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PUBLIC HEALTH continued from page 39

Virginia, realized early on that their goals
were similar in nature. Both agencies
were interested in improving the health
and wellness of the community and
viewed prevention as the cornerstone. It
was obvious to both agencies that there is
strength in a broad approach to address
chronic disease, so combining resources
and knowledge from both agencies was
a win-win. Once these county agencies
realized the mutual value of their partnership, their work continued to mesh
as they took active roles in formal local
health and wellness coalitions and later
as co-applicants for an ACHIEVE grant.
Both agencies, which historically held interests in community engagement, found
that reaching out to the local community
together to promote health and wellness
was a natural extension of their partnership providing increased opportunities
for long term community impact.

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40 Parks & Recreation

AUGUST 2011

In another community, San Antonio,
Texas, collaboration between the parks
and recreation department and San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (Metro
Health) has created options for healthy,
active lifestyles throughout the community. The San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department and Metro Health
worked together to install outdoor fitness
equipment in 23 parks, surveyed trails
to provide detailed accessibility information to users, funded park user surveys, and opened community centers
for additional hours to offer community
members greater access for engaging
in physical activity. Additionally, Metro
Health has contracted instructors to offer
free exercise classes in the parks. As a
result of this partnership, residents who
sometimes feel unsafe walking in their
neighborhoods can use the outdoor fitness equipment. People who cannot afford a gym membership have access to
fitness classes for free. Staff has worked
across agencies to combine marketing
efforts when programs/initiatives have
the same goal of providing healthier lifestyle opportunities. The parks and recreation department and Metro Health are
working together on a bike-to-own program involving bicycle distribution in
the community and have also installed
bike racks to promote biking as a means
of transport. These collaborations have
encouraged both agencies to think more
globally about providing services and
amenities to customers. This partnership
has vastly increased the ability for both
agencies to reach residents not only in
areas of disparity, but in the entire city.
The best part is that the citizens of San
Antonio will benefit from this collaboration now and for years to come.
Collaboration between the MiamiDade County Health Department (MDCHD) and the Miami Dade Park and
Recreation Department began while
working on a grant opportunity. The Department of Health and Human Services's
grant funded an initiative called Communities Putting Prevention to Work with a
goal of bettering the health of the community by implementing a number of

www.NRPA .ORG

programs, including improved access to
opportunities for physical activity through
parks. Parks in Miami-Dade County have
long been recognized as major contributors to the physical and aesthetic quality of neighborhoods. Working together,
MDCHD and the Miami-Dade Park and
Recreation Department are developing
a new broader view of parks in MiamiDade County. This new view goes well
beyond the traditional value of parks as
places of recreation and visual assets. It
also focuses on a park system as a planning tool to guide public and private development that includes the design of
streets as linear parks and the coordinated development of civic spaces with
parks. This planning approach for parks
and open space shapes growth. It encourages and increases opportunities
to engage in physical activity through a
planning process which looks anew at
access and equity to achieve a walkable,
sustainable community, made possible
through the collaboration of health and
park professionals.
For park and recreation agencies to
generate the greatest impact on health
in their community, partnering with their
local health department is a must. Local health departments play a vital role in
the health care system, promoting health
and preventing disease in communities.
By working together with these departments, park and recreation agencies not
only expand their efforts, but benefit from
opportunities for community engagement. Especially in times of economic uncertainty, these organizations have found
that coalitions with each other leverage
the strength in each other's expertise and
outreach capacity-underscoring the concept of the whole being greater than the
sum of the parts.
NRPA supports communities that are
implementing successful practices to promote health and wellness. For more information on these programs, please visit
www.nrpa.org/achieve or www.nrpa.org/
cppw.
ERIKA TERL is NRPA Senior Program

Manager.

August 2011 - Parks & Recreation

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