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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Anne McHugh, MS, Boston Steps, Boston Public Health Commission, 1010 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, MA 02118, 617 534 2616, AMcHugh@bphc.org, Mary Jane Williams, MS, Community Initiatives, Boston Public Health Commission, 1010 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, MA 02136, Dorothea Hass, WalkBoston, Old City Hall, 45 School St., 2nd floor, Boston, MA 02108, and Arlene Lopes, Kit Clark House, 1500 Dorchester Ave, Dorchester, MA 02122.

Method: The Boston Public Health Commission, through its Boston Steps to A HealthierUS program, developed and implemented neighborhood-based programs to expand community capacity to improve the ‘walkability' of five low-income urban micro-neighborhoods. Mini-grants were given to community-based organizations to identify and support community resident advocates. Training and technical support of advocates was provided, in part by WalkBoston, a pedestrian advocacy organization. Community advocates conducted walkability audits, using a customized audit tool. They identified strategies to communicate with community members, and identified processes to work for improvements through community forums and collaboration with city agencies. Results: Five detailed neighborhood audits were completed. Nineteen service and repair requests were submitted to various city agencies. Follow-up observations documented improvements on eleven requests. Communication with city agencies has identified the priority status of remaining requests. Successes and challenges in our first year, including one community advocate's successful involvement to promote walkability through a neighborhood revitalization program, have contributed to revising the overall model for continued implementation. This includes focusing on partnering with neighborhood revitalization programs around pedestrian safey improvements, trash/litter control, and programmatic initiatives to promote walking in neighborhood retail districts.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize basic characteristics of walkable urban neighborhoods
• Understand how walkable neighborhoods contribute to physical activity and chronic disease prevention
• Describe key partners and processes involved in addressing walkability in urban neighborhoods
• Identify two possible methods for developing effective local partnerships that address walkability

Keywords: Community Collaboration, Physical Activity

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered