Priority Area 1: Thriving Communities
Access to quality affordable housing, access to transportation, and walking distance to green spaces are public health issues in Allen County.
Poor housing conditions are associated with many health problems, including asthma, lead poisoning, and injury; reduced access to public transportation affects quality of life, including the ability to access jobs, education, and medical care. Local green spaces sustain vibrant neighborhoods.
We want to promote safe, accessible, appropriate, and affordable housing to sustain healthy residents and neighborhoods, and to assure that people needing transportation services have access to them. To this end, we will capitalize on community organizations and partnerships to increase the community’s investment in housing stock, green spaces, and public transportation.
2023-2026 ACTION STEPS
Key measures: Hardship Index; Housing Cost Burden; Rent Burdened Households; Potential Lead Paint Indicator
Housing Affordability & Quality
- Increase homeownership and decrease housing cost burden.
- Advocate for a rental registration program for the City of Lima.
- Reduce lead exposure.
- Increase lead testing of children at the highest risk of exposure.
- Ensure lead hazard removal in homes of children with high lead levels.
Parks and Green Spaces
- Establish three new pocket parks.
- Increase current park usage through enhancements prioritized by community input.
Access to Transportation
- Increase public transportation access for priority groups as well as for the general public.
- Improve overall transportation coordination in Allen County.
Why it’s important in Allen County
Five percent (5%) of youth who completed the survey reported that someone had offered, sold, or given them an illegal drug on school property*
Eight percent (8%) of youth used medications that were not prescribed for them or took more than prescribed to feel good or get high at some time in their lives*
Nearly 1 in 3 (32%) of youth reported they felt so sad or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row that they stopped doing some usual activities*
Forty-seven (47) Allen County residents died from drug overdose in 2022.