healthy kids, healthy communities supporting community action to prevent childhood obesity exploring...

Healthy Kids,Healthy CommunitiesSupporting Community Action to Prevent Childhood Obesity

Exploring Policy Assessment Strategies for Healthy Eating and Active Living

Conference callMarch 4, 2010

Agenda

• Goals and expectationsRich Bell, Project OfficerActive Living By Design

• Holyoke, MA Policy Review Catherine Ratté, Principal Planner-SustainabilityPioneer Valley Planning Commission

• Tools and ResourcesLaura Brennan, President and CEOTranstria

• Discussion and Q&A

Healthy Kids,Healthy Communities 22


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

Systems

44

Policy 1

Guidelines

Policy 2

Master Plan

Funding

Procedures

Training

Staffing

Agreements

Personality/Ideology

Relationships

Healthy Kids,Healthy Communities

Comprehensive Plan

Different Types of Policy

55

Big “P” Policy = rules/statutes approved by elected officials

Approved master plans

City Ordinance

Design GuidelinesProtocols

Departmental Practices/Norms

Little “p” Policy = departmental policies and practices

Budgets/Capital Funding

Limited Definition: Policy = Legislationi.e. the higher the “lever,” the greater the impact

Policy Assessment Spectrum

Comprehensive regulatory review with stakeholder

analysis and recommendations

Policy gathering of community

members and decision makers, followed by action

steps

Focus groups

(related to specific HEAL

topics or broad)

Informal conversations

with key informants in

already defined areas of interest

Examination of current HEAL

policies and their strengths and weaknesses

Structured key informant

interviews (related to

specific HEAL topics or broad)


Informal Technical

Holyoke, MA


Case Study of Policy Analysis to Enhance Food and Fitness

Holyoke, MA

Catherine Ratté - Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (www.pvpc.org) HFFPC

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

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

Goals of Holyoke Regulatory Analysis

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?


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

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

Summary of Holyoke Findings


Physical Activity Healthy Food

Promotes or enhances access 14 8

Creates barriers or impedes access 4 5

Regulations affecting physical activity and healthy food access

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

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

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

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

Zoning 101


•Use-based

•Form-based

•Overlay and special use districts

Land Use Policy


1) Regional Location/Access to Transit

2) Land Use Mix3) Density and Intensity of

Development4) Street Connectivity/Design5) Access to Healthy Food

Retail6) Access to Recreational

Facilities7) Presence of Greenery8) Distance from Sources of

Air Pollution9) Affordable Housing

1) VMT, Air pollution, injuries, inactivity

2) Likely to walk

3) VMT lower, casualties lower

4) VMT lower, sidewalks-injury, street width-injury

5) Lack of healthy food stores

6) Create places for activity

7) Mental refuge, shade, filter pollutants,

8) Don’t build near highways, sources of air pollution.

9) Lack of affordable housing= less $ for health care, higher stress, greater risk for exposure

Design Decision Health Impacts

Tools and Resources


Laura Brennan President and CEO

Transtria, LLC

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)

Perceived Approaches


Assessment/Implementation/Enforcement•In-depth, open-ended discussions•Self-report surveys•Focus groups•One-on-one interviews•Community forums•Concept mapping•Photovoice

Indicators *


Child care

Schools

Parks and recreation

Land use

Transportation

* Perceived and observed indicators are both significant

Integrated active living and healthy

eating policies

Indicators *


Food distribution/ procurement

•Child care/School

•Community

Food production•Rural/Urban

Food retail

Food processing/ preparation

•Child care/School

•Community


Indicators *


Transportation•Pedestrian

•Bicyclist

•Public transit

Aesthetics•Natural

•Built

•Physical disorder

Other institutions/ organizations


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

Considerations


Obtain personnel and resources•Staffing/expertise, training, additional funding

Ensure consistent data collection and reporting•Examples: use decision rules, tracking forms

Policy Assessment Tools


W. K. Kellogg Food & Fitness Planning Guide

http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/Food_and_Fitness_Planning_Assessment_Guide.pdf

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)



CDC Community Health Assessment aNd Group Evaluation (CHANGE) Tool

http://www.cdc.gov/healthycommunitiesprogram/tools/change.htm



YMCA of the USA’s Community Healthy Living Index (CHLI)

http://www.ymca.net/communityhealthylivingindex/tools.html


http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/Holyoke%20Regulatory%20Review%20Final_012309.pdf


Example: Holyoke, MA


HKHC Resources

www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/HKHC_presentations