Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities

1. Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities Supporting Community Action to Prevent Childhood Obesity Exploring Policy Assessment Strategies for Healthy Eating and Active Living Conference call March 4, 2010

2. Agenda • Goals and expectations • Rich Bell, Project Officer • Active Living By Design • Holyoke, MA Policy Review • Catherine Ratté, Principal Planner-Sustainability • Pioneer Valley Planning Commission • Tools and Resources • Laura Brennan, President and CEO • Transtria • Discussion and Q&A Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 2

3. Goal of Policy Assessment • Understand the policy environment • Identify if current policies help or hinder healthy eating and active living • Validate (or make • adjustments to) your workplan Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 3

4. Systems Agreements Policy 2 Personality/Ideology Relationships Funding Policy 1 Master Plan Training Guidelines Procedures Staffing Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 4

5. Different Types of Policy • Limited Definition: Policy = Legislation • i.e. the higher the “lever,” the greater the impact City Ordinance Big “P” Policy = rules/statutes approved by elected officials Approved master plans Comprehensive Plan Little “p” Policy = departmental policies and practices Design Guidelines Protocols Departmental Practices/Norms Budgets/Capital Funding Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 5

6. Policy Assessment Spectrum Examination of current HEAL policies and their strengths and weaknesses Comprehensive regulatory review with stakeholder analysis and recommendations Informal Technical Structured key informant interviews (related to specific HEAL topics or broad) Informal conversations with key informants in already defined areas of interest Focus groups (related to specific HEAL topics or broad) Policy gathering of community members and decision makers, followed by action steps Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 6

7. Holyoke, MA Case Study of Policy Analysis to Enhance Food and FitnessHolyoke, MA Catherine Ratté - Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (www.pvpc.org) HFFPC Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 7

8. Background - Holyoke, MA • 1 of 9 W. K. Kellogg Foundation Food and Fitness Collaborative sites • Element of planning grant for City of Holyoke • 2 years for planning! • Sub-contractor paid to conduct assessment • PVPC=regional planning agency with ongoing working relationship in Holyoke and 40 years shared history in region Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 8

9. Goals of Holyoke Regulatory Analysis Goals of the Regulatory Analysis • Improve health and fitness of Holyoke residents • Understand how the city of Holyoke’s regulatory/policy environment affects residents’ lives with respect to their health and fitness • Analyze the city’s regulatory environment, zoning and subdivision regulations • To ID the regs and policies that support or inhibit residents’ ability to be physically active in their daily lives in addition to their ability to access healthy food • Offer suggestions to maximize the benefits of existing regs and potential changes to zoning code to increase residents’ access to physical activity and healthy food Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 9

10. How It Happened • Not rocket science • Read existing zoning ordinances and sub-division regulations with two questions in mind: • How does this help or hinder residents’ ability to get exercise/be active in their daily lives? • How does this help or hurt residents’ ability to access healthy food—at stores, in gardens, schools, restaurants, etc? Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 10

11. Zoning/Sub-Division Regulations • Documents may be available on-line • Can get copies from Planning Department • Internship possibility for undergraduate or graduate students interested in planning, policy and/or law Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 11

12. Reality - Holyoke, MA • Could not document “unwritten” policies because they are unwritten for a reason! • Need to be very careful with perceived “criticism” • Important to spend considerable time with “owners” of policies to help them to see and accept the need for change —this could be phased Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 12

13. Summary of Holyoke Findings Regulations affecting physical activity and healthy food access Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 13

14. Key Recommendations • Add the phrase “encourage pedestrian and bicycle commute modes by providing on-site bicycle parking, storage, locker room facilities, bike and walking paths, and similar features” to all zones • Enact an “Interim Land Use Policy” to allow public use of land for community purposes such as gardens, recreational space or temporary art • Holyoke requires sidewalks in all new subdivisions—make sure your community does too Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 14

15. Zoning Basics • By right – incentivizes behavior—make what you want “by right”, i.e. flexible development versus special permit for what you don’t want • Need for education, i.e. Sidewalks—can seem like a burden, but… • Restrict, i.e. Broaden the restriction on formula restaurants in other zones with a Restaurant Restrictions Ordinance • Clarify/streamline/define, i.e. Establish basic standards for gardens to minimize potential conflict with neighbors • Get Creative, i.e. Amend existing zoning to formally allow the redevelopment of downtown buildings without having to meet the current suburban parking requirements by right, but with some sort of formula that ensures provision of some parking Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 15

16. Strategies for Engaging Policy Makers • Talk, talk, talk • Go to them • Be patient • Have good, accurate information • Add value to what they do – find commonalities Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 16

17. Indicators for Successful Advocacy Efforts • People oppose what you are doing • People support what you are doing • Planning staff and Planning Board members support proposed change Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 17

18. Zoning 101 • Use-based • Form-based • Overlay and special use districts Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 18

19. Land Use Policy Design Decision Health Impacts Regional Location/Access to Transit Land Use Mix Density and Intensity of Development Street Connectivity/Design Access to Healthy Food Retail Access to Recreational Facilities Presence of Greenery Distance from Sources of Air Pollution Affordable Housing VMT, Air pollution, injuries, inactivity Likely to walk VMT lower, casualties lower VMT lower, sidewalks-injury, street width-injury Lack of healthy food stores Create places for activity Mental refuge, shade, filter pollutants, Don’t build near highways, sources of air pollution. Lack of affordable housing= less $ for health care, higher stress, greater risk for exposure Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 19

20. Tools and Resources Laura Brennan President and CEO Transtria, LLC Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 20

21. Objective Approaches • Policy assessment • Existing legislation or policies • New/modified legislation or policies • Practices and guidelines • Records of events, attendance, • inventory • Policy implementation/enforcement • Environmental audits • Existing data sources and GIS mapping • Direct observation of behavior • Photos and videos • Media (posters, billboards, newspaper articles) Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 21

22. Perceived Approaches • Assessment/Implementation/Enforcement • In-depth, open-ended discussions • Self-report surveys • Focus groups • One-on-one interviews • Community forums • Concept mapping • Photovoice Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 22

23. Indicators * Child care Schools Parks and recreation Land use Transportation Integrated active living and healthy eating policies * Perceived and observed indicators are both significant Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 23

24. Indicators * • Food distribution/ procurement • Child care/School • Community • Food production • Rural/Urban • Food retail • Food processing/ preparation • Child care/School • Community * Perceived and observed indicators are both significant Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 24

25. Indicators * • Transportation • Pedestrian • Bicyclist • Public transit • Aesthetics • Natural • Built • Physical disorder • Other institutions/ organizations * Perceived and observed indicators are both significant Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 25

26. Considerations • Include perspectives from diverse groups • Elected officials, community leaders • Staff responsible for policy development/implementation/enforcement • Community members (youth engagement) • Consider relationships within and among local, regional and state departments and agencies • Examples: health, education, planning, transportation • Review allocation of resources and support • Funding/sponsorships/taxes/incentives/ appropriations/capital expenditures Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 26

27. Considerations • Obtain personnel and resources • Staffing/expertise, training, additional funding • Ensure consistent data collection and reporting • Examples: use decision rules, tracking forms Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 27

28. Policy Assessment Tools W. K. Kellogg Food & Fitness Planning Guide http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/Food_and_Fitness_Planning_Assessment_Guide.pdf Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 28

29. Prioritizing Policy Tools W. K. Kellogg Food & Fitness Planning Guide http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/Food_and_Fitness_Planning_Assessment_Guide.pdf (Last page) Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 29

30. Policy Assessment Tools CDC Community Health Assessment aNd Group Evaluation (CHANGE) Tool http://www.cdc.gov/healthycommunitiesprogram/tools/change.htm Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 30

31. Policy Assessment Tools YMCA of the USA’s Community Healthy Living Index (CHLI) http://www.ymca.net/communityhealthylivingindex/tools.html Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 31

32. Policy Assessment Tools Example: Holyoke, MA http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/Holyoke%20Regulatory%20Review%20Final_012309.pdf Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 32

33. HKHC Resources www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/HKHC_presentations Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities 33