the Towers checks each resident's door in the morning. Each has a metal ring residents are instructed to flip from yellow to red by noon every day.

But just as important for Radcliff and Wolfert is the sense of community at the senior property. Wolfert regularly attends biweekly bingo games. The Towers has other activities including some in the park-like area on the east side of the building.

The Towers, which is for people 62 and older but has some units for disabled individuals, is subject to Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) income limits -- $33,350 a year for a single person. Residents pay 30 percent of their income for rent. It has 216 rooms, all of which are filled. Towers administrator Donna Golema said it can take several months to clear the waiting list.

Another apartment option is Siena Gardens, 901 W. 19th St., which is a tax-credit facility, like what was proposed at the Marie Hotel. The income limits are set by median income for the area; residents cannot make less than $17,800 and more than $25,000. The rooms of different sizes cost $596, $666 and $697 per month.

"It's tough here because rents are higher," Siena Gardens administrator Gussie Williams said.

The income and rent restrictions are the reason Williams opposed the Marie Hotel development, but she also said there is a need for more senior housing. Siena Gardens has 150 rooms, all of which are filled, and it also has a sizable waiting list.

The residents at Siena Gardens enjoy the facility, which features an exercise room, swimming pool and car wash but does not provide the regular check-ins or the facility-wide handicap-accessible feature like the Towers. Resident Lynette Cothern said many of the residents ride scooters to the nearby Wal-Mart on 23rd Street. Residents like Loise Klieforth and Barbara Stabler remarked about the quiet nature of the surrounding area and the feeling of community at the complex.

"We have a family community here," resident Judy Spurlock said.

There is one more senior apartment complex, provided by the Panama City Housing Authority: Asbell, 11 Bob Sikes Drive. Like the Towers, Asbell is income-based with requirements set by HUD and rents are set for 30 percent of a resident's income. Staff check-ins and handicap-accessible accommodations are limited at Asbell, the only real advantage being that all of the apartments are at ground level.

Asbell has 47 apartments, which are all full.

The housing authority recently announced a plan for a 100-unit apartment complex just south of 23rd Street on Frankford Avenue.

"I think it will be an asset to the community," Housing Authority Executive Director Joe Woods said. "I think it's needed."

Living alone worrisome for some, good for others

Francis Aldea lives alone in the same house she has been in since 1957 and has money to pay for landscaping and other upkeep. She also has a son and daughter who live in town who regularly check in on her.

"They're going to have to take me out that door feet first," she said.

Some other independent seniors are not as fortunate.

Marie Fillbrook, 75, worries quite a bit about money -- how to pay her car insurance, for prescription medicines, cable bill, food and yard maintenance. That does not factor in the cost of her Lynn Haven duplex.

She also worried her 2003 car will break down.

"Every month, as soon as I think I'm able to get ahead, it's one more thing," she said.

Fillbrook is part of a small group of independent seniors who meets at the Lynn Haven Senior Center for cards. She has the help of her daughter, who lives in Lynn Haven.

The situation is more difficult for 85-year-old Charlotte Elsner. Elsner said she is having difficulty with basic household tasks like changing linens and vacuuming. Her eyes, in particular, burdened with cataracts, have begun to fail. Elsner is on more medications than Fillbrook, with five split between morning and night and she does not qualify for Medicaid.

She lives in a neighborhood behind the Bay County Sheriff's Office off State 77. Her closest relative is a daughter who lives in Ohio.

"I hope my daughter retires and moves in with me," Elsner said.

The Council on Aging, which staffs the Lynn Haven Senior Center, provides many services for seniors living alone. They have a homemaker service to assist with basic household tasks, personal care for personal hygiene needs, respite care relief for caregivers, and home-delivered meals. Most of these programs are low-income friendly through grant applications, although some may require a copay if the family's income exceeds a certain amount. Seniors do have to meet health requirements for being homebound.

Assisted living expensive without Medicaid

Beth Calloway, 76, had to change her life. After she broke both ankles, she knew she needed help and she moved into Lisenby on Lake Caroline.

While many of the same services are provided at each of the five assisted-living locations in Bay County, there is a great difference in the amount of luxury available to residents.

Lisenby on Lake Caroline is the cheapest and the only one that accepts Medicaid. However, it only has 55 rooms in their assisted-living section.

Administrator John Kerrigan said the average private-pay resident pays $2,000 a month. To qualify for Medicaid, residents must meet income and medical requirements. Medicaid and Social Security payments are combined at Lisenby on Lake Caroline and residents are left with $54 a month after room and board is paid. Calloway is one of these residents.

Lisenby on Lake Caroline is a former hospital, the decor is, thus, more institutional and the rooms are smaller. Other assisted living facilities can be quite expensive and do not accept Medicaid.

For many residents of assisted living facilities, there was a health-related reason for moving. Ethel Thurman, 89, was experiencing health problems when she fell and broke her pelvis and kneecap and she and 87-year-old husband, Sam, decided to move into Mathison Retirement Community.

Displayed in Mathison's main room is a baby grand piano, one of three pianos on-site. Mathison also has a swimming pool. It is the most expensive of any of the assisted-living facilities. They have independent living for $2,738, $3,722 and $4,545 and all-inclusive assisted living is $3,175, $4,159 and $4,982. Mathison has 74 apartments.

Ines Mathis, 87, lives at Summer's Landing in Lynn Haven and is confined to a wheelchair. LeeRoy Brampton, 87, also of Summer's Landing, has had three heart attacks. Peggy Hiland, 77, suffered a bad fall before moving to Summer's Landing.

Summer's Landing is an older facility, 33 years old, and does not take Medicaid. A single private room at Summer's Landing costs $1,950 a month and a studio apartment is $2,700 a month. Summer's Landing is all on a single level and does offer residents more privacy for its 45 apartments.

Marilyn Mansfield, 77, had a severe stroke, and Provision Living at Panama City Beach helped her regain her speech and writing abilities. Mansfield's neighbor, Joyce Scovel, was suffering from persistent falls before breaking her hip, which eventually led to major back surgery.

There is a substantial difference in the next step up to Provision. Provision has a restaurant-style menu for every meal, and offers yoga and occupational and physical therapists. The aesthetics are a measured difference, with chandeliers and dark wood tables prominent in the dining area.

"You won't hit our standard on an economic model," Provision marketing official John Greaves said.

Provision costs $3,300 a month for a single room; $2,800 a month for a 1,600-square-foot villa for independent living. Provision has 77 rooms.

Residents at Summer's Landing, Provision and Mathison all said it was very important to use savings to pay for the costs.

"My husband and I were saving for a rainy day and it got to be raining like hell," Hiland said.

Gloria Coleman and Marcella Hilliard are outliers.

Both Coleman, 91, and Hilliard, 95, chose to give up some of their independence to enter an assisted-living community, although Hilliard is in an independent living situation at Mathison Retirement Community. They are on the different ends of the spectrum pricewise in Bay County.

--- MAP: BAY COUNTY ELDERLY HOUSING ---

--- VIDEO: MARCELLA HILLIARD TALKS ABOUT ASSISTED-LIVING ---

Still, Coleman admitted she and her daughters had reached a mutual decision where she would move out of her Panama City home and into the assisted-living facility Lisenby on Lake Caroline because she could not live by herself.

Hilliard, in a similar situation, was living near her family in Baton Rouge, La., but moved to be closer to her daughter. Both Coleman and Hilliard are healthy and active. Showing their difference in income, Coleman enjoys morning bingo while Hilliard has her own personal trainer.

All of these people have all of their mental faculties. The five assisted-living facilities, including Sterling House in Panama City which did not grant interviews, have memory care wings, locked areas for residents with Alzheimer's and dementia who have a tendency to wander.

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(c) The News Herald, Panama City, Fla.