Healthy Living Initiatives City of Pasadena. Teresa Vazquez-Evans Director of Planning

Transcription

1 Healthy Living Initiatives City of Pasadena Teresa Vazquez-Evans Director of Planning

2 City Overview 2014 Population Estimates: 158,617 people, 63.6% Hispanic 17th largest City in Texas 2nd largest City in Harris County Land Area: approx. 59 sq. miles Highways/Tollways: SH 225, SH 146 Beltway 8 City of Pasadena City Limits (with parks)

3 Economic Highlights Port of Houston Bayport Terminal- ranks first in foreign tonnage and second in total tonnage in the United States. Bayport Industrial District home to over 60 chemical companies Nestle Waters- largest bottled water brand in the world. Pasadena facility bottles 72,000 bottles of water an hour. Crystal Geyser- 2 nd water bottling facility being built in Pasadena. Silver Eagle- recently opened a $25 million facility in north Pasadena.

4 Educational Facilities Pasadena Independent School District 63 campuses and approx. 54,000 student enrollment With an 89% graduation rate, the Pasadena Independent School District is ranked one of the top districts in our area. San Jacinto College The College s flagship campus, San Jacinto Central, is in the heart of Pasadena 189 Acre Central Campus has an enrollment around 13,000 students University of Houston Clear Lake 524-acre wildlife and nature preserve Diverse student population with about 8,600 students from across the region, state and abroad

5 Armand Bayou Nature Center 2500 acre nature preserve, consisting of natural wetlands forest, prairie and marsh habitats Home to over 370 species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians One of the largest urban wildlife preserves in the United States ABNC offers hiking trails, exhibits, field trips, birding, Scout programs, and historic farm Through preservation and education, ABNC strive to Reconnect People with Nature

6 COP- HCPHES Collaborative Efforts Healthy Living Matters- Pasadena Dedicated to increasing active living and healthy eating opportunities that aim to reduce childhood obesity in Pasadena, TX BUILD Project- Building a Healthier Pasadena Grant funding will be utilized to launch a new food system in N. Pasadena. Built Environment Unit- Performing Health Impact Assessments (HIA) to influence policy decisions at community design level with updates to City planning and development ordinances and pending comprehensive plan.

7 Why is Healthy Living Policy Change Important? 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese 1 in 3 children will develop diabetes Our children s generation is the first to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents

8 Healthy Living Matters History and Mission The Houston Endowment awarded a grant to the Harris County Healthcare Alliance to fund a local private-public partnership called the Houston Harris County Childhood Obesity Prevention Collaborative. The Collaborative (now called Healthy Living Matters) consists of a multi-sector group of local leaders, engaged in an initiative to curb childhood obesity in Houston/Harris County by using policy action to enact system and environmental change. HLM engaged in a 2 year planning initiative focused on curbing childhood obesity through policy change.

9 Healthy Living Matters Pasadena Stakeholders Harris County Pasadena Independent School District City of Pasadena Planning Dept. Parks and Recreation Dept. Public Works Neighborhood Network Health Dept. Pasadena WIC Pasadena Health Center Pasadena Community Resource Center Air Alliance Houston Neighborhood Centers YMCA Business Community (e.g. Mi Tienda, HCSC/BCBS of Texas) Community Leaders

10 Kruse & Gardens Elementary Schools: Survey Results 44% of children at Kruse Elementary School and 58% at Gardens Elementary School are at a high risk for obesity 16% of children typically walk or bike to school Only 15% feel comfortable letting a child walk/bike alone 75% would walk or bike to get somewhere if they felt they could do it safely 67% walk or bike around their neighborhood < 2 times/week 61% travel between 1 to 5 miles to buy groceries 42% of restaurants are fastfood restaurants Price is the #1 barrier to a family s ability to purchase healthy foods

11 Barriers to Healthy Choices Access To affordable, healthy and convenient food options Opportunities for physical activity Safety Unfriendly environments for pedestrians and cyclists Connectivity Lack of safe and complete connections between sidewalks, trails, crosswalks and daily destinations

12 HLM Focus: Two Childhood Obesity Factors Healthy Food Options How can we help make more healthy food options available in neighborhoods? How do we increase peoples ability to access more affordable, healthy food options? Active Lifestyles How do we help children and adolescents get 1 hour or more of physical activity each day? How do we make sure there is access to quality parks and places to play and be active?

13 COP- HLM Collaboration Built Environment How does neighborhood design and access to healthy food affect childhood obesity in Pasadena? HLM looked at a number of factors, such as: Neighborhood design - such as sidewalks, trails, street lighting, and parks and other places that can encourage residents to walk, bike, and live more active lifestyles Access to healthy food - such as the presence of grocery stores in the neighborhood, and the availability of fresh produce

14 HLM- Pasadena Planning Policy Priorities Increase access to healthier foods by working with local corner stores and restaurants Increase opportunities for physical activity by providing resources to local schools and city planners Increase opportunities for health education and public awareness Encourage policies that create healthier environments

15 Healthy Corner Store Network HLM is working to increase access to healthy food selections by partnering with convenient stores to provide and display healthy food options near check out counter. Healthy food offerings include Granola Bars and Fruit Current Stores include: MC Food 504 Richey Ark Food 2013 Shaver Shaver Food 2008 Shaver Food Demos on 2 nd and 4 th Fridays

16 Healthy Dining Matters HLM is working to increase access to healthy food selections by partnering with local restaurants to feature healthy eating options on their menus. Participating Restaurants include: Richey s Country Cooking 10 Restaurants are on list for recruitment City assists with marketing and outreache.g. recruitment message included in October water bill

17 Biking Support Bike Racks installed at local parks: Strawberry Park (2) Crenshaw Park (2) Holly Bay Park (2) Multi-Purpose Center (1) Big Slough (2) Fairmont Hike and Bike Trail (1) Bike Racks installed at local schools: South Houston Elementary South Shaver Elementary Fisher Elementary Mae Smith Elementary Gardens Elementary Bondy Intermediate Park View Intermediate 30 Bike Friendly Facility Signs to distribute

18 Parks and Recreation Collaborative Efforts Healthy Living Matters-Pasadena has identified problem areas and potential solutions, and connected COP Parks and Recreation staff with October Safe Walk Ways meeting at Rusk Elementary. Led to creation of project called Rusk Explorers. Rusk Explorers go out to inspect, document and report unsafe road and sidewalk conditions to COP Public Works Dept. Healthy Living Matters also donated bike helmets to Rusk for National Night Out. Clinton Foundation- Provided staff training on athletic programming for children and funding for COP to hire coaches for afterschool programs. Neighborhood Centers Inc. Cleveland Ripley Center- COP Parks and Rec provide green space in city park dedicated to youth soccer program.

19 BUILDing a Healthier Pasadena Harris County BUILD Health Partnership is working to alleviate the health impact of food insecurity and increase access to healthy foods in Pasadena. North Pasadena is a predominantly Hispanic, working class suburb of Houston-Galveston region. Of 100,000 residents living in N. Pasadena, 26% live below the poverty line. 40% of adults do not have a diploma 20% of HHs receive SNAP benefits 87% of students are eligible for free or reduced school lunches 25% of Pasadena residents eat fast food three or more times a week; 66% of adults and 65% of children in the greater Pasadena area are overweight or obese.

20 The BUILD Project BUILDing a Healthier Pasadena BUILD Project Purpose: Bring together al the people and groups who want to work to make healthy food accessible to all. The Build Project will launch a new food system in north Pasadena that is healthy, sustainable, affordable, accessible, and community supported. BUILD Project Partners include: HCPHES MD Anderson Cancer Center UT School of Public Health Brighter Bites Houston Food Bank Memorial Hermann Pasadena Health Center Health Living Matters Can Do Houston CHI St. Luke s Health Neighborhood Centers City of Pasadena

21 BUILDING a Healthier Pasadena Production Community Supported Agriculture Campus (CSA) Job Training Distribution Healthy Corner Store Network Brighter Bites Healthy Dining Matters Consumption Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Policy Food Scholarships

22 Community- Supported Agriculture Campus (CSA) CSA began with concept of facility in North Pasadena that would offer: Location for enhancing fresh food availability Cutting edge technological/vocational opportunities through partnerships with secondary and post-secondary institutions in Pasadena Operations that would include an economic development component to provide job opportunities and the possibly for future employment growth Stabilizing force to help anchor neighborhoods. A concept that models a coalition of active stakeholders in a framework that is scalable and replicable for other communities

23 Community Located Agricultural Research Area (CLARA) CLARA Campus Small scale indoor/vertical farming operation overseen by commercial partner, Indoor Harvest, Corp. (IHC), with research rather than commercial production focus. IHC brings proven record of success with MIT s CityFARM, extensive contacts in technology space, and growing interest technological offerings to commercial growers. Profitability comes from using CLARA as showroom to showcase IHC design and build expertise in indoor/vertical gardening farming, technological/engineering/r&d innovation. Educational component with built in job opportunities. PISD and San Jacinto in discussions to expand curriculum to provide pilot program and teaching course, respectively, to train technicians. Farmers Market project component to distribute produce grown at CSA.

24 City of Pasadena Partnership Role City committed to provide two (2) vacant city-owned facilities in North Pasadena. Adjacent fire station and police buildings will be retrofitted to accommodate indoor farming lab and classroom/meeting space CLARA Facility with Friendship Gardens Pending Chapter 380 Agreement for property tax abatement IHC prospective commercial partner (CityFARM) seeks 10+ acres for greenhouse space Opportunities for community redevelopment and reinvestment in harmony with long-term economic realities and social needs

25 BUILD Partnership Continuing Efforts BUILD Project Plans exploring place-making approach and opportunities for Farmers Market programing and improvements to adjoining City pocket park, Friendship Park. Application submitted to Southwest Airlines Heart of the Community grant program to renovate Friendship Park and purchase tent and supplies needed to close off street and host Farmer s Market component of CSA.

26 HCPHES Built Environment Health Impact Assessment (HIA) COP Planning Dept. now working with HCPHES Built Environment Unit to go to a higher level to address health by aiming at the roots of health tree- community design and the built environment. Affect change at a policy level with a thorough assessment and recommendations for pending updates to planning and development ordinances and comprehensive plan. Work to date includes stakeholder interviews, HCPHES workshop meeting with staff, HIA training for COP staff, and HCPHES participation in COP staff discussions regarding proposed updates.

27 Harris County Pasadena Partnership Benefits In an environment of diminishing resources, HCPHES and COP have collaborated to address gaps in funding, staffing and coordination. This partnership has resulted in the following benefits: Focus Forum Dedicated Personnel Marketing and Outreach Funding Methodology Organization