Above: Participants at the first Active Design Charrette listen to a presentation on health in East St. Louis.
On Thursday, August 23, 2018 from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., the Winstanley Community Planning Team hosted a workshop on active design at Mount Sinai Baptist Church, 1200 Saint Louis Ave, East St. Louis, IL 62201. Community members were asked to participate in an activity by writing down their answers to the following discussion question:
Do you see East STL as a place that provides opportunities for physical activity? Why or why not?
Dennis Jackson, Executive Director, and Reverend Herman Watson, Board Member of Mount Sinai Development Corporation, provided an introduction and background on the following topics: 1) The Winstanley Community Plan set to launch in December 2018, 2) The past and future of MSDC development in Winstanley, and 3) The role of active design in the neighborhood.
John Cruz, Data Coordinator for Rise, presented data on heal statistics in East St. Louis and the region as a whole.
Duane Thompson, Architect for Design Alliance provided an overview and examples of active design as well as facilitated a discussion about the current opportunities and barriers for physical activity in East ST. Louis.
Participants then broke into small groups to further brainstorm about ideas for how to further integrate active design into the community. Community responses to prompts are listed below.
Existing Opportunities for Physical Activity
- Physical activities currently exist for seniors and kids
- There is a lot of housing development
- We have brilliant minds and the tools to get started
- We have lots of space
Existing Barriers to Physical Activity
- Poor infrastructure, streets, sidewalks, and lighting
- Vacant and overgrown lots
- Lack of security
- Not enough physical activities for teens and young adults
- The city needs gyms, housing, eateries, grocery stores
Active Design Ideas for Winstanley
- After school programming (e.g. A program that educate parents and children about
healthy eating habits) - Security Lighting
- Walking Track
- Improve sidewalks
- Fencing is important
- Need to ensure the facility is operated sufficiently with good staffing
- Collaboration of local churches
- Make an accessible site for everyone – to bring people of all ages together
- Get community members input
- A safe environment no matter what you are doing
- Grocery Store
- Bowling Alley
- Ice rink
- Water park
- Indoor track
- Outside play equipment
Active Design Ideas for MLK Community Building at Sinai Village III
- Townhouses and apartments
- Gym with space for volleyball, basketball and recreational activities
- Park and pavilion
- Walking pathways
- Fencing
- Security lighting
- Better sidewalks
- Staff
- Collaboration of community organizations and churches
- After school programming
- Ongoing community input
- Accessible for everyone