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May 27, 2001Military base a retiree magnetWurtsmith Air Force Base blooms with life as retired people flock to refined military housingBy JOHN FLESHERThe Associated Press OSCODA (AP) - As Ken and Rose Kuhlman relax on their front porch, birds chirp and trees rustle in the cool breeze - sounds that a decade ago were often lost in the thunder of B-52s overhead. Paul B. Wurtsmith Air Force Base closed in 1993, dealing a sharp blow to the economy of rural Iosco County. Now it's becoming a haven for retired people such as the Kuhlmans, offering spiffed-up former military housing for as little as $49,000. "It's so laid-back here, quiet - it's home to us," says Ken Kuhlman, 63, chuckling as their Brittany spaniel darts after a golf ball Rose tossed across the lawn. Already popular with retirees because of its natural beauty and easy pace, northern Michigan experienced a surge in its 65-and-older population during the 1990s, according to newly released census data. Many counties more than doubled the nearly 10 percent statewide and 12 percent national growth rates. In Iosco County, on Lake Huron in the northeastern Lower Peninsula, the increase was 29.7 percent - from 4,544 to 5,897. At the same time, the county's overall population fell 9.5 percent to 27,339, while Michigan's rose 6.9 percent. Reason: the loss of Wurtsmith, which employed 4,300 military personnel and 700 civilians. Among other northern counties with high senior growth rates were Leelanau (48.7 percent); Benzie (33.6); Otsego (31.5); Crawford (29.8); Grand Traverse (28.5); Emmet (27.3); Cheboygan (27.6); Kalkaska (26.7); and Charlevoix (26.2). Several counties to the south also produced high numbers, including Livingston (37.6); Midland (32.2); Clinton (30.5); and Ottawa (30.5). The 65-and-older population fell in seven counties: Houghton (-11.9 percent; Gogebic (-9); Baraga (-8.4); Iron (-7); Keweenaw (-6.4); Wayne (-5.8); and Ontonagon (-1.7). A variety of mostly small businesses have opened at the former base, at one time providing nearly 1,000 jobs between them. But the aircraft maintenance company that was its biggest tenant recently closed, reducing the Wurtsmith work force to 528. While continuing to recruit light industry, local officials increasingly view tourism and retiree services as the keys to future prosperity, says Carl Sachs, executive director of the Oscoda Township Office for Economic Development. He expects the local senior population to keep growing as the baby boom generation nears retirement. The base closure will only enhance the area's attractiveness, he says. "The B-52's were loud, they took off at all hours of the day and night, a lot of smoke came out of them," Sachs said. "Not exactly what you're looking for when you retire." Local officials hired Aspen Square Management, based in Springfield, Mass., in 1998 to modernize and sell the base housing. Of 1,198 single- and multi-family units on the grounds, 384 are sold or under deposit - nearly half to retirees. An additional 30 percent were bought as vacation homes by people who likely will live there full-time after retirement. Most buyers are from the Detroit area and other southern Michigan cities who vacationed "up north" during their childhood and working years, property manager Kimberly Lingo said. "They want to get out of the hustle and bustle of the city, and they know they have nature at their fingertips up here," she said. The Kuhlmans, longtime residents of Monroe, visited the former base out of curiosity last year, toured a renovated model house and quickly made a down payment. "We knew right away this was what we wanted," said Ken Kuhlman, a former mechanic. They have one of the single-family units formerly used by Air Force officers that adjoins the Huron National Forest and is a short walk to the Au Sable River. They're adding a family room with stone fireplace. Kuhlman keeps busy planting trees and doing woodwork in his garage. His wife, Rose, plays baritone with a community band and sings in choirs. "I've gotten back to things I'd given up on years ago to raise a family," she said. "There are some great cultural opportunities around here." Warren and Joyce Beauman came to Oscoda from Lapeer County, where they began their retirement. Warren, 74, had been a music teacher in Mount Clemens. They lived in a 3,000-square-foot house in the country and wanted a smaller dwelling - affordable, with low taxes and city services - and neighbors around to keep an eye on things during the six months a year they spend in Florida. "You go out on the back deck and before you know it people are coming over," Beauman said. "It's a very friendly place." A Pentagon spokeswoman said no statistics were available on how many retirees have taken up residence at military installations that were closed over the last decade. Aspen Square Management is redeveloping housing at a number of former bases around the country, sales and marketing director Joel Bertuzzi said. Many of the buyers are retirees. "They want the same things - good location, reasonable price, a sense of community," Bertuzzi said. While helping rebuild the local economy, the influx of elderly residents is changing the political landscape in ways not everyone appreciates, Sachs said. For one thing, it's getting harder to win voter approval of tax increases for services such as police and schools. "There are people who say, 'I paid my taxes, I raised my kids, why should I have to pay more taxes now,"' he said. Generational clashes over taxes and government funds could become more common in communities that lose their balance between age groups, University of Michigan demographer William Frey said. Michigan's age 20-34 population dropped 12 percent in the 1990s while the middle-aged and 75-and-older population soared. But Mary Alban, executive director of Area Agencies on Aging of Michigan, said such concerns were unjustified. "Research shows that younger people are glad their mom or grandmother gets Social Security and Medicare," Alban said. "Most older people have children and some have grandchildren. They don't want the schools to fall apart."
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