^-x Building Healthy Communities
:or Active Aging Awards 2008
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GING
nitiativi
Protecting the Health
of Older Americans
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About the Award
The principal goal of the Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging
Award program is to raise awareness across the nation about healthy
synergies that can be achieved when communities combine and implement
the principles of smart growth with the concepts of active aging.
Awards are presented to communities demonstrating the best and most inclusive overall
implementation of smart growth and active aging at the neighborhood, municipal, tribal, county, and
regional levels. Applicants are evaluated based on the overall effectiveness of their programs, level
of community involvement and outreach, use of innovative approaches, and overall environmental
and health benefits of the project.
There are two types of awards—the Achievement
Award and the Commitment Award. The Achievement
Award winners demonstrate excellence in building
healthy communities for active aging. These recipients
have implemented programs and policies that
improve the health and well-being of the community
and its citizens. The Commitment Award recognizes
communities that are planning for and beginning to
integrate smart growth and active aging.
Individuals and the community benefit when
people of all ages engage in an active lifestyle.
Cover photo courtesy of Project for Public Spaces, www.pps.org.
ilding Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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Building Healthy Communities
For Active Aging
2008 Achievement Award Winner
Portland Parks & Recreation and the
Bureau of Transportation, Oregon 3
2008 Commitment Award Winners
City of Casper, Wyoming 4
City of Iowa City, Iowa 5
City of Satellite Beach, Florida 6
2007 BHCAA Winner Updates
Atlanta Regional Commission, Georgia 7
City of Kirkland, Washington 8
City of Rogers, Arkansas 9
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2CK
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Achievement Award Winner
Portland Parks &
Recreation and
Transportation
Oregon
"The actual strolls
through Portland
neighborhoods were
a worthwhile and
beneficial activity,
which I wouldn't
have undertaken on
my own."
- Sonia Quezada, resident
CONTACT:
Donna Green
Transportation Demand
Management Specialist II
Bureau of
Transportation
Transportation Options
Division
(503) 823-6114
~ ' Tans.org
Long considered a national leader in smart growth design, the City of
Portland is using active aging programs to integrate older adults into
its communities. Since the 1980s, Portland has been building compact
neighborhoods and placing homes, businesses, services, and recreational
opportunities within walking distance. These neighborhood centers are
connected by nearly 2,500 miles of sidewalks, a sophisticated transit system,
and a bike network of more than 270 miles of lanes, paths, and boulevards.
To encourage older adults to use this infrastructure and promote active
living, the City's Parks & Recreation and Bureau of Transportation developed
the Senior Strolls and Senior Bike programs. The bike program, now run
by Portland Parks & Recreation, offers training on free, comfortable, stable
recumbent tricycles and provides helmets for all participants. Portland Parks
& Recreation also offers graduates of the walking
program the option to move on to progressive,
three-level hiking programs, which can lead
to wilderness hikes, in addition to many other
recreational activities.
Portland's program to build strength and
confidence in walking and cycling is working.
Of the 300 people who have participated in the
Senior Strolls program since 2005, 53 percent say
they walk more and 71 percent report they have
replaced at least one driving trip with a walking
trip. The biking classes are consistently full.
Creating opportunities for active aging is one
reason Portland was recently named by AARP
Magazine as one of the nation's top five cities for
older adults and retirees.
The Senior Bike program
fosters active living for
older adults who enjoy the
extensive bike lane network.
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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Commitment Awar
Since 2005, Casper has been developing a plan to encourage active aging.
The City established the Senior Study Committee to determine the needs of
its aging population. The Committee analyzed local data, reviewed survey
and focus group findings and identified gaps in services including the need
for an improved infrastructure to improve walking and the need to build a
variety of housing options.
Casper has begun to implement the recommendations. A study was
conducted of the walking environment and as a result, sidewalks with curb
ramps are being installed along major streets. Future sidewalk investments
will be driven by active aging considerations. Casper also is considering
amending zoning and development codes to expand the development of a
variety of housing types that may be
attractive to older adults, including
assisted living facilities, board and
care homes, shared housing, and
accessory dwelling units.
Casper is focusing on the needs of
its older population as it redevelops
the Old Yellowstone District by
encouraging development of diverse
housing types within walking distance
of shops and services. Additionally,
Casper is expanding its senior center
to accommodate more seniors. With
Classes specifically designed for older these actions Casper is taking steps
adults provide opportunities for social to meet the needs of older adults and
interaction as well as fitness. Photo the wave of aging baby boomers.
courtesy of Jen Haines.
City of
Casper
Wyoming
"Exercise and
fresh air a re very
important to us
in our retirement
years. We enjoy
using the extensive
trail system in order
to accomplish our
goal of a healthy
-Shirleyand Michael
Lee, residents
CONTACT:
Linda L. Witko
Assistant City Manager
City of Casper
(307)235-8296
lwitko(3>citvi
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ment Award Winner
City of
Iowa City
Iowa
"The City's efforts
help make this
community a
wonderful place
to stay active as
we grow up and
grow old."
-Reverend Bob Welsh,
Johnson County Livable
Community for Successful
Aging Policy Board,
Johnson County Task
Force on Aging
CONTACT:
Robert Miklo
Senior Planner
Iowa City Department
of Planning and
Community
Development
(319)356-5240
Iowa City, working with the Johnson County Livable Community for Successful
Aging Policy Board, analyzed the community's needs for active aging and
responded with a variety of policies and programs to encourage physical
activity among older adults. Its research found that walking was the primary
activity for 90 percent of those who regularly exercised. At the same time,
many of Iowa City's older adults do not live within walking distance of stores,
services, and other needs. The automobile-oriented design of shopping areas
outside of downtown do not encourage walking as part of daily activity.
The City has adopted a variety of policies to improve the walking
environment. A revised zoning code encourages commercial zones
throughout the City that combine housing,
shops, parkland, and services to make walking
a viable choice for conducting daily errands. A
new complete streets policy requires all streets
to be designed to accommodate pedestrians and
bicyclists, as well as cars. New subdivision codes
require streets to connect, reducing dead ends and
shortening distances residents need to travel.
The Iowa City/Johnson County Senior Center
provides a variety of dance, yoga, tai chi, and
fitness classes to complement seniors' walking
routines. There is also a drill team that marches in
the University of Iowa homecoming parade.
A great place for older adults to live, Iowa City has
laid the groundwork for a more active lifestyle
among its fast growing older adult population.
Improving sidewalk and trail
connectivity encourages
walking groups, such as
the Trailblazers, to exercise
outdoors. Photo courtesy of
Emily Light.
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Commitment Awar
Satellite Beach is transforming itself to meet the needs of its growing aging
population. By increasing the number of sidewalks, creating new parks,
and rezoning its commercial strips into walkable town centers with homes,
stores, and services, the City has begun to create a place where residents can
choose to walk or bike as part of their daily activities. Within this newly zoned
district, the City has invested in the redevelopment of an old shopping center,
creating a civic center and gymnasium with expanded physical activity
classes including yoga, dance, and aerobics.
Public views and access to the water are extremely important to encouraging
physical activity. Satellite Beach has invested in oceanfront parkland. It
also refurbished two waterfront parks and
disability access points to the beach. About
40 percent of waterfront property is under public
ownership and City management is enhancing
opportunities to enjoy the beach.
The transformation of Satellite Beach is driven
by older adult participation in the community.
The City actively engages older residents in
volunteer opportunities, such as school crossing
guards, "Citizens on Patrol" with the police
department, or the "Neighbor-helping-Neighbor"
program (senior volunteers assist neighbors
by providing transportation and helping with
yard work or repair projects). This year, seniors
represent nearly 87 percent of City volunteers and
volunteered almost 4,000 hours. Satellite Beach
has created a positive and enriching environment
for its growing aging population.
Older adults ensured that
persons of all abilities had
access to parks and the
beach for exercise. Photo
courtesy of Dominick
Montanaro.
City of Satellite
Beach
Florida
"The audible
crossing signal
on SR A1A lets
me safely go to
restaurants, stores,
and supermarkets
by myself. This
enables me to live
independently in my
community."
-Eugene Medvec,
resident
CONTACT:
Barbara Montanaro, CMC
City Clerk
City of Satellite Beach
(321)773-4407
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BHCAA Winner Updates
Commission
Georgia
2007 Achievement
Award Winner
CONTACT:
Cathie Berger
Director
Area Agency on Aging
Atlanta Regional
Commission
(404) 463-3235
cberger@
atlantaregional.com
W.
The Atlanta Regional Commission's (ARC) Lifelong Communities
Initiative has been working with the counties and cities in the
metropolitan region to prepare for the growing older adult population
by developing priorities, policies, and programs that support three
goals: promoting housing and transportation options, encouraging
healthy lifestyles, and expanding information and access to services.
Over the last year, ARC and its partners have made significant progress
toward all three goals. Accomplishments include: passage of several
zoning ordinances that encourage a diverse housing stock, integration
of transportation needs into local comprehensive plans, and a program
to train older adults how to advocate for changes to zoning codes and
regulations regarding the built environment. Six of the county and city
teams have formed preventive health collaboratives, finding new ways
to deliver flu shots, pneumonia vaccines, mammograms, and monitor
glucose and cholesterol levels. ARC is working in one community to
develop a more pedestrian- and elder-friendly downtown. The Lifelong
Communities Initiative has been able to bolster existing and initiate new
walking clubs, helping more older adults increase their physical activity.
ARC is planning a multiday charrette for February 2009, during which
participants will develop designs for six sites that incorporate mixed
use, mixed income housing options, connection to surrounding
neighborhoods, and walkable environments to insure that people of all
ages, but particularly older adults, can live in the communities as long
as possible.
The Mayor's leadership encourages Atlantans to be active.
Photo courtesy of the Atlanta Regional Commission.
wilding Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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BHCAA Winner Updates
Kirkland continues to build on its accomplishments by improving
its programs and infrastructure to support active aging. To publicize
the PedFlag program, the Kirkland Senior Council and the Kirkland
Steppers, a senior walking group, produced a pedestrian safety video,
Excel as a Pedestrian, which highlights the importance of using the
flags for safe road crossing. As part of Kirkland's $6 million pledge
to encourage walking and biking, the City's revised non-motorized
transportation plan includes 28 new sidewalk projects and 25 new bike
lane projects.
Kirkland named affordable housing as a top priority in the City's transit-
oriented developments, creating more opportunities for seniors to live in
and around these developments. Kirkland is exploring options to revise
its comprehensive land use plan and rezoning that would allow the City to
transform the underutilized South Kirkland Park & Ride lot into a transit-
oriented hub that incorporates affordable housing, shops, and offices.
In compliance with the City's Complete Streets Ordinance, the site will
encourage the use of alternative transportation, such as transit, walking,
and biking. Older adults living in or near the South Kirkland transit-
oriented hub stand to benefit from the addition of local amenities and
pedestrian-friendly walkways, which will be part of this development.
With Kirkland's holistic development approach that embraces walkable
communities, affordable housing, and transit-oriented development,
the City is not only practicing smart growth, it also is ensuring ongoing
capabilities for active aging and healthy lifestyles.
The Kirkland Steppers encourage an active lifestyle for seniors
of all physical abilities. Photo courtesy of City of Kirkland.
City o
Washington
2007 Achievement
Award Winner
CONTACT:
Carrie S. Hite
Deputy Director
Parks & Community
Services
City of Kirkland
(425) 587-3320
chite@ci.kirkland.wa.us
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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BHCAA Winner Updates
Arkansas
2007 Commitment
Award Winner
CONTACT:
Keri York Wilkinson
Director
City of Rogers
Adult Wellness Center
(479) 631-3333
kwilkinson@
rogersark.org
The Adult Wellness Center in Rogers, Arkansas recently
completed construction of a Wellness Garden. The Wellness
Garden, located directly behind the Center, provides visitors and
residents of the adjacent senior housing complex an opportunity
for outdoor physical activity and connects pedestrians with
the surrounding community. The Wellness Garden features
a rubberized walking trail as well as balance, strengthening,
stretching, and exercise stations. The entire Wellness Garden is
handicapped accessible.
The Garden also includes a meditation garden with a labyrinth,
a rock and water garden teeming with fish and water plants, a
demonstration garden with raised handicap accessible planter beds,
a "4 Seasons Garden" designed and maintained by volunteers, a bird
and butterfly sanctuary, a gazebo, a picnic area, and a recreational
lawn panel.
Trails extending from the Garden lead to senior housing
and retail shops, and eventually will connect into the City's
master trail system, making walking a viable option to and
from the Wellness Center and nearby senior housing.
The Wellness Garden encourages persons of all abilities to get
active and enjoy the outdoors. Photo courtesy of Don Farmer.
wilding Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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What is Smart Growth?
The built environment—places where we live, work, and
play—impacts people of all ages. Housing and transportation
opportunities shape our environment and have longstanding
consequences on our daily lives and the quality of our
environment. Smart growth strives to minimize the impacts of
our built environments both on
human health and the natural
environment by integrating
environmental considerations
into development patterns. Using
smart growth, communities
create attractive, walkable
neighborhoods that give people
of varying age, income level,
and physical ability a range of
safe, affordable, and convenient
choices in where to live and how
to get around.
Different color paving
illustrates safe walking areas
in commercial sidewalks.
Location: Bethesda, Md.
Photo courtesy of EPA
Smart Growth.
Growing smart helps to reduce
our ecological footprint and
preserve natural resources and
open space.
For more information, please visit...
www.epa.gov/smartgrowth
1. Mix land uses.
2. Take advantage of compact
II building design.
3. Create a range of housing
opportunities and choices.
4. Create walkable
neighborhoods.
5. Foster distinctive, attractive
communities with a strong
sense of place.
6. Preserve open space,
farmland, natural beauty,
and critical environmental
areas.
7. Strengthen and direct
development toward
existing communities.
8. Provide a variety of
transportation choices.
9. Make development
decisions predictable, fair,
and cost effective.
10. Encourage community and
stakeholder collaboration in
^1 development decisions.
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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What is Active Aging?
By 2030, the number of older persons in the United States is expected to double to more than
70 million. As our population ages, a growing number of us will be living with chronic conditions,
placing increased pressure on our health care system. Only 20 percent of those over the age of 65
participate in regular activity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many older
adults live with at least one chronic condition. Research demonstrates that daily physical activity is
vital for keeping fit and controlling chronic conditions. Creating a walkable community is one of the
principles of smart growth that fosters active aging.
Active aging strives to promote strategies that engage older
adults through a variety of structured and unstructured
physical activities including walking and biking. Communities
can promote active aging by implementing a diverse array
of accessible physical-activity programs, increasing the
accessibility of opportunities for self-directed physical activity
for those 50 years of age or older, and providing a safe, walkable
environment.
For more information on active aging, please visit...
Learning Network for Active Aging:
www.LNactiveaging.org
National Council on Aging's Center for Healthy Aging:
www.healthyagingprograms.org
National Blueprint Initiative: www.agingblueprint.org
Physical activities, such as biking, can
improve the quality of life for older
adults. Location: Cambridge, Mass.
Photo courtesy of Julianne Sammut.
ilding Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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Connecting Smart Growth
and Active Aeine
By adopting smart growth principles, communities can design
places that increase mobility and improve quality of life for
older adults. Neighborhoods that integrate homes, shops,
and services, as well as parks and recreational facilities, allow
residents, especially older adults, to pursue an interesting and
active life without depending on a car.
Properly designed sidewalks and bikeways allow older
residents to walk and bike to doctors' offices, businesses, and
local shops. Transit provides access to places that are further
away. These everyday activities promote physical fitness.
Across the nation, the average transit rider walks or bikes
20 minutes a day as part of using transit, meeting two thirds of
his or her daily needs for physical activity.
The benefits of building healthy communities for active aging
are being realized in communities across the country. For
example, the City of Saratoga Springs, New York has created a
mix of housing opportunities near the Saratoga Senior Center
and medical facilities. By living near key amenities, older
residents may choose to walk rather than drive.
Smart land use planning that incorporates smart growth
principles by modifying the built environment can lead to a
supportive environment for active aging.
Providing a range of housing
choices allows residents to remain
in their neighborhood as their
housing needs change. Location:
Arlington, Va. Photo courtesy of
EPA Smart Growth.
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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Announcing the 2009 Awards for Building
Healthy Communities for Active Aging
EPA's Aging Initiative announces the 3rd annual Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging
Awards program. The awards recognize outstanding community planning and strategies that
support active aging. Winners will be announced in spring 2010. Applications are due July 17,2009.
Applications, award guidelines, and entry rules can be found at www.epa.gov/aging/bhc/awards.
For more information, please visit...
EPA Aging Initiative: www.epa.gov/aging
Please submit questions by
E-mail to: aging.info@epa.gov
Self Management Assessment
And Resource Tool
The Self Management Assessment and Resource Tool includes 20 questions that can help a
community assess its progress in integrating active aging concepts with smart growth principles.
Each question focuses on a particular milestone, such as conducting a community assessment to
determine the level of older adult participation in physical activity programs or formulating a plan to
adopt smart growth planning. Communities are asked to select the category that best describes the
progress of their active aging initiatives: not at all; partially completed; or fully completed. The tool
also provides tips for getting started and links to potential resources for addressing each milestone.
Communities can use the results from this self-test to identify opportunities to improve their active
aging initiatives and smart growth planning efforts to promote a safe and healthy environment for
older residents. For more information, please visit www.epa.gov/aging/bhc/smart/index.htm.
wilding Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2008
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Acknowledgements
Thanks to the Steering Committee.
Terry Bazzarre, PhD, Senior Program Officer, Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation
David M. Buchner, MD MPH, Chief, Physical Activity & Health
Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Wojtek Chodzko-Zajko, PhD, Professor and Department Head,
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Judy Kruger, PhD, Epidemiologist, Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention
Catherine Liles, MPH, School of Rural Public Health,
Texas A&M University
Michael Marcus, MSW, Program Director for Aging,
Weinberg Foundation
John N. Migliaccio, PhD, Director of Research,
MetLife Mature Market Institute
Kevin Nelson, AICP, Senior Staff Member, Community &
Environment Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Marcia Ory, PhD, Professor, Texas A&M University
Serena Sanker, MS, Senior Program Associate,
National Council on Aging, Center for Healthy Aging
Chris Spain, Director, Research, Planning & Special Projects,
President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
Kathy Sykes, MA, Senior Advisor, Aging Initiative,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Brett Van Akkeren, MBA, Senior Staff Member, Community &
Environment Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Nancy Whitelaw, PhD, Director, Center for Healthy Aging and
Senior Vice President, National Council on Aging
Thanks to the BHCAA Awards Supporters.
AARP
Active for Life
America Walks
Administration on Aging
American Medical Association
American Public Health Association
Atlanta Regional Commission
American Society on Aging
Center for Civic Partnerships
Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists
Elder Care Advocacy of Florida
Generations United
Gerontological Society of America
Healthy Aging Research Network
International City/County Management Association
International Council on Active Aging
Local Government Commission
Milton H. Erickson Foundation, Inc.
National Association of Area Agencies on Aging
National Blueprint Initiative
National Council on Aging
National Indian Council on Aging
National Recreation and Park Association
Project for Public Spaces
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging Awards 2CK
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Children's Health Protection and
Environmental Education (1107A)
The Child and Aging Health Protection Division
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Room 2512 Ariel Rios North
Washington, DC 20460
www.epa.gov/aging
EPA 100-K-08-006
January 2009
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nitiativ
Protecting the Health of Older Americans
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