Los Cerritos Community Newspaper Group

Cerritos Wins 2008 Livability Award

The United States Conference of Mayors recently announced the winners of the prestigious 2008 City Livability awards. The City of Cerritos received an outstanding achievement award for cities with populations of 100,000 or less. Wilmington, Delaware; Goodyear, Arizona and Frisco, Texas also won outstanding achievement awards.

The 29-year old awards program recognizes mayoral leadership for developing and implementing programs that improve the quality of life in America’s cities. 

The City of Cerritos won the award for the innovative Vintage Cerritos affordable housing project. Vintage Cerritos is located on a portion of the Cerritos College campus and provides congregate care apartments for seniors age 62 and older. It is the first housing development to be co-sponsored by a city/redevelopment agency and community college. Approximately 105 of the 147 units at Vintage are for seniors with very low, low and moderate incomes. The facility is currently at full capacity. 

Services provided at Vintage include three daily meals and snacks, weekly housekeeping, an extensive activities program, 24-hour responsive staff and an in-room emergency response system. Amenities include on-site entertainment, multimedia and exercise rooms, a library and beauty parlor. The two-story, 115,000-square-foot building is surrounded by rolling lawns and landscaping. A beautiful three-story atrium entryway, two interior courtyards, a one-acre resident park, a glass elevator and a “smart” safety system for seniors to use when they need quick assistance are also part of the facility.

Cerritos Mayor Jim Edwards said: “Our community is proud to have won a City Livability Award for its innovative efforts to provide affordable senior housing. The award confirms the City’s ongoing commitment to the betterment of our community.”

Founded in 1933, the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) is the official nonpartisan organization of cities with populations over 30,000. The USCM seeks to promote the development of effective national urban/suburban policy; strengthen federal-city relationships; ensure that federal policy meets urban needs; provide mayors with leadership and management tools; and create a forum in which mayors can share ideas and information.