RIVERWALK DEVELOPMENT 1-million square foot new entertainment, - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Health Impact Assessment

FOR

Glendale Riverwalk Development

Glendale, Colorado Spring 2012

RIVERWALK DEVELOPMENT

1-million square foot new entertainment, retail, restaurant district proposed just east of CO Blvd and north of Cherry Creek

PARTNERS & CONTRIBUTORS:

Health is the state of a person’s:

– Physical – Mental – Social well-being It is not just the absence of disease or infirmity.

HEALTH

Source: World Health Organization

2 0 0 0

Obesity Trends* Am ong U.S. Adults BRFSS, 1 9 9 0 , 2 0 0 0 , 2 0 1 0

( * BMI ≥3 0 , or about 3 0 lbs. overw eight for 5 ’4 ” person) 2 0 1 0 1 9 9 0 No Data <10% 10%–14% 15%–19% 20%–24% 25%–29% ≥30%

Increasing Health Concerns with Obesity:

• Chronic Disease
• Type II diabetes
• High Blood Pressure
• High Cholesterol
• Cardiovascular Disease

HEALTH

HEALTH

According to the World Health Organization, health status is determined by a range of factors. The factors listed in the

• uter three semicircles are known as the “environmental and social determinants of health” and are generally

considered to be the root determinants of health and disease.

WHY assess the built environment?

The Built Environment is Policy in Concrete:

Source: Richard J Jackson MD, Designing Healthy Communities: Uniting the Missions and Perspectives of Public Health and Urban Planning Webinar, October 12, 2011

Definition of Health Impact Assessment

A combination of procedures, methods and tools that systematically judges the potential, and sometimes unintended, effects of a policy, plan, program or project on the health of a population and the distribution of those effects within the

• population. HIA identifies appropriate actions to

manage those effects.

International Association for Impact Assessment, 2006

DEFINITION

INTRODUCTION HIA PROCESS

Determines the need and appropriateness of HIA Determines which health issues to evaluate, evidence basis for these impacts, methods for analysis, and a workplan Provides: 1) A profile of existing health conditions 2) Evaluation of potential health impacts Recommendations Development of the HIA report and the communication of findings and recommendations Tracks the impacts of new policy/plan/project on populations in the community

• Increase transparency in the policy decision-making process
• Support community engagement in the decision-making process
• Serve vulnerable populations who typically may not have a ‘seat at the table’
• Shift decision-making from an economic to an overall quality of life framework
• Identify the trade-offs involved with a project or policy

WHY HIA?

1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires study of environmental & health effects; emphasis was environment 1980s World Health Organization encourages Health Promotion/Healthy Public Policy in 1986 Ottawa Charter 1990s

• England recommends analysis of impacts of policy on health inequities
• WHO publishes Gothenburg Consensus Paper on HIA
• First HIA in U.S. (San Francisco Living Wage policy)

2000s

• World Bank requires HIA of all large projects
• HIA on proposed Alaska North Slope Oil Lease

2010s

• HIA used around the world
• More common in U.S. (about 100 completed)
• HIA Practice Standards Released

A Brief History of HIA

HISTORY of HIA

HIAs ACROSS THE COUNTY

HIAs ACROSS COLORADO

• Assess possible impacts on, and recommendations for, active

transit in Glendale as it relates to the new Glendale Riverwalk.

• Create healthier options to access Glendale’s Riverwalk.
• Increase physical activity among residents and workers.
• Utilize the location of the Riverwalk to make enhancements

throughout the community.

• Develop a useful guide for future improvements.

OBJECTIVES OF GLENDALE HIA

PARTNERS & CONTRIBUTORS:

GLENDALE, CO

GLENDALE, CO

RIVERWALK DEVELOPMENT

New development will add year-round activities to Glendale, and bring about significant changes in walkability, bikeability, access to public transportation, vehicular traffic, access and connectivity, and economic development opportunities.

SCOPING: ACTIVE TRANSIT

Scoping Pathway Diagram: Selected Health Determinants: 1. Automobile Traffic 2. Access and connectivity 3. Personal Safety 4. Walkability 5. Bikeability 6. Public Transit

SCOPING

Important to conduct a literature review to determine the evidence base that supports the recommendations

ASSESSMENT: Various data sources

Population: 4,184 Size: 0.6 square miles Households: 2,630 Renters: 92% Median Income: $32,500 Families in Poverty: 24.2% Median Age: 27.7

DEMOGRAPHICS

Certain demographic groups face significant barriers to getting enough physical activity.

• Seniors

– 4.2% of Glendale Population; Growing

• Children

– 18% of population

• Low Income Population

– 24% of Families in Glendale are below the Poverty line

• Minorities

– 31% of Glendale residents are foreign born – 16 different languages spoken in Glendale

• People with Disabilities

– 17% of Glendale Residents are disabled – 64% of Glendale Seniors are disabled

AT RISK POPULATIONS

PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

PERSONAL SAFETY TRAFFIC WALKABILITY BICYCLING TRANSIT ACCESS

WALKABILITY

Walkable Communities:

• Have pedestrian amenities
• Have connected, direct routes
• Have a variety of destinations
• Provide access to convenient transit

WALKABILITY

Key Findings: 84% of streets have attached sidewalks

• Detached sidewalks are more pleasant

42% of Glendale Streets have both residential and non-residential uses Only 7% of streets have on-street parking

• Provides a buffer for pedestrians

50% of streets have shaded walking areas

• Shade=protection from UV rays

WALKABILITY

Recommendations:

• Create buffers between sidewalk

and street ways

• Add missing sidewalk segments
• Add on street parking
• Encourage way-finding with

signs, maps, and landscape cues to direct pedestrians

Wayfinding Sidewalk Buffers

BICYCLING

KEY FINDINGS

• No marked bike lanes, sharrows or route

indicators in Glendale

• About 2% bike to work
• Community feed back indicated conflicts
• n Cherry Creek path

Recommendations:

• Place bike lanes and sharrows on

key streets

• Provide bike facilities at the

Riverwalk and throughout Glendale

• Separate bicycle and pedestrian

users along the Cherry Creek Trail

BICYCLING

TRANSIT

Key Findings:

• 17% of Glendale residents do not

have a car

• 11% of residents commute via

transit

• All residents live within ¼ mile of

bus stop

• Only 4% of Glendale residents

work in Glendale

Distance reachable in 29 minutes on public transit:

TRANSIT

Recommendations:

• Prioritize infrastructure improvements near transit stops
• Improve the safety and attractiveness of bus stops
• Provide informational signage/kiosks near transit stops
• Incentivize employers to subsidize employees who commute to work via

mass transit, bicycle or foot

• Work with RTD to improve bus service to employment centers

ACCESS

Key Findings:

• Large surface parking lots inhibit

connectivity

• Avg. block length is 620 feet

(desired is 300-400)

• More than 1/3 of street

segments missing a portion of sidewalk

• Poorly placed/sized sidewalks

ACCESS

Recommendations:

• Complete sidewalk network, grid

pattern

• Create bicycle/pedestrian corridor

between Riverwalk & Infinity Park

• Provide pedestrian and bicycle

pathways through parking lots

• Fill in surface lots with new

development

• Improve connectivity with Cherry

Creek Bike Path

TRAFFIC

Key Findings:

• Average street width is 55 feet – ideal is around 28 feet (excepting

high traffic volume streets)

• Wider streets result in increased vehicle speed
• Top challenge to walking and biking in the survey was traffic

volume/speed

TRAFFIC

Automobile Collisions Automobile Collisions with Pedestrians or Bicyclists

TRAFFIC

Benefits of Roundabouts

ECONOMIC BENEFITS

Walkable and bikeable communities can lead to…

• More retail activity and

increased sales tax revenues – particularly for small businesses

• Reductions in property

vacancies

• Higher property values

• Obtain public comment on HIA draft report
• Share findings
• Implement recommendations:

– During planning & design – After construction – When undertaking other planning efforts

• Monitor post-development
• Enjoy a happier, healthier Glendale

NEXT STEPS FOR GLENDALE HIA

• Partners and collaboration are crucial
• Data collection challenges (cost, timeframe, local level)
• Strive for better multi-cultural community engagement

LESSONS LEARNED

• Build collaboration between planning & public health agencies
• Build awareness about connection between health and land use among elected
• fficials, general public, planners, community groups
• White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity Report to the President:

“Communities should be encouraged to consider the impacts of built environment policies and regulations on human health”

• State and federal level efforts to incorporate HIA into regulatory process
• Calls from the OCCUPY movement to improve the lives of the vast majority of

Americans experiencing economic insecurity reinforces the commitment to improving health and reducing health disparities.

OUTLOOK & FUTURE OF HIAs

Thank you to our Partners and Contributors