Episode 35: The Healthy Heart of a Community
We’re joined by Nilda Ruiz, President and Chief Executive Officer, and Rose Gray, Senior Vice President, Community and Economic Development, both at APM (The Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha or Association of Puerto Ricans on the March).
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APM has been working in the mostly Puerto Rican community of eastern North Philadelphia since the 1970s, on housing and a range of social programs meant to stabilize families and build wealth. APM says, “We believe in managing economic change.”
In 2003, they started working on what would become Paseo Verde, a mixed-income transit-oriented development (TOD) near a SEPTA train station and several bus lines. Paseo Verde, which opened in late 2013, was the first development in the US and the second in the world to achieve LEED for Neighborhood Development platinum certification. It includes a federally qualified health center and pharmacy, as well as a financial opportunity center and outdoor space. “Building green and healthy,” Ruiz says, did not add substantially to the $48 million project budget. But, the design features and ventilation make breathing and living healthier, she says. The building’s design also encourages walking.
On the podcast, Ruiz and Gray situate Paseo Verde in their ongoing work in and with community. They recap the innovative partnerships, financing and design involved in making Paseo Verde succeed and describe the impact it’s had in the seven years since it opened. Now, with COVID putting pressure on families, APM has mobilized to organize the community to resist offers of cash for homes and instead connect the value of the homes with the future of the community.
This episode showcases the potential of community-led collaboration and innovative design to create transit-oriented developments that foster healthier communities.
“We have helped create a generation of people who can send their kids to college. We are joyous in that.” – Nilda Ruiz
This episode is the third in a series focused on health and equitable transit-oriented communities. See also Episode 31: Optimizing Transit – for the Pandemic and Communityand Episode 30: Build with Health in Mind.