Neighborhood and Built Environment
The built environment shapes how we live, move, and connect—and plays a vital role in our health and quality of life. This section of the dashboard measures how the physical design of the Indy Health District impacts the well-being of those who live, work, and play here. These metrics focus on the buildings, infrastructure, and public spaces that residents interact with every day, as well as the safety and accessibility of pathways such as sidewalks, roads, and transit systems. A healthy neighborhood is one where people can safely reach essential destinations—like grocery stores, parks, schools, libraries, childcare, and healthcare services—on foot, by bike, or via public transportation. By tracking these elements, we gain a clearer picture of how the built environment supports (or hinders) active living, social connection, and access to critical resources. This data helps guide decisions that promote healthier, more connected, and more equitable communities.
LOW FOOD ACCESS
Access to healthy, affordable food is essential to overall health and well-being. This section of the dashboard measures the extent to which residents in the district face barriers to nutritious food. It identifies areas classified as food deserts—communities where people live more than a mile from a grocery store and also face economic challenges. These environments make it difficult for residents to maintain a balanced diet, increasing the risk of chronic disease, mental health challenges, and reduced life expectancy. Understanding where food access is limited helps us identify vulnerable populations and target interventions that support equitable access to nutritious food. The data presented here are key to building a healthier, more resilient community—one where every person has the opportunity to thrive.
Designation as a food desert in an urban area includes these main criteria: 1) the nearest grocery store is more than 1 road mile away; and 2) the area poverty rate is 20% or more, or median household income is low relative to the metro area. For more details, please click “(i) About” within either graphic.
DID YOU KNOW?
Food insecure adults are 2 to 3 times more likely to have diabetes compared to adults who are not food insecure. Eating nutritious foods is an important factor when managing blood sugar levels and can contribute to prevention of type 2 diabetes [learn more]. Food insecurity also increases risks for other chronic health conditions such as obesity, heart disease, and mental health disorders [National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, 2022].
DID YOU KNOW?
Food deserts exist more often in neighborhoods that are home to a majority of racial/ethnic minority residents. Nationally, “20% of Black/African American households were food insecure at some point in 2021, as were 16% of Hispanic/Latino households, compared to 7% of White households” [National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, 2022].
Walkable Access to Daily Services and Destinations
This metric measures the percentage of land in the Indy Health District where residents are within a 10-minute walk of key destinations such as libraries, schools, pharmacies, grocery stores, restaurants, and healthcare offices. Walkable access to essential services is strongly linked to improved health outcomes, increased physical activity, and longer life expectancy. It also supports mental health and reduces the risk of chronic diseases. In addition to health benefits, walkable communities foster social connection and economic vitality. Identifying gaps in access helps guide planning efforts to build a more equitable and health-supportive environment.
The overall goal is to increase daily services and destinations so that the portion of the district that can access these within a 10-minute walk increases.
The figure shows the percentage of the land area of the district within a 10-minute walk of each of the 8 different types of services listed. The map below shows where daily services and destinations are located in and around the district. Darker shading in the map represents areas that have a higher number of daily services and destinations within a 10-minute walk, whereas lighter colors have fewer daily services and destinations within a 10-minute walk.
DID YOU KNOW?
Communities that are “walkable”—where people can get to places they need or want to go in a safe manner without needing a car—promote more physical activity and improve health. These health benefits include better mental health, less obesity, lower risk of diabetes, and lower risk of high blood pressure and heart disease (Wang, Narcisse, and McElfish, 2022).
Note: Data presented were collected in 2024.
Walkable Access to Parks
Parks and green spaces provide space for physical activity, reduce stress, and mitigate air pollution and urban heat islands through a concentration of trees. People living in highly walkable neighborhoods with close access to green spaces are more likely to have routine physical activity and improved health and well-being. For this metric, park access is defined as being within a 10-minute walk of a park or recreational space.
The goal of the Indy Health District is to increase walkable access to parks with ample amenities that are in excellent or moderate condition.
Parks were rated based on the count of available amenities (low: 1–3, moderate: 4–7, high: 8+). The bar chart to the left shows how many parks are in each of the three, total-amenity categories. Potential amenities included: playgrounds, athletic fields, pools, splash pads, basketball, tennis, volleyball, trails, fitness stations, skate parks, dog parks, green spaces, restrooms, drinking fountains, benches, picnic tables, shade structures, and lighting.
Parks were also rated based on the condition of their amenities (excellent, moderate, or poor condition). In the Map of Access to Quality Parks below, people living in the area within the district that is highlighted in pink are within a 10-minute walk of a park. Areas of the district that are not highlighted represent a lack of walkable access to a park. Note that you can hover your mouse over the parks (indicated by the purple and green areas) to learn about each park and the ratings of individual amenities in that park. There are a total of 21 parks within a 10-minute walk of district residents that have ample amenities that are in excellent or moderate condition.
DID YOU KNOW?
“Exposure to green spaces has been associated with, among others, improved perceived general health, better pregnancy outcomes (e.g. birth weight), enhanced brain development in children, better cognitive function in adults, improved mental health, lower risk of a number of chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes and cardiovascular conditions), and reduced mortality. Given the many benefits of green space, health of urban residents who often have limited access to these spaces can be improved by increasing the amount of green space.” (Dadvand and Nieuwenhuijsen, 2018)
Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation
Residents of communities with connected, walkable streets and bike lanes/paths enjoy better health and more physical activity. This section provides information about the number of miles of sidewalks and trails and dedicated bike lanes in the district. It also presents where gaps in sidewalks exist as well as how much of the district’s streets are considered “complete” in terms of elements such as crossing signals, ADA-compliant curb ramps, and essential wayfinding signage.
There are two goals for pedestrian and bicycle transportation. The first goal is to increase the number of miles of sidewalks/trails and dedicated bike lanes in the District. The second goal is to expand the percent of major routes that are considered “complete street” segments within the District.
Of the nearly 42 miles of streets within the district, 2.5 miles (6%) are streets without a sidewalk on either side. A total of 6.3 miles (15%) of the streets have a sidewalk on just one side. There are a total of 5.1 miles of bike lanes in the district (12%).
DID YOU KNOW?
Investing in a strong network of sidewalks and bike lanes that provides people with ways of getting around without a car has been associated with many health and social benefits. These include reduced air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, increased physical activity, and fewer transportation-related accidents. [Investing for Momentum in Active Mobility, 2021]
Providing community residents easy access to reliable public transportation and walkable or bikeable streets increases their ability to participate fully in life through increased physical activity. Walkability is also important for promoting health and social engagement across communities. It provides residents with a way to reach desired destinations, while also encouraging physical activity across the community.
The complete street index provides a rating of the quality of a community’s streets based on several factors such as availability of sidewalks, bike lanes, trails, multi-use paths, crossing signals, painted sidewalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps, pedestrian scale amenities, signs/direction markers, and other placemaking elements.
Note: Data presented were collected in 2024.
Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety
This metric identifies the number of crashes between vehicles and pedestrians as well as vehicles and cyclists in the district. Hotspots indicate where crashes occur most frequently and provide guidance for safety and walkability improvements.
The goal of this metric is to decrease the annual number of crashes involving pedestrians and cyclists in the District.
Note: Data presented were collected in 2024.
There were a total of 7 crashes involving motor vehicles and pedestrians or bicycles in the district in 2024. Note that none of these 2024 crashes were fatal. The maps below show where crashes took place over the last five years.
The map of bike lanes and bike crashes show crash locations in the context of painted and protected bike lanes. Painted lanes refer to visual markers painted directly on the street to indicate a bike lane. A protected bike lane is one that is physically separated from motorized traffic, typically using barriers such as curbs, posts, or planters, to enhance safety for cyclists.
The map showing gaps in sidewalks with pedestrian crash sites indicates where there are no sidewalks present and streets with only a sidewalk on one side. You can view where pedestrian crashes took place in the context of sidewalks.
Note: Painted lanes refer to visual markers painted directly on the street to indicate a bike lane. A protected bike lane is one that is physically separated from motorized traffic, typically using barriers such as curbs, posts, or planters, to enhance safety for cyclists.