In 2012, construction crews broke ground on Middle Tennessee’s first transit-oriented development. The developer was interested in possibly including a school as part of the Transit-Oriented Development Master Plan. The Metropolitan Planning Organization was approached by the master site planner to provide information that would help the developer understand the economic and public health benefits of having a school within the TOD zone. The MPO decided that a Health Impact Assessment that evaluated factors such as the siting of the school, the surrounding retail food environment, and availability of transportation options, could illustrate the potential impact on child health as well as the health of those who live and work within the TOD zone.
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This Health Impact Assessment Report first appeared in The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health. The Cross-Sector Toolkit for Health was originally developed by the Health Impact Project, formerly a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trusts. The creation of this resource was supported by a grant from the Health Impact Project. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Pew Charitable Trusts, or the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.