Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) and Housing

OPHI was awarded a four-year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (HKHC) program. This initiative, Healthy Active Communities for Portland’s Affordable Housing Families, aims to increase healthy eating and active living for children and families living in affordable housing communities in Portland.

Program overview.

Steering Committee members for the initiative include Oregon Opportunity Network, Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, Community Cycling Center, ROSE Community Development Corporation, Janus Youth Village Gardens, Hacienda Community Development Corporation, Kaiser Permanente, and Northwest Health Foundation. 

The November 2009 Journal of Preventative Medicine summarizes OPHI’s Healthy Eating Active Living Initiative from 2003-2009.

2012 HEAL Report: Healthy Eating and Active Living (HEAL) Amenities on Affordable Multi-Family Housing Developments

2012 HEAL Executive Summary

Project Description

Early Assessment: Policy Scan and GIS Mapping

HKHC Steering Committee members developed a long-range workplan. One of the primary assessment activities was conducting a scan of public policies in Portland that affect access to healthy eating and active living (HEAL).

The scan identified HEAL policies that address access for neighborhoods with lower median incomes or higher densities of affordable housing. The policy scan also identified policy supports and tools in place that can be leveraged to improve impact and equitably distribute Portland’s healthy, active communities. You can read the full scan here.

OPHI produced the following series of GIS maps to document existing conditions and the presence of HEAL amenities in neighborhoods throughout Portland.

  • The Active Living Citywide map identifies schools, bicycle networks, trails, sidewalks, parks, and community centers.
  • The Healthy Eating Citywide map, identifies full service grocery stores, specialty and ethnic stores, farmers markets, community gardens, emergency food sites, convenience stores and fast food restaurants. Per capita income by census tract was added to the map to show the relationship of HEAL amenities to neighborhoods with lower income residents. This map can be seen here.
  • Site specific 1-mile radius maps with the same variables were also created for two multi-family housing sites in Portland, Leander Court (Active Living and Healthy Eating) and New Columbia (Active Living and Healthy Eating). These maps also include planned and funded bikeways.

Other project activities included a code scan of the City of Portland’s zoning and building codes to identify how city codes affect the development of HEAL amenities on multi-family housing sites.  This scan was performed by the Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.

OPHI and HKHC partners finalized a workplan for the next two years of project activities, based on findings from the assessment and collaboration with project partners.

2010-2012 goals included:

  • Enhancing multi-family affordable housing sites to accommodate HEAL amenities such as bicycle parking/storage and/or garden/open space.
  • Increasing connected pedestrian and bicycle networks in lower-income communities.
  • Establishing Healthy Food Retail near multi-family housing sites.

More detail on our 2011 workplan activities can be found here. For more information on the project contact Amy Gilroy at amy@orphi.org 503.227.5502, x229 or Steve White at steve@orphi.org , 503.227.5502, x228.

PhotoVoice

In winter and spring 2011, residents living in Hacienda CDC and ROSE CDC multi-family housing sites took cameras out into their neighborhoods and created PhotoVoice galleries about the challenges and opportunities they experience day-to-day.  Resident leaders and HKHC partners shared these photos and stories with community activists and decision makers throughout the city.  Our HKHC project hopes to leverage these resident voices and pictures to pursue long-term changes to Portland neighborhoods.

Check out the ROSE CDC PhotoVoice presentation.  For more information, contact Han Tran at han@rosecdc.org .

Check out the Hacienda CDC PhotoVoice presentation.  For more information, contact Laura Koch at programs@communitycyclingcenter.org, 503.288.8864

PhotoVoice guide developed by OPHI.