KEEP IN MIND…
✚ Go for the green.
WE NEED TO ADDRESS THIS
‘‘LOOMING,
MONSTROUS ISSUE.”
in cars also denies people a less tangible need: a
psychological sense of community. As writer-activist Jane Jacobs so fiercely believed, the casual,
everyday conversations with people on the
street or in the park reinforce a “feeling for the
public identity of people.” Yet social capital—
memberships in clubs, churches, or volunteer
organizations, or on-the-fly card games with the
next-door neighbor—has plummeted since the
’50s, when people first flocked to the suburbs,
and one study showed commuters participated
less than non-commuters in civic organizations.
It’s not a pretty picture—especially when
you consider that for the moment, sprawl
remains the model of choice for many developers because it tends to be cheaper and
fits easily with local zoning ordinances. But
the good news is experts are awakening to
the need for change. “[We need] direct policies that are going to address this looming,
monstrous issue,” says Frank.
As more data emerge on the ill effects of
sprawl, momentum for healthier alternatives is
growing. In Portland, Oregon, the darling of
the anti-sprawl movement, city officials have
made aggressive moves to control development. Although the influx of new residents has
some neighborhoods bursting at the seams,
it has maintained its status as a healthy city
where people can walk through neighborhoods with inviting porches and gardens.
Extensive bike paths and a network of buses
distribute people easily throughout the city,
without cars. Meanwhile, in King County,
Washington, local planners have built a “wall
against sprawl,” which protects rural areas from
development while promoting mixed-use areas
around streetcars, buses, or rail stations. And
in New Jersey, state agencies control 17 “transit
villages,” revitalized areas of shops and apartments centered around public transit.
In more suburban settings, New Urbanism,
an urban planning movement that supports
a reversion to pre–World War II building
practices, also continues to gain popularity. Its
strategies include a diverse range of housing,
and involve retrofitting existing areas and
planning for open space. Many of the original
communities, such as Seaside and Celebration, both in Florida, are thriving, and today
more than 210 New Urbanist developments
like Stapleton are either completed or under
construction in the United States.
Federal efforts are starting to take shape,
too. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) has recently jumped on
board with several programs that address the
health effects of neighborhoods, or what urban
planners call “the built environment.” “We
want to get health at the table when a lot of the
built environment decisions are made,” says
Andrew Dannenberg, MD, a CDC medical
officer. The agency is pilot-testing a program
that would collect “health impact assessments,”
reports similar to environmental-impact
statements, as well as funding the U.S. Green
Building Council’s new LEED standard for
neighborhoods, which will launch in 2008.
The voluntary standard encourages developers
to build neighborhoods that preserve parkland,
protect wetlands and waterways, and promote
health with compact development and walkable
streets. “It’s a major step in the direction of getting builders and developers looking at: ‘How
do we do the right thing?’” says Dannenberg.
All this is great news for the legions of potential homeowners who are already drawn to such
areas, whether or not they’re aware of the health
benefits. The real-estate market shows that
the highest-demand neighborhoods are those
that foster frequent walking, active living, and
broad social networking. Urban downtowns are
trendy again and New Urbanist communities
that are still in the works are often selling out.
Maybe, says Ramirez, more neighborhoods like
these will be a simple way to help people live
healthier. “We’ve tried so many ways to reach
out to people—awareness campaigns, fitness
programs—that haven’t been effective. The
neighborhood angle may be the key.” ■
Look for open space
within a 10-minute walk of your
potential home. Enjoyable scenery is
linked to physical activity.
✚ Take the path most traveled. Access to
sidewalks and footpaths leads to more
walking. Car-dependent neighborhoods
often have sidewalks that either lead to