Buffalo Green Code Meetings this week!

Now is the time to get involved! We have been talking for months about the City of Buffalo's overhaul of the current zoning code. The public participation meetings are happening this week!

You can attend any of the three meetings - doesn't matter where you live - just go to the one that fits best with your schedule.

HKHC has prepared a flyer that helps to explain a bit about the Green Code process. Click here and you can download the flyer!

HKHC Blog Hiatus Over!

The HKHC blog is back! We have just come off a month of very exciting events and great work. The community vision was unanimously adopted by the HKHC Partnership as the vision for our work going forward! We are thrilled with all the participation and input we got from city residents. Thank you!

Coming up - the HKHC blog will be seeing some guests - we are looking forward to guest blogs from interested Buffalo residents.

Coming up - the Buffalo Green Code (the overhaul of the city's zoning code) public meetings have been announced! Please find the dates below. Look for information about zoning, land use planning, the Green Code and what it means for you in the coming days! You can also visit http://www.buffalogreencode.com/ for more information.

- Central Region: Tuesday, November 16th, 7:00 - 8:30 PM, Buffalo Museum of Science

- North Region: Wednesday, November 17th, 7:00 - 8:30 PM, Bennett High School

- South Region: Thursday, November 18th, 7:00 - 8:30 PM, Tosh Collins Community Center

As always, you can email me with questions or post them here!

Vision Unveiled Tuesday 9/28!

The third and final event in the HKHC visioning series will take place tomorrow - Tuesday, September 28, 2010. The event will take place in the Zebro Conference Room (at Roswell Park) on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. The Zebro room is on Virginia Street between Ellicott and Elm from 5:00 - 7:00 PM.

We will have great food, a bike raffle for our younger guests, a photography exhibit from the youth participants and brief remarks from members of our community.

Take a look at the vision created by 100+ Buffalonians:

Buffalo is a safe, welcoming community that enhances the physical, social and spiritual well being of its individual residents, families, visitors and communities. By celebrating diversity and building on existing assets, Buffalo fosters a collaborative, fun, healthy environment where youth and adult citizens drive the change we seek.

We are a community where:

• People of all ages, classes, races and ethnicities are well cared for, and there are healthy living choices accessible for all.
• Clean, safe, and accessible places, indoor and out, are available for people to travel, move and play year-round; where parks are well maintained and inviting to all ages, waterways are safe for drinking and recreation, and streets are lively and vibrant with a preference towards human-powered activities and transportation.
• Access to high-quality, nutritious, affordable and culturally meaningful food, sourced from local farms and community gardens when possible, is available within a reasonable distance from all Buffalo homes.
• Abundant education resources are equally accessible to all; with these resources, residents are actively engaged in conscious decisions to live a healthy lifestyle.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at jhersher@bnmc.org. I hope to see you at the event!

2nd visioning session a success!

The second visioning session was a great success. 20 community members turned out to revise the draft statement created by the individual adult and youth visions from the August 3rd event.

Community members worked in small groups to ensure that the shared vision incorporated everyone's ideas and priorities - while remaining true to the HKHC goals.

As we move forward, we will begin planning for the third and final session in our visioning series. We will display the art created by our youth attendees, both craft pictures and photographs, as well as launch our newly crafted vision. We hope the final session will be a celebration for all of Buffalo - and the launch of the HKHC initiative in the city.

First HKHC Report - Check it out!

As a part of the HKHC program, we are conducting an ongoing assessment of the healthy eating and active living environment in Buffalo. As a part of this assessment, Kailee Neuner - the research coordinator from the University at Buffalo for HKHC - produced a policy brief that outlines the current conditions. Please take a few minutes to read this very important document - and get involved. You can always contact me with any questions at jhersher[at]bnmc.org.

Download the document here.

2nd Visioning Session Tonight!

After a very successful first session, the HKHC community will meet again tonight to work on the draft community vision for a healthy Buffalo. Adults and youth came together on August 3rd to provide their personal visions for a healthy Buffalo, and these prioritized themes and ideas have been compiled into a draft vision.

Please come out tonight and help us finalize our vision! Everyone is welcome - health is important for all of us! See you tonight.

Check out some photos from the first session - some of our representatives are presenting their ideas...

First Visioning Event a Success!

Thank you to all that came out for the first of three visioning sessions to help craft a vision for a healthier Buffalo. More photos and information to come soon! Here is a teaser from the youth session - the youth of Buffalo have some really great ideas and they know what it takes to be healthy.