Peer Empowerment Program 4 Physical Activity (PEP4PA) is a program through UCSD’s Department of Family Medicine & Public Health. PEP4PA and Circulate San Diego have been working together on a project to improve walking conditions for older residents of San Diego County. Circulate and PEP4PA are currently working with older residents in Lakeside to identify walkability improvements around the Lakeside Community Center, as well as the greater community.
Circulate staff made a couple presentations on walkability principles and approach methods for taking action on walkability improvements:
The first meeting was held on June 7th and included a presentation that focused on introducing the topic of walkability and learning how to identify walkability issues. After the presentation, Circulate staff co-led a walk with the residents around the Community Center to note specific areas of walkability issues and discuss how their walking experience is influenced by shortcomings in the built environment. After this meeting the group created a list of walkability issues and voted on the top priority items. A list of the outcome is shown below:
Priority Walkability issues:
- Planting more trees for shade
- Fixing the bump between the parking lot and sidewalk (tripping hazard)
- Building a shade structure over existing park benches
- Redesign of Woodside Ave. to make it more walkable
The second meeting was held on June 14th and used the list of priority issues from the previous session to discuss action-driven approaches for walkability improvements. Circulate gave a presentation on how to create an action plan and methods for reaching out to local representatives to express walkability concerns. Seniors were also provided with document resources that elaborate on key points in the presentation and support the next phase of the project. In the upcoming months, this group of Lakeside residents will work with PEP4PA to take action on the top priority issues they identified. Circulate looks forward to learning about their progress and supporting their efforts.
Circulate San Diego is actively involved in projects that support the mobility options of older adults. If you have a project that focuses on this group in your community and Circulate could assist you, please contact Catherine Thibault, Director of Programs, at [email protected]
