January 2008
Saving the World Through Zoning
The sustainable community development code comes to the rescue.
By Chris Duerksen

The Healthy Development Measurement Tool is a product of the Urban Health and Place Team at the Program on Health, Equity and Sustainability within the San Francisco Department of Public Health. As described in the background, the HDMT was developed as part of the Eastern Neighborhoods Community Health Impact Assessment (ENCHIA) project.

The TCDI program is intended to assist in reversing the trends of disinvestment and decline in many of the region's core cities and first generation suburbs by:

1. Supporting local planning projects that will lead to more residential, employment or retail opportunities;
2. Improving the overall character and quality of life within these communities to retain and attract business and residents, which will help to reduce the pressure for further sprawl and expansion into the growing suburbs;
3. Enhancing and utilizing the existing transportation infrastructure capacity in these areas to reduce the demands on the region's transportation network; and
4. Reducing congestion and improving the transportation system's efficiency.