Sustain Blue Island

Blue Island Model Communities Program

Cook County CPPW Model Communities Initiative

In March 2010, the Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) and its partner, The Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago (PHIMC), were awarded a $16 million stimulus grant through the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) & the Center for Disease Control (CDC). CCDPH, which serves 2.3 million people and 125 suburbs, was one of over 40 health departments in the United States selected to receive this award.

An initiative of the Alliance for Active & Healthy Communities, Cook County’s Model Communities - Communities Putting Prevention to Work (CPPW) is designed to change policies and environments so that healthy eating and active living become the norm for Cook County residents. Through proven strategies targeting Policy, Systems and Environment (PSE) changes in school, workplace and community settings, CPPW Model Communities program intends to make it easier for individuals and families to make healthy choices and have active lives.

More information on the CPPW Model Communities Initiative is available online at

• CCPHD CPPW Initiative 
• CPPW Fact Sheet
• National CPPW Initiative 

Blue Island’s Model Communities Grant Award

In January 2010, following a competitive proposal process, Blue Island was awarded a $75,000 CPPW Model Communities grant from CCPHD & PHIMC. Out of approximately 150 applications, Blue Island was 1 of 39 local governments, community organizations and school districts throughout suburban Cook County that received a much coveted award. Locally, School District 218 was also a grant recipient.

Building on the priorities adopted in the Blue Island Plan for Economic Development and Blue Island’s Community Healthy, Blue Island’s award will allow the Community Development Department & partners to:

1. Create safe walking/biking routes or public transportation to grocery stores, farmers market, community gardens, food pantries and recreation through the development of a) Active Transportation Plan (sometimes called a non-motorized pedestrian plan or bike plan); and b) Complete Streets Policy; 
2. Increase the availability and equitable access of healthy, locally produced foods by creating a Sustainable Local Food System. Food System activities include: a) Completion of a community food assessment; b) Development and implementation of local food system improvement strategies; and c) Expansion local community gardens; and 
3. Improve support for Breastfeeding at local hospital and employers a) Develop a plan to train local health system management on 10 steps of becoming a baby friendly hospital; and b) Develop breastfeeding friendly policies for local businesses and organizations 
4. Build & strengthen partnerships through Blue Island’s Model Communities Coalition a) Increase coordination between existing resources by strengthening and expanding partnerships; and b) Broaden the participation of individuals and organizations addressing community needs and enable us to move forward with future projects in a strategic and inclusive way. 

Included as a part of the award is free technical assistance from Active Transportation Alliance, Delta Institute & Health Connect One – plus a long list of leadership training events and activities. The Model Communities project will run from March 2011 - February 2012. During the next year, we will be actively recruiting input and participation from local stakeholders.

Model Communities Program Coalition Partners

The Model Communities Coalition will serve as a communication hub for project activities during the grant period and work to sustain the improvements made to local policy, systems and environments after the official project has ended. The initial partnership formed around the relationships created through Blue Island’s Community Health Monitoring Pilot Project. An important initial work plan task for the Coalition involves expanding Coalition membership, including recruitment of the organizations listed under Future Partners.

• City of Blue Island Community Development Department 
• City of Blue Island Commission on Aging
• City of Blue Island Mayor’s Office
• MetroSouth Medical Center
• The Salvation Army: Cross Generations
• Blue Island Park District
• Blue Island Public Library
• Local School District 130
• Local School District 218 
• Blue Island Recreation Center
• Urban Forestry Board
• Pronger Smith Medical Center (*new*)

Future Partners

• Blue Cap 
• Blue Island Bicycle Club
• Blue Island Chamber of Commerce
• Blue Island Police Department
• Blue Island Fire Department
• Blue Island Public Works
• CEDA
• Kaleidoscope
• Metropolitan Family Services
• Moraine Valley Community College
• Progress Center for Independent Living
• Townships 

Healthy Hot Spots – Project Overview

As a CPPW grant recipient, Blue Island Community Development Department has been linked with information and resources from the Healthy Corner Stores Network (HCSN), The Food Trust (non-profit organization piloting similar work in Philadelphia) and Cook County’s Healthy Hot Spots initiative. HCSN supports efforts to increase the availability and sales of healthy, fresh, affordable foods through small-scale stores in grocery, underserved communities. A variety of resources including special reports, webinars and information archives can be found online at http://healthycornerstores.org/.

One component of Cook County’s CPPW project is Healthy Hot Spots, an initiative to connect corner store owners, community partners and distributors to increase the availability of fresh fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods in corner stores throughout Suburban Cook County. Since March, City staff have been working closely with CCPHD and PHIMC to bring this project to Blue Island.

Cook County Healthy Hot Spots Timeline

Pre Pilot Phase: CCPHD & PHIMC visit and perform healthy food inventory assessments of corner stores in Suburban Cook County.

Pilot Phase (April – July 8, 2011): Pilot Phase includes recruitment and signup of local corner stores willing to sell 6 items from the Healthy Hotspots menu of healthy options.

• Early April: Community Development Department, CCPHD & CPPW Grant Coordinator identified target stores in Blue Island. 
• April 11: Community Development Director, Jodi Prout, attended the Healthy Corner Stores Training Workshop conducted by The Food Trust.
• April 25 – May 20: Community Development Department recruitment of stores and signup by our CPPW Grant Coordinator. 
• May 20 – July 8: Participating stores begin to carry new products; Staff and project partners visit store for compliance with agreement. 

Conversion Phase (July 11, 2011 – February 28, 2012): If we successfully recruit stores and participating stores meet the pilot phase requirements they agreed to:

• The City will receive a stipend to perform monthly promotional activities, in-store promotions, and ongoing site visits. Participating store owners who move on to the Conversion Phase will receive  store makeover, including layout design, refrigeration equipment and shelving to display their new healthy options;  
• ongoing training on healthy food sales and marketing from the Food Trust;
• local support from the Community Development Department and project partners  
• $500 from CCPHD & PHIMC See MOU between Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago & City of Blue Island for additional details. 

Participating Blue Island Corner Stores

• Hidalgo Meat Market 2801 Broadway
• La Unica 12824 Mozart Street

Additional Information

For more information about Blue Island’s Communities Putting Prevention to Work grant or to get involved with a taskforce, please contact our Model Communities Program Assistant, Amanda Stillwell. Additional information is also available online at the Community Development Department blog.