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Connecting The Dots On Community Health

St. Lawrence Plaindealer - 2/28/2017

While the north country is rich with resources, services, people and opportunity, bringing everything together may be the biggest stumbling block in connecting the community with its needs. Being separated by geography, a lack of communication or simply not having knowledge of resources and access are all factors in St. Lawrence County's county health rank; 51 out of 62 counties.

St. Lawrence County Public Health Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Rebecca Allen is a newcomer to the north country. She said the opportunities to be active outdoors in the north country are nearly boundless and should be taken advantage of.

"One of the really attractive features here is the opportunity for hiking and outdoor recreation. I think there is ample opportunity, lots of public land, lots of opportunity to get out and about. I know in the winter time it is probably a bit more of a struggle for some folks but I certainly see that as an asset of the community," she said.

Karen Bage, community coordinator with the St. Lawrence Health Initiative said while she agrees outdoor activity is available, traveling to these destinations is not a simple task.

"We have space. We have room to do outdoor activities. But on the flip side of that space is sort of a limiting factor because we are car dependent. We do not have public transportation or even within our villages, getting around on foot is a challenge," Ms. Bage explained.

Klaus Proemm works with Canton's sustainability committee and is heavily involved with the municipality's Complete Streets initiative, which works to make communities more walkable and bikeable. He echoed Ms. Bage's sentiments on the lack of transportation in St. Lawrence County, but expanded the scope to focus on countywide travel.

"The whole southern part of the county is left out. Nothing goes to Star Lake or Edwards or Russell. Ogdensburg, Canton, Potsdam and Massena are connected, that is about it. That would be huge to have a better system that could bring people in to services and activities," he said.

According to Ms. Bage, another factor has been access to equipment needed for outdoor activities, but said this is something she has worked on through the St. Lawrence Health Initiative in the recent past.

"We try to eliminate some of the excuses. We put rental ice skates in 14 different arenas around the county so mom and dad can't say 'oh I don't have skates anymore,' or say gear is too expensive," she said.

Mr. Proemm said Complete Streets is also looking to begin offering more access to equipment and services and the first step will be to install a bicycle fixing station in Canton's village green.

"Visitors who come through town and need to work on their bike or local folks, you can just ride your bike up and hook it up so it is up off the wheels and there are the basic tools that are all attached," Mr. Proemm said.

Canton has several trails, including pathways at both St. Lawrence University and SUNY Canton and the Remington Trail around Partridge Run. While access to the trails is not as much a problem, there is a connectivity issue.

"What hasn't happened is sort of connecting them all so you can get from one to the other so that you could get anywhere in the village," Mr. Proemm said. "So one of our top goals right now is to connect the existing trails that are there already and have more trails added to it."

Another top goal in Canton's Complete Streets initiative would not only allow for a new trail to promote physical activity, but would connect the village with a recreational hot spot where children can play and continue to be active.

"Getting from the village to Taylor Park is just crazy because the traffic is way too fast on Miner Street. We are working on a path on the south side of Miner Street to Taylor Park to make that safer access and we are trying to improve Main Street, Park Street and Riverside to make those safer for biking and walking," Mr. Proemm said.

For those who have the desire to explore the backwood trails and other natural resources offered throughout the north country, Ms. Allen said connecting these people with the information they need is another blockade in increasing physical activity for residents. When she first came to the area, Ms. Allen said she wanted to access information about what was available locally and had trouble doing so.

"What I found is that there is no one website you can go to discover that," Ms. Allen said. "A lot of (the trails) I just found by accident."

Ms. Allen said she now knows there are lists of trails on the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce's website, but she said it "requires even knowing to go to those websites."

Ms. Bage said connecting people with each other needs to be a focal point if community health opportunities are to grow in the north country. Recreation directors in the county are vital to keeping local residents active and need to be supported, and Ms. Bage said these directors have begun to support each other. The directors have started a northern chapter of New York State Recreation and Leisure Professional Association and are now collaborating.

"Finally, they are talking and they get together quarterly and share resources," Ms. Bage said. "Really, they are not competing with each other. The people from Canton are not going to Ogdensburg to participate in those programs. So there is really opportunity for supporting those organizations."

Making connections between people and the resources and places they need to maintain their health is an effort health professionals are chipping away at in an effort to increase the quality of health for St. Lawrence County residents. While offering services and opportunities is a good start, true change will be noticed once information is properly disseminated and access is simplified.