Creating healthy, walk-friendly communities for all ages
Hilltown Community Development works to increase pedestrian safety and create walk friendly environments for people of all ages across the Hilltowns. We increase awareness and address the impact of structural racism on population health and create long-term, meaningful changes in population health outcomes, including mental health and chronic disease. We work to improve the safety of those who chose to use public streets and trails to support their personal health. We do this through a multi-pronged, long-term approach:
Work with community stakeholders to create pedestrian safe environments, which includes conducting walk audits, changing policy, identifying funding sources, making infrastructure improvements and creating a culture of walkability within communities.
Integrate walkability and pedestrian safety goals and objectives into existing community planning efforts, such as Open Space Plans, Master Plans and Complete Streets Plans.
Focus on creating opportunities and environments that support healthy aging, with walkability being one of the many goals.
Town Walking Maps
Together with Healthy Hampshire, we gather local walking enthusiasts and advocates to facilitate a process of identifying walkable street, sidewalk and trail routes to map and publicize within communities, with a focus on accessibility, connectivity and cultural aspects of the town. The following towns have created walking maps for their residents: Blandford, Chester, Chesterfield, Cummington, Huntington, Westhampton, Worthington and Plainfield.
You can also click here to get the individual routes to use on your cell phone: hilltownwalks.org
To learn more about the Walking Map project in your town, contact Joan Griswold at joang@hilltowncdc.org or (413) 296-4536 ext. 102.
Our Partners & Funders
Our core partners are Healthy Hampshire, WalkBoston and the Northern Hilltown Council on Aging Consortium, Mass DOT, along with numerous town-based elected officials, town employees and resident volunteers. We are currently funded through the Massachusetts Community Health and Healthy Aging Funds. The Department of Public Health, and its implementing partner Health Resources in Action, Inc. has joined 32 organizations across Massachusetts and more than 35 of their community partners, including non-profit community-based organizations, municipalities, and regional planning commissions to offer this funding. The Hilltown CDC is fortunate to be one the five-year grant recipients. See mahealthfunds.org for more information.
