Centretown residents are being given the tools to better engage with how their health is being affected by development projects in their neighbourhood, with the help of a pilot project organized by their local health centre.
The Centretown Community Health Centre is currently in the midst of a project months in the making that’s designed to engage residents in dialogue about commercial and residential development in their neighbourhoods.
The health centre plans to do this by handing out specialized forms for residents to fill out and keep, each tailored to a particular type of development.
In this way, residents can arm ttemselves with appropriate and relevant questions for development in their area, to come up with their own answers, says Christina Marchant, director of community health promotion at CCHC.
“Health isn’t just a matter of biological considerations, says David Hole, former executive director at South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre. “It’s whether or not you’re able to eat right, be active, be social, work at a reasonable distance from home, manage a relatively stress-free life.”
The health centre will not be collecting or aggregating the data in any way, Marchant says. The hope is residents who fill out the forms will refer to them in community meetings, or be encouraged to have serious discussions about nearby development with their neighbours.
“Engaged communities are healthier communities,” Marchant says.
For example, the CHCC form for small housing developments asks whether or not the project will create more affordable housing in the area or add trees or vegetation.
The form provided for large commercial developments asks questions such as whether or not the development will increase traffic in the area, or create improved public space such as courtyards.
The forms were put together over a period of months with the help of a range of community associations from Centretown, Hintonburg, Dalhousie and the Glebe, as well as Ottawa Public Health.
The pilot project was decided upon after the “built environment” was identified as a priority for public health in the health centre’s strategic meeting last year, Marchant says.
“When we’re talking about the built environment, it’s not just about buildings; it’s even broader infrastructure,” Hole says. “We’re talking about whether or not there’s a grocery store within walking distance.
“One thing that I think that nThe results of the pilot project are expected to be discussed in early spring, Marchant says.