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ACHIEVE a Healthy Community
Apply for a National
Recreation and Park Association Action Communities for Health, Innovation, and
EnVironmental ChangE (ACHIEVE) grant (until Dec 11).
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Keep Connected Sustainability training for everyone: Young People: Earth Force! College Students: SCA Emerging leaders: ELP Professionals: NCTC |
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Conservation + Recreation: December 2009
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Concrete Evidence: Parks Make a Difference
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Once upon a time on the river's edge in the South Bronx
there stood an abandoned concrete batch mix plant. When the plant went
bankrupt and closed in 1987, this 10-acre site stood empty for years
and became a dumping ground -- at one point, more than 20,000 tires were removed
from the site. The city wanted access to the property as a truck
route for the Hunts Point Market (one of the world's largest food distribution centers). Community residents, however, wanted more: to reclaim the brownfield as a park on their new greenway. After ten years of hard work, their vision
was realized on October 30, when Concrete Plant Park officially opened.In
a part of the city with less than half an acre of parkland per 1,000 residents,
this oasis provides much-needed space for residents to build some physical activity into their daily routines. Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice (YMPJ) took the lead for the community. They had a hand in many aspects
of the project from vision and planning to organizational development and on-the-ground work. This location in particular presented an inviting, and challenging,
combination of urban and riparian issues. Along with the Bronx River Alliance, the YMPJ worked closely
with ecologists to restore the salt marsh on the river's edge-growing marsh
plants in bed created on top of concrete, then harvested and planted along
the river. The park is the newest addition to
the Bronx River Greenway. In a nod to
the previous use of the site, some of the massive, character-giving steel structures from the plant were
restored and incorporated into the park.
There is no such thing as instant
gratification in creating a park in a highly urban area
like this. But with strong community support, an involved yet collaborative
funding model, and the vision and hard work of a number or partners such as The Point Community Development Corporation, the Bronx River Alliance, Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, the Parks Department, and other city and
state government officials, this park embodies renewal -- of the land, the river,
and the sustainability of a community.
Concrete Plant Park is an example of what a committed group of partners
can do when they put their minds, time, and resources to it. Like every park, it provides concrete
evidence of how vision and perseverance can allow a community to shape a better future. Even in the most
unexpected of places.
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Rx for Health
It's easy enough when your doctor hands you a prescription: stop by the pharmacy on the way home and you're all set. But what if your
doctor handed you a prescription for physical activity?
Increasingly, healthcare providers are using creative ways
to help their patients become physically active. And parks, rivers, and trails are
key components in this prescription for good health. The Washington Post
article "Take a hike and call me in the morning" (17 Nov 2009)
brings this story to the forefront. All over the country, doctors are prescribing physical activity. Doctors have found that many patients aren't physically
active simply because they don't know how or where to start. So programs like the
ones below enable patients to get the tools and information they need to get active, close to home.
Albuquerque, NM
With prescription pads to prescribe physical
activity, and a much valued trail guide only available by prescription, the
Prescription Trails program is
in its third year. The guide provides information on parks, paths, and trails,
organized by zip code so patients can be directed to the nearest neighborhood
walking paths. Feedback from doctors involved in the project is positive. This
program has inspired similar programs in Santa Fe, Las Cruces, and
other communities throughout New Mexico. Partners include NPS, the statewide Diabetes Prevention Program, and major
health plans including Blue Cross Blue Shield and Molina.
Upper Valley NH/VT The
Prescription for Physical Activity program in the communities along the upper Connecticut River inspired Albuquerque'e efforts. Starting from a prescription for walking
program and a guide to the benefits of physical activity, this program has
expanded to include a multi-trail guide that includes trails usable for walking
in the winter. The Trails for Life partnership includes Dartmouth-Hitchcock
Medical Center, Dartmouth College, NPS, and the Upper Valley Trail Alliance.
Medical Mile, Arkansas River Trail
Kudos to Terry Eastin, Executive Director of NPS partner Mississippi River Trail Inc. On November 13, she received the Arkansas Governor's Leadership award for her outstanding
work with the Arkansas River Trail's Medical Mile project in
Little Rock. At the ceremony, executives from Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue
Shield inquired about creating more "Medical Miles" in other Arkansas cities!
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A Tip of the Hat to...
Fran Taylor
Chair, North Point Heritage Greenway Trail Planning
Committee; and Vice President,
North Point Community Coordinating Council
Two-hundred years after invading British troops sparked the Battle of Baltimore, the North Point Heritage Greenway Trail will provide outdoor
recreation and safe off-road connections for area residents, including children
attending local public schools and residents at the Edgemere Senior
Center, as well as helping history buffs retrace the path of the War of 1812.
"Though not involved in trail
planning before, Fran has learned the ins and outs of trail planning and worked
tirelessly to coordinate the effort. He is a resident of the North Point peninsula, and for the past three years has been promoting the trail and organizing citizens and community leaders to help plan the trail.
"Fran has actively involved seniors, the
local historical society, public schools, and local businesses. He has promoted
the trail at many community events including Defender's Day (Battle of
Baltimore, War of 1812), the largest community event of the year. He
has also integrated the trail planning with North Point State Park and the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail."
- Wink Hastings, NPS Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance, Chesapeake Bay
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Let's Work Together
Could your project benefit from collaboration with a National Park Service specialist? If you're restoring a river, building a community trail, or making an urban park flourish, we'd love to talk with you about ways we could work together. Call or email your regional representative today.
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Like what you read? Please copy or forward this newsletter. Have a story idea? We're happy to consider story ideas or news items for future publication. Want to use a story for your own publication? We would be pleased to help you. To submit an idea or request information about adapting a story, please contact Alan Turnbull: 202-354-6930 or [email protected]
Conservation + Recreation is written to support and inform our organizational partners, friends of the program, potential partners, and Department of the Interior staff. It's our chance to share activities and successes and those of our partners. For details on specific projects, please contact the staff person involved with each project.
Images courtesy National Park Service
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