Food Access
Even in ‘Food Deserts,’ Independent Grocers Struggle to Survive
Government support has helped open stores in underserved communities, but cost and scale make it difficult for small businesses to survive long-term.
How Urban Design Impacts Public Health
With more and more people living in cities, designing equitably healthy urban spaces becomes a key question for policymakers.
The Relationship Between Walkability and Public Health
New research indicates that improving public health requires targeted investments in more than just pedestrian facilities.
Healthy Corner Stores Fight 'Retail Redlining'
Small entrepreneurs are working to combat 'food deserts' by bringing fresh, healthy foods to communities lacking access to major grocery stores. But price continues to be a major factor in people's food choices.
In Tulsa, Pushing Back on the Dollar Store Incursion
Restrictions in North Tulsa are part of a backlash against the dollar stores flooding communities that are food deserts in need of real grocery stores.
The Food Deserts of Rural America
When a town doesn’t have a grocery store, it means people don’t have access to food. But grocery stores also play an essential social and economic role in rural places. Community stores are trying to fill in the void.
Food Deserts Need the Right Kinds of Supermarkets
Research indicates that opening a supermarket in an area that needs it is not enough. The ownership model and relationship to the community are essential to long-term success.
Food Insecurity a Growing Problem in Louisville
Supermarket closings have turned parts of the city into food deserts. As a result, residents lack access to fresh food and suffer health and economic consequences.
What Makes a 'Farmers' Market?'
What constitutes a farmers' market, rather than an outdoor or public market?
The Demise of Fresh & Easy: What Does It Mean for Food Deserts?
What does the impending demise of the Fresh & Easy grocery chain mean for food deserts? Hannah Burton Laurison and Christine Fry look at how small-format grocery stores can still succeed where Fresh & Easy failed.
Food for Thought from the APA
The APA has published the final results of a longitudinal study conducted in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that surveyed the national landscape of food access planning.
Vancouver Hungry for New Food Strategy
Yolande Cole discusses some of the elements being considered for Vancouver's new city-wide food strategy, which "will include over 60 actions intended to expand [the city's] food system."
Which Cities Are Leading the Way in Integrating Food Planning?
Integrated food systems planning is a cornerstone of efforts to create healthy and sustainable communities across America. Kimberley Hodgson summarizes recent research conducted by the APA that evaluates which communities are leading the way.
Legibility and Food Access
Returning to San Francisco from a trip to New York City, I ruminated on my first experience of staying in midtown in the city in which I was raised. The city is different, of course. Times Square has fulfilled its Blade Runner destiny, and blue Grecian “Greatest Coffee in the World” cups have been supplanted with those from Starbucks. What stayed with me, however, was a brief exchange with another attendee of the same conference for which I was in town. “Everything is so expensive” she lamented. “I see people with yogurts and sandwiches and other things that don’t seem to cost too much, but I don’t know where they get them.” “Oh, there’s plenty of stuff around here” I replied. “You just have to look.”
Food Deserts Exaggerated
The "food deserts" problem is receiving heightened attention following the release of the USDA's locator map. But this analysis relies on the suspect premise that suburban supermarkets are superior to small, walkable urban foodsellers.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Village of Glen Ellyn
American Planning Association, Sustainable Communities Division
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Cambridge, Maryland
Newport County Development Council: Connect Greater Newport
Rockdale County Board of Commissioners
