Initiatives

Below you will find the initiatives and strategies for Creating Healthy Places in Suffolk County. We are working in a select group of communities in the Towns of Riverhead , Southampton and Babylon to make the environments where residents live, work and play healthier by increasing opportunities to make areas safer and more inviting for physical activity and at the same time increase opportunities for access to healthier food choices.

1. Establish or improve and promote use of neighborhood or community trails.

• Proposal to Town of Riverhead

2. Improve street design for small geographic areas of the selected communities through improved street lighting, traffic signage and enhanced landscaping, and promote these areas for walking and biking.

• Newsday article Grant to boost Riverhead bike rack count.
• The Walking Revolution, a documentary film released by Every Body Walk!
• Ride a Bike, Take a Hike, See the sights in the Town of Riverhead

3. Implement the Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (NAP SACC) in childcare and daycare settings to reduce television viewing/screen-time and increase physical activity and play.

4. In after-school care programs, implement the Healthy Kids, Healthy New York After-School Model Guidelines for Screen time and Physical Activity.

5. Create community gardens by working with community planning boards, neighborhood associations, persons with disabilities, and senior and low-income housing developments.

We have five Creating Healthy Places gardens that have been established since 2011.

• River and Roots Community Garden - Est. 2011
  West Main Street & Griffing Avenue, Riverhead, NY 11901
  Situated between Main Street and the Peconic River, the garden has 36 garden beds each 4'x10' along with shared herb beds and fence line garden as well as a diverse composting system. Just across the path is a newly installed playground.

• Good Ground Community Garden - Est. 2011.
  72 Ponquogue Avenue, Hampton Bays, NY 11946
  Located at Hampton Bays Middle School, this garden is both a community garden with 18 4'x10' beds and a school fence line garden bed all with drip irrigation. Click here for more information.
  
  

• Tree Huggers Garden - Est. 2011
  Walter G. O'Connell Copiague High School,1100 Dixon Avenue, Copiague, NY 11726
  The bountiful school garden features nine garden beds with drip irrigation and a central gathering area. Contact: James Travis (631) 842-4010

• Growing Together Garden - Est. 2012
  104 Second Avenue, Brentwood, NY 11717
  Located at a Mercy Enrichment site in Brentwood, this community garden is comprised of 16 garden beds each 5' x 20' which are shared by local community groups. The garden also features a picnic area and greenhouse. Contact: Joan Avolesse Mannion (631) 922-8486

• Patchogue's Planting Patch Community Garden - Est. 2012
  185 Bay Avenue, Patchogue, NY 11772
  With a view of the bay and lovely perennial beds, this garden consisting of 40 garden beds, each 5' x10', tended by local residents & community groups. Contact: Michael West at patcomgarden@gmail.com

Other gardens receiving assistance from CHPSC in 2011

• Riverhead Country Day School - School garden
  165 Columbus Ave, Riverhead, NY 11901

• Wyandanch Fresh - Community garden
  20 Andrews Avenue, Wyandanch, NY 11798
  Irrigation assistance was also provided to this garden which was established in 2010 through SBU Community Roots Program.

6. Establish and promote use of farmers markets and implement innovative strategies to increase access to healthy foods in high need communities.

• Flanders Farm Fresh Food Market
• Riverhead-CCE program helps senior citizens grow fresh vegetables, eat healthier
  (at Riverhead Local)
• Babylon Village Farmers Market
• Rocky Point Farmers Market

7. Reduce point of sale marketing of energy dense, nutrient poor foods and beverages in grocery stores, convenience stores, bodegas, small stores and restaurants.

8. Work with local restaurants to add healthier menu items including healthier "side" items provided with a meal (carrot sticks rather than potato chips with a sandwich), reformulate existing items, offer affordable and appropriately sized portions, provide healthier combinations for meals, make healthier items the standard for children's meals, and publicize the calorie, fat and sodium content of menu items.

Last updated April 15, 2015