Increasingly, the public health debate has identified obesity and associated chronic diseases as key reasons for rising health care costs. Practitioners have linked programs that create healthier communities with efforts to attack the obesity epidemic. Many cities and counties, along with non-profit organizations and private companies, are developing strategies, funding creative projects, and implementing programs that focus on creating a healthy community by increasing opportunities for physical activity, providing access to healthy foods, and adopting transportation and land use measures that encourage active living for all age groups.

What Are Healthy Communities?

Healthy communities are neighborhoods, towns, and cities where people come together to make their environments better for everyone by committing to the following:

• Providing affordable, safe, appropriate, and accessible housing
• Changing the physical environment and community design to be more conducive to walking and biking
• Allowing convenient, affordable, safe, and reliable transportation options
• Promoting access to healthy foods
• Facilitating affordable access to health and supportive services
• Protecting environmental resources and promoting sustainability
• Providing work, volunteer, and education opportunities
• Encouraging participation in civic, cultural, social, and recreational activities

Why is a Healthy Community Important?

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, over 200 million adult Americans are either overweight or obese. Unfortunately, overweight and obese people have higher incidences of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and other chronic health issues. With healthcare cost continually rising, this problem not only affects the uninsured, it affects every American through higher healthcare costs. This problem will continue to grow if obesity rates continue to rise as they have over the past 20 years.

Our Commitment to Healthy Communities

Physical activity and proper nutrition can help prevent many chronic diseases. Many local agencies are implementing programs that encourage active living and healthy eating.

How can Hogle Ireland help? Our experience preparing community and strategic plans has given us broad perspective on how simple ideas and creative partnerships can build healthier communities. Here are just a few programs and approaches we can help your organization with:

• Prepare general plans, stand-alone elements, or policy documents that focus on healthy communities.
• Set up marketing campaigns, advertisements, community outreach programs, physical activity promotions, and staging community events that educate and advocate healthy eating and active living.
• Develop specific action programs, such as preparing a pedestrian and bicycle master plan, urban trails planning, or missing sidewalk assessment program.
• Conduct a health impact assessment to evaluate policies and programs within a community and identify indicators to measure long-term success.
• Develop specific plans and community plans that focus on transforming the existing physical environment to a more walkable, compact, mixed-used environment.

Our recent projects related to healthy communities include:

• Rancho Cucamonga General Plan: Develops a vision and goals that support the Healthy RC program

• Redwood City General Plan: Includes policies on sustainability, climate change, healthy living, recreation and community resources, and developing a walkable, transit-friendly community

• Lancaster Bikes and Trails Master Plan: Provides guidance on expanding and improving bicycle and pedestrian trails within Lancaster

• Western Riverside Smart Growth Opportunity Area Map: Guides future development growth and identifies areas where higher-density residential and employment could be integrated with transit

• Downey Downtown Specific Plan: Focuses on mixing commercial and residential development, providing convenient access to a transit station, and creating a vibrant urban center

• Victorville Non-Motorized Transportation Plan: Aimed at improving the City’s non-motorized infrastructure and programs