City Staff Research Articles

Community-based research for food system policy development in the City of Guelph, Ontario

Community-based research (CBR) has grown in popularity as a research approach, which aims to foster collaboration between academic researchers and community members or organisations. CBR is often initiated with the intention of creating constructive social change at the same time as generating knowledge or understanding of specific concerns raised by community members. The June 2011 Ontario Provincial Planners Institute Call to Action, entitled Planning for food systems in Ontario, identified the need for participatory planning for sustainable food systems in municipal policy planning. This article provides an example of one such planning process in Guelph, Ontario. Using principles of CBR, researchers from the University of Guelph partnered with a grassroots food security organisation in order to collaborate on food policy planning and make a contribution to the review process for the City's Official Plan. Bringing together best practices from literature, case study examples, and engagement with citizens through a focus group session, the process resulted in a submission of policy recommendations to City staff. This article aims to contribute to the practice of CBR by highlighting the benefits and barriers encountered in one CBR process.

Learning with practitioners: climate change adaptation priorities in a Canadian community

Adaptation is already a necessary response to climate change for northern communities. The City of Prince George, in British Columbia, Canada, has been adjusting to impacts for years and there is a high level of local awareness of climate change. The purpose of this study was to collaborate with City staff and other organizations to undertake action-oriented research with the goal of creating a local adaptation strategy. Steps taken toward this goal included: producing downscaled climate scenarios; facilitating a workshop with local practitioners to prioritize impacts; gathering public feedback regarding impacts; and triangulating sources of information to determine community adaptation priorities. Changes to forests and increased flooding are the top local adaptation priorities, and impacts related to transportation, severe weather and water supply are high priorities. Other impacts, such as health effects and agricultural changes, are also important but did not rank highly using a risk framework focused on negative physical effects. Local impacts, actions the City is undertaking to address them and suggestions for implementing adaptation measures are summarized. The process of creating an adaptation strategy has proven highly valuable in Prince George and has precipitated further engagement and action. Due to the low profile of adaptation and limited resources in many communities, researchers and practitioners must capitalize on opportunities to incorporate adaptation into existing plans and processes. Lessons from the Prince George experience can be applied to other communities as they strive to effectively adapt to climate change.

Understanding Policy Enactment: The New Orleans Fresh Food Retailer Initiative

Healthy-food financing initiatives have been endorsed as a way to improve food access, but relatively little research exists on understanding the formulation of such policies. This paper investigates the development of the New Orleans Fresh Food Retailer Initiative (FFRI) to highlight factors that enabled and impeded its enactment. In 2010 and 2011, semistructured interviews were conducted with 22 key informants with firsthand experience of this case, including representatives from the private sector, nonprofit organizations, and government. A participant-observer approach was used to synthesize these observations with archived written materials and the authors' own observations. Historical disparities in food access in New Orleans were exacerbated by Hurricane Katrina, which also generated neighborhood activism and a pressing need to rebuild the city. A Food Policy Advisory Committee (FPAC) was formed from diverse groups. This paper describes the evolution of FPAC, its deliberations and report to the City Council, and actions to promote a financing initiative, as well as delays encountered in the process. Enactment of the FFRI was facilitated by a window of opportunity that opened in the storm's aftermath, broad-based stakeholder buy-in, the existence of political champions, and policy-relevant information that was simple and convincing. Impediments to success included the constant turnover of city staff, a skeptical state bureaucracy, and the many competing priorities in New Orleans. This study highlights the importance of having a clear policy objective to address a well-defined and illustrated problem, key advocates in diverse organizations, and broad-based support for its implementation.

Municipal Archaeology Programs and the Creation of Community Amenities

Abstract This paper explores how the municipal archaeology programs found in Alexandria, Virginia; St. Augustine, Florida; and Phoenix, Arizona have played a prominent role in developing unique, place-based amenities that integrate local history with other community needs. These cities are unusual in that they maintain archaeologists on city staff and that those archaeologists have used their positions to develop local environments that are extremely supportive of public engagement with history. Using interviews as well as archival and documentary sources, this paper demonstrates how the public's resulting familiarity with archaeology has allowed the interpretation of local history to take a variety of unexpected forms, including public and private open spaces, urban walking and cycling trails, museums, and public art, among many others.

Subsídios reunidos junto à equipe de saúde para a inserção da fisioterapia na estratégia Saúde da Família

Esta pesquisa visou obter subsídios para a inserção do fisioterapeuta na Estratégia Saúde da Família em Rio Grande/RS. Estudo quantitativo, delineamento transversal com 196 trabalhadores. Utilizou-se instrumento semiestruturado com os temas: princípios norteadores do SUS/ESF, identificação de situações com potencialidade para a atuação fisioterápica, percepção sobre preparo da equipe para enfrentá-las e infraestrutura das unidades. Foi realizada a distribuição de frequências das variáveis, a comparação das médias (ANOVA) e o teste de Tukey. As médias das notas atribuídas aos princípios integralidade, equidade e universalidade diferiram entre si (p = 0,00), sendo 6,3 ± 2,4, 7,0 ± 2,4 e 7,8 ± 2,2, respectivamente. As situações mais prevalentes foram: hipertensão (90,8%), diabete (89,8%), doenças osteomusculares (88,2%), DPOC (84,7%), pessoas acamadas (83,7%), dificuldade para caminhar (83,7%) e deficientes físicos (82,7%). Quanto ao preparo da equipe, a maioria dos trabalhadores afirmou se sentir despreparado para: atraso do desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor (51,7%), treino de marcha (51,8%), atenção a deficientes físicos (68,1%) e amputados (57,0%). Na avaliação da infraestrutura das unidades, a maioria acusou bom estado do prédio e unidades, com salas para atendimento especializado (31,6%). Os dados evidenciam as possibilidades de ação do fisioterapeuta na ESF, visando aumentar a resolubilidade da mesma.

Resident, developer, and city staff perceptions of LID and CSD subdivision design approaches

As urban areas expand, standard approaches to development have been associated with many negative environmental effects, increasing interest in the use of low impact development (LID) and conservation subdivision design (CSD) approaches that mitigate some of these effects. In the case of residential development three major groups influence subdivision design by developing, approving, and purchasing homes: developers, city staff, and residents. Previous studies of LID and CSD have focused on residents and their purchasing decisions. In this study, we used surveys and focus groups in Ames, IA to examine developer, city staff, and resident perceptions of development in general, and LID and CSD features in particular. Residents, developers, and city staff members expressed interest in using LID and CSD approaches. Developers and city staff members believed the amenities created by including LID and CSD features would add a premium to home prices. Resident survey respondents indicated moderate interest in LID and CSD features, while focus group participants indicated stronger interest in these designs when embedded environmental attributes were made explicit. Knowledge of the perspectives of all three groups creates a clearer understanding of ways to create opportunities for implementation of LID and CSD approaches where they do not already exist, to achieve a better balance between development and conservation of natural resources in municipalities in the Midwest.

Barriers to Implementation of Sustainability Governance

Cities offer the best hope for solving sustainability challenges. However, there is little research showing how cities can institutionalize sustainability within their governance structure. Informed by governance and sustainability theories as well as the Institutional Analysis and Development framework, this thesis aims to elucidate on the barriers to implementing sustainability governance within the City of Phoenix. Utilizing Q methodology, 21 government professionals sorted through and commented on barriers derived from the literature and their peers. The results of the research reveal four distinct discourses concerning barriers towards execution of sustainability governance – (a) sustainability strategy shortage; (b) city operations, leadership, and development mantra; (c) state context and community action; and (d) difficulty of sustainability at a city level. A suite of recommendations regarding city leadership, staff capacity, city operations, and strategic policies, serves as a cross-cutting synthesis for the four perspectives and provides opportunities for cities initiating sustainability governance. Key recommendations include integrating sustainability across departments according to specific sustainability issues as well as infusing sustainability criteria into policy and decision-making processes. Additionally, this research advocates for formal and informal staff training regarding key features and procedures of sustainability.

Planning for climate change adaptation: lessons learned from a community-based workshop

Abstract Adaptation is now broadly accepted as a necessary response to climate change. Local adaptation strategies should be developed with decision-makers familiar with the unique characteristics of a community. As part of ongoing research on adaptation in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada we hosted a workshop with City staff and community stakeholders to build local capacity and initiate an adaptation strategy. Past climate trends and future scenarios were used to gain a better understanding of the changes occurring and expected in the region. The highest priorities identified for Prince George relate to forest fires, flooding, emergency response to extreme events, water supply and transportation infrastructure. The workshop framework represents a tool which communities can apply to outline adaptation priorities within a limited time frame.

Adopting Local Alcohol Policies: A Case Study of Community Efforts to Regulate Malt Liquor Sales

To learn how the local context may affect a city's ability to regulate alcohol products such as high-alcohol-content malt liquor, a beverage associated with heavy drinking and a spectrum of nuisance crimes in urban areas. An exploratory, qualitative case study comparing cities that adopted policies to restrict malt liquor sales with cities that considered, but did not adopt policies. Nine large U.S. cities in seven states. City legislators and staff, alcohol enforcement personnel, police, neighborhood groups, business associations, alcohol retailers, and industry representatives. Qualitative data were obtained from key informant interviews (n = 56) and media articles (n = 360). The data were coded and categorized. Similarities and differences in major themes among and across Adopted and Considered cities were identified. Cities faced multiple barriers in addressing malt liquor-related problems, including a lack of enforcement tools, alcohol industry opposition, and a lack of public and political will for alcohol control. Compared to cities that did not adopt malt liquor sales restrictions, cities that adopted restrictions appeared to have a stronger public mandate for a policy and were less influenced by alcohol industry opposition and lack of legislative authority for alcohol control. Strategies common to successful policymaking efforts are discussed. Understanding the local context may be a critical step in winning support for local alcohol control policies.

Building a More Sustainable Future for Senior Living

The aging of society is an inescapable trend that some neighborhoods, municipalities, and counties are admitting needs their attention. As the extent of the changes required to become senior friendly, let alone sustainable, are being realized, many communities are experiencing pushback from voters, old-guard city and county staff, and even elected officials. While initially appearing counter-intuitive, if we plan for the aging of society along with four other first-time-ever, equally inescapable trends—peak oil, water scarcity, obesity, and climate change—we come to realize the critical role of the built environment as a common denominator in preparing for a future very different than most of us have anticipated. As such, changes to the built environment that move a community closer to realizing sustainable senior living also contribute to lower energy needs and costs, a smaller carbon footprint, water savings, and an overall healthier population. By focusing on the built environment as the key to sustainable senior living communities, we are able to build more inclusive collaborative work teams, reach out to two underutilized resources in retirees and college and university students, and leverage the planned-for changes in ways that help finance future modifications. Clarified below, these ideas, strategies, and actions are, in the end, described as part of a five-year, ongoing, service learning partnership.

A Small Utility Can Reap Big Benefits With a GIS

This article discusses how the goals for implementing a GIS in a small to medium‐sized community should be approached from a different perspective. The article discusses a few key steps to follow when planning a GIS that works within budget, provides the same functionality as one designed for a big‐city department at a fraction of the cost, is housed on‐site, and is operated by city staff. Customizing the system, fine tuning data accumulation, performing in‐house maintenance, and educating stakeholders are key components to a successful system.

An Epidemiological Survey of Stroke in Lhasa, Tibet, China

There have not been any new epidemiological studies related to stroke in Tibet for 20 years. This study aimed to collect stroke data from The City Staff Medical Insurance Registry in Lhasa, Tibet, to describe the incidence, clinical subtypes, and associated risk factors of stroke. We used retrospective, population-based descriptive analysis of all urban and rural workers in the City Staff Medical Insurance Registry who were admitted to designated hospitals from October 2006 to October 2008. Stroke was defined by the International Classification of Disease (ICD)-10 coded from hospital records. Workers (81,298) were listed in the City Staff Medical Insurance Registry. Stroke patients (165) were included in the study, with 133 being first-ever patients. The age-standardized incidence rate was 88.725/100,000 per year (95% CI, 72.228-105.221), and mortality rate was 25.941/100,000 per year (95% CI, 16.416-35.466). The case fatality rate was 21.82%. Seventeen of the 133 patients (12.8%) were < 45 years of age. Stroke incidence rate was higher in ethnic Han patients than ethnic Tibetan patients. The most common subtype was cerebral infarction, and the most important risk factor was hypertension. Since the last study 20 years ago in Lhasa, stroke remains the primary fatal disease for the elderly, and its occurrence at younger ages is higher in Lhasa than in other areas of China. However, the annual incidence rate and mortality rate have decreased. The annual incidence rate is at a similar level to that in other parts of China. The primary subtype of stroke in Lhasa is cerebral ischemia.

The Public Architecture Programme and the 9 de Março squatter settlement in Barbacena, Brazil

The increasing number of students who graduate in Architecture and Urbanism in Brazil has caused an overflow of professionals, of which only about 40 per cent are actually working in this field. However, the construction industry is developing at a rapid pace. Cities are growing quickly and, along with them, a number of underprivileged peripheries are beginning to sprawl. An obvious conclusion that can be drawn is that architects are being excluded from this process, that is, other professionals have been taking on the roles of architects. According to the Brazilian Institute of Architects, in 2005 approximately 82 per cent of the governmental agencies in Brazil had no architects at all on their staff. For the School of Architecture and Urbanism at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil it became clear that they had a role encouraging the creation of new jobs for recent graduates in governmental agencies, particularly at the municipal and city levels. The goal of the School's Public Architecture Programme is to foster sustainable development and to increase the quality of life in a number of human settlements by undertaking urban, social and cultural projects. These projects are developed by architecture students coordinated by teachers working in tandem with city governments. One such project was developed in 2006 for Bairro 9 de Marco, a squatter settlement, in the outskirts of Barbacena, Minas Gerais. The project, closely supervised by Barbacena's city staff, responded to demands from the local community and included an extensive study of the local conditions and urban morphology. Proposals aimed at upgrading the living conditions in the settlement and included infrastructure and public facilities such as new streets and parks, the eviction of squatter housing from areas of risk, and the design of new houses for families affected by the proposals, the results of this study are the key focus of this article.

The Traditional Non-Traditional Landscape Architecture Studio: Education Through Service Learning In Miami, OK

This research will illustrate the importance of a recent service learning project that was conducted for Miami, Oklahoma, by landscape architecture graduate students and faculty of the University of Oklahoma. Students and faculty partnered with the community to form the studio design team. Education in the landscape architecture studio at the graduate level provides an excellent opportunity to engage communities through service learning projects. Service learning is a unique, dynamic, and powerful framework for student learning and landscape architecture is a diverse profession which requires a multi-faceted educational approach, including community based outreach projects. Miami, Oklahoma, was the site of a recent community outreach project where service learning provided the basic framework for this course. For the duration of an entire semester, students and faculty became entrenched in the community. The service learning project included an initial site visit for students to meet city staff that served as the community contacts for the project. Additionally, the studio design team made other site visits/ trips to Miami to present the findings throughout the project to the mayor, city council, and interested citizens. Throughout the project, the product that the design team produced and presented to the community was two-fold. First, written reports were created that described the ideas behind the design, and secondly, traditional designs, in graphic form, were produced, illustrating the ideas of the project further. At the conclusion of the project, the studio design team presented the city with a final report that detailed the entire project process throughout the semester. This report serves not only as a written record of the project, but it also will assist the city in increasing support for the projects and programs that were illustrated by the design team so that the city can become more competitive as they seek state and federal funding for the projects. This research proves that service learning is not only beneficial to the students and faculty teams that work on the projects, but that these projects also offer a tangible asset to the community, strengthening the community from within.

The State and Civil Society Response to Disaster: The Challenge of Coordination

This article presents a case study of the reception of low-income Hurricane Katrina evacuees in Austin, Texas, to reveal the multiple barriers and problems faced by families and individuals dislodged by Katrina, as well as the difficulties faced by the service providers. The authors surveyed evacuees who had used the emergency shelter system and received housing assistance at least 10 weeks after the disaster. These survey data are supplemented with focus group and individual interviews with the city staff who conducted the survey, as well as interviews and participant observation with a range of service providers who assisted evacuees in the months following Katrina. Austin’s case managers were able to quickly organize and respond to evacuee families with an array of emergency services, including food and household goods. They also introduced new coordination efforts among agencies to distribute newly available Katrina funding. These efforts were aimed at both targeting emergency services and enhancing the capacity of case managers to help evacuees negotiate the complex maze of emergency and human services, particularly Federal Emergency Management Agency. Nevertheless, these coordination efforts were insufficient to address the problem of low-income urban evacuees living in indefinitely prolonged but possibly temporary circumstances.

Patient satisfaction in a Riyadh Tertiary Care Centre

As one of the healthcare organizations striving to reach optimum quality level, King Abdulaziz Medical City staff believed that knowing the patients' service perspective is one core service quality indicator. This article aims to spotlight the level of patient satisfaction or dissatisfaction in one Riyadh tertiary centre. Cross-sectional survey involving 1983 inpatient, outpatient and emergency care patients at King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh using a self-developed patient satisfaction questionnaire. There was a significant satisfaction with room comfort (88.5 percent), room temperature (78.1 percent), room call button system (87.9 percent), room cleanliness (79.6 percent) and respectful staff (87.4 percent). Patients were significantly dissatisfied with phlebotomists not introducing themselves (74 percent), not explaining procedures (57.2 percent) and physicians not introducing themselves (59.1 percent). Only the overall satisfaction dimensions were studied in a socio-demographic context. Not every service was studied separately, so the patients' answers may not represent the hospital. It is recommended that service standards in the areas in which patients were significantly dissatisfied should be raised by involving senior leaders. Areas for which patients were significantly satisfied will need to be sustained or even improved. So far no similar service quality and patient satisfaction based studies from Saudi health care systems are reported in international peer reviewed journals.

Empowering Neighborhoods Via Increased Citizen Participation or a Trojan Horse from City Hall: The Neighborhood Strategic Planning (NSP) Process in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This study examines the distribution of federal funds in Milwaukee, Wisconsin between 1988–2008 under a new Neighborhood Strategic Planning (NSP) process designed to increase citizen participation and empower neighborhoods residents by giving them an increased role in the distribution of federal urban renewal funds used for the period 1998–2008. It was then compared it to the old Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) funding allocation process used between 1988–1997. This study documents that while citizen participation in the distribution of federal CDBG funds increased under the NSP process, federal funding to low-income communities decreased because city officials had the power to restructure funding priorities and allocations patterns. Also, federal funds distributed to low-income neighborhoods via community-based organizations (CBO) decreased under the NSP because the city government created new policies to increase its share of CDBG dollars to finance city services and staff funded by tax levy dollars. In effect, the city used federal funds designed to help low income communities to pay for city services and staff instead of raising its middle class residents’ property taxes to pay for them.

Food Security and Homelessness in the City of Anaheim

The primary purpose of the City of Anaheim’s 2007 Homeless Survey was to provide city staff with an opportunity to understand the characteristics of the City’s homeless population. The purpose of this study was to determine whether food insecurity was associated with: (1) homelessness, (2) demographic characteristics such as age, gender, and ethnicity, (3) mental and physical illness, and (4) family life among 85 homeless individuals in Anaheim. Although duration of homelessness was not associated with food insecurity, we found that older participants, White participants, and those with more symptoms of schizophrenia were more likely to experience food insecurity. The results suggest that a substantial proportion of homeless individuals experience food insecurity, and that many of them do not utilize food resources. Although the present study was limited in range, the results demonstrate the existence of food insecurity among the homeless of Anaheim. This problem may continue to exist unless new policies are enacted to compensate the current void in services. A follow-up study to examine the current policies affecting the Anaheim homeless population would provide a strong foundation and direction for future policies.

The Accessibility of Municipal Government Websites

ABSTRACT The Internet is increasingly being used by both citizens and governments for the transfer of information. There is a need to extend access to municipal websites to the portion of the population with disabilities. In 1998, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was amended by Congress to require federal government agencies and those agencies that receive funds from the federal government to ensure that their websites are accessible to the public. This paper presents the results of an evaluation of the level of accessibility of the 100 largest municipalities' websites. Webmasters in these cities were surveyed to determine their awareness of accessibility issues and their plans to make their municipalities' websites accessible. The results of this study show that while a number of cities have accessibility statements, overall compliance with Section 508 is low. However, compliance with accessibility standards can only be expected to increase in the future as technology improves and city staff...

Building a Child Impact Assessment Tool for the City of Edmonton

Children, Youth and Environments 15(2), 2005 Building a Child Impact Assessment Tool for the City of Edmonton Bob Yates Yates, Thorn & Associates Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Citation: Yates, Bob. (2005). “Building a Child Impact Assessment Tool for the City of Edmonton.” Children, Youth and Environments 15(2): 371-377. . Comment on This Article Abstract Few Canadian cities have taken their commitments to children and young people more seriously than the City of Edmonton. The City has recognized that the local government agency in Edmonton must take the lead in promoting the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The firm of Yates, Thorn & Associates, a Victoria, British Columbia-based social planning consultancy, was hired by the City of Edmonton to help develop specific aspects of its Children’s Services Framework. This report describes the development of a Child Impact Assessment Tool. Keywords: Child-friendly cities, child impact assessment tool, Canada© 2005 Children, Youth and Environments Building a Child Impact Assessment Tool for the City of Edmonton 372 Background The demands on local governments in Canada and elsewhere to provide effective services for children and youth are increasing along many dimensions: • The expectations of parents and others regarding the range and quality of services are expanding. • More children are living in poverty now than at any time in the past. Their need for services is even greater than that of those children who have the ability to pay. • Federal and provincial governments are downloading services onto local governments, and providing funding for new services such as childcare. At the same time, they frequently adopt legal (such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)) or promotional (such as Alberta’s Promise) frameworks which local governments are required to follow. • Multiple agencies are increasingly involved as partners in the delivery of services. This is positive, but also demanding of time and resources. • The value of all services is constantly being evaluated and in some cases questioned by a tax-conscious public. • Communities are focusing more on outputs than inputs. The question is no longer “how many hockey practices did you attend?” but rather “did you win the game?” or at the very least “how well did you play?” When all this is put together with the inherent vulnerability and lack of political power of children and youth, it requires local governments to include frameworks and processes in their policy making that consistently and continually prompt the question, “What will be the impact on children and youth?” The City of Edmonton recognized that this question must be addressed as part of the implementation of its Children's Services Framework. Consequently, the City of Edmonton Community Services Department requested Yates, Thorn & Associates1 to develop a Child Impact Assessment Tool: a “lens” through which the impact of programs, policies and initiatives on children and youth could be examined. Early discussion made it clear that the Child Impact Assessment process must be: • Practical - it must be simple to use, providing a set of functional tools for city administrators and elected officials. • Visible - it must act to reinforce the need for a broad range of services for children and youth. • Visionary - it must be far-sighted in its vision of services for children, with the goal of putting Edmonton at the leading edge of child-friendly cities. Building a Child Impact Assessment Tool for the City of Edmonton 373 To meet these objectives, it must be designed to: • Educate various groups about children’s services. These groups include internal department and city staff, councilors, external agency staff and volunteers, as well as the general public. • Advocate for a child-friendly Edmonton. This implies a more proactive approach focused not just on “means” but also on “ends.” • Integrate child-focused efforts into the business planning processes of the City. The Child Impact Assessment will only be effective in the long term if it is a part of the machinery of government. • Focus on the key issues of importance to the children and youth of Edmonton, which had been identified through consultation with children and adults during the development of the Children’s Services Framework. Moving Edmonton towards Being a “Child...