Today’s post is from Ryan Parker of the Health Action Partnership in Jefferson County, Alabama.
On April 11th, the Health Action Partnership in Jefferson County, Alabama hosted a full-day ‘Laying the Foundation for Complete Streets’ workshop.
Working in coordination with the Jefferson County Land Planning and Development Services Department and Conservation Alabama Foundation, the workshop attracted representatives from seventeen municipalities within the county who are working towards improving road safety and pedestrian, bike, and transit access for all of their constituents.
National Complete Streets Coalition Executive Director Barbara McCann, along with instructors Michael Moule and Jeff Reigner, addressed over 70 individuals at the introductory breakfast session, and 50 individuals in the workshop. In addition to employees from local cities and towns, the workshop drew representatives from the Birmingham Jefferson County Transit Authority, Alabama Department of Transportation, AARP, and the Birmingham Business Alliance. City officials in urban, suburban, and rural communities were able to see how Complete Streets could not only be beneficial to their community, but to the entire region.
Through the Center for Disease Control and Preventions’s Communities Putting Prevention to Work program, Conservation Alabama Foundation is working with municipal leaders within Jefferson County to explain the importance of considering all users when planning and designing roads.
The Jefferson County Land Planning Department has formed a ‘Livable Communities Network’ that will give municipal staff an opportunity to learn more about zoning issues, network with their peers in nearby cities, and share their experiences and barriers to developing and implementing active design policies.
We think they’re off to a great start! We look forward to working them as they continue to define their regional goals for Complete Streets and begin creating change on the ground.