By Riddhi Batra, AICP

Temple University Professor Liz Moore published a book in 2020 called Long Bright River. It followed the lives of two sisters who grew up in Kensington, a Philadelphia neighborhood struggling with the opioid crisis. I watched the TV adaptation last week and was struck by how little I knew of Kensington. Like many other parts of America, this northeast Philly neighborhood lost swaths of manufacturing jobs in the mid-20^th century. The void of opportunity was filled with shuttered factories, vacant lots, cheap heroin, and inadequate policies—a combination that diminished the community’s health for generations.

Physical, social, and mental well-being are the building blocks of health. According to the American Planning Association’s Healthy Communities Policy Guide, a community is healthy when its people can access opportunities to live to their fullest potential, no matter their race, gender, income, age, or ability. If our neighbors must frequently worry about finding clean drinking water, nutritious food, or basic medical care; if they lack secure jobs, quality schools, or safe recreation spaces; they will likely find it harder to progress beyond what Abraham Maslow calls “physiological and safety needs.” Communities are thus unlikely to thrive without a built environment that is physically and socially secure.

What Can Planners Do?
As planners, our responsibility is to recognize and mitigate systemic inequities that exacerbate public health problems. For instance, heart disease was the leading cause of death among Pennsylvanians in 2022. A growing body of evidence shows that green, walkable urban neighborhoods along with policies that actively reduce pollution and prioritize access to fresh, nutritious foods can improve cardiovascular health and overall well-being. The APA emphasizes the need to address root causes of poverty to improve health. There are many ways we can achieve this through planning:

1. Empower communities by sharing the value of healthy design and ensuring that members of the public have a seat at the table.

• • Clear and consistent communication can help people understand public health impacts on their daily lives. The CDC’s Healthy Community Design Checklist is a relatable tool for public engagement. Try it for your own neighborhood or community!

2. Collaborate with local officials, policy makers, healthcare providers, schools, grassroots organizations, and other professionals who influence the built environment, such as public health practitioners, architects, landscape architects, and engineers.

• • The Healthy Pennsylvania Partnership gathers a wide range of professionals and agencies to “understand and respond to the health needs of Pennsylvanians through holistic, evidence-based, and data-informed intervention and prevention.”
  • Our very own APA PA Chapter houses the Healthy Communities in PA Task Force to encourage healthy community design across the state.
  • In southeastern PA, the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Corporation (DVRPC) Healthy Communities Task Force identifies opportunities for partnership in public health planning. Also pertinent is the nonprofit institute, Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC), which has served Greater Philadelphia for over five decades.

3. Integrate public health data, strategies, and outcomes in local planning documents, such as zoning ordinances, land development regulations, comprehensive plans, and plans for transportation, housing, open space, and economic development.

• • Health Impact Assessments (HIAs) are a tool that can be used at many stages of the planning process. They can shape a community’s vision, inform purpose and need, and provide a framework to measure progress. Use this Screening Worksheet to start an HIA for your next project!
  • Pennsylvania’s State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP)  provides a roadmap to improve public health outcomes through 2028.

4. Design and plan places to support positive health outcomes, such as compact areas that encourage walking and biking; parks and public spaces that foster a sense of belonging; efficient and reliable public transit networks; a variety of housing and employment opportunities; and access to nutritious food, clean air/water, schools, and healthcare facilities.

• • Learn about the economic and social value of healthy community design in the Urban Land Institute (ULI) report, ‘Ten Principles for Building Healthy Places.’
  • Land use planning plays a critical role in reducing community vulnerability to extreme weather and existing environmental hazards. For instance, planners should consider floodplain extents and proximity to non-remediated brownfields when siting a healthcare facility. The APA also recommends emergency preparedness as a metric for community health; Pennsylvania’s Public Health Risk Assessment Tool can help understand risk to public health systems and prioritize strategies during disasters.
  • Joint Use Agreements (JUAs) can be a useful tool for schools and communities without recreation space to share municipal/county-owned fields, gymnasiums and swimming pools.

The story of Kensington echoes in many parts of the America, and in countries across the world. Every barrier to health becomes an obstacle for communities to overcome—with the burden often borne by subsequent generations. Planners can help move the needle by integrating healthy community principles in comprehensive plans, collaborating with public health practitioners, engaging with grassroots organizations, and building trust through continued engagement with community networks.