Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 8-4-17

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Survey Reveals Need For Better Sidewalks, Security And Lighting In University Area
KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Sidewalks in the area that encompasses University Area Community Development Cor- poration (UACDC) need expan- sion and repair and walkways need more streetlights and in- creased security.
That’s the results of a recent walkability survey conducted by the UACDC in conjunction with the county’s Metropolitan Planning for Transportation and City-County Planning Commission and the Florida Department of Health.
A report of the survey was shared last week at the UACDC’s Partners Coalition quarterly meeting.
Nearly 300 University Area residents responded to the sur- vey, which was conducted last year from May to August.
In addition to walkway safety, participants were asked to give their input on driver be- havior and neighborhood aes- thetics.
About half stated that they had mostly enough room to walk on their routes. But al- most nearly that many reported that the sidewalks started and
Survey of residents in the University Area says they need better sidewalks.
stopped or were broken or cracked.
Respondents stated that drivers “rarely” or “sometimes” followed traffic laws 57 percent of the time. More than half stated that failure to stop for people crossing walkways and speeding were the most out- standing offenses.
And while respondents re- ported a “mostly pleasant” walk, they also noted their routes were littered and had a lack of light, shade, and green- space.
Walking is the main mode of transportation for a large percentage of residents who live in the University Area com-
munity. UACDC officials will work with its partners to find ways to remedy the problems highlighted in the survey, said Sarah Combs, the corpora- tion’s chief executive officer.
“If (residents) think there’s no security or adequate safety, it’s important to shine a spot- light,” she said.
The study will be helpful when applying for grants and other resources for community planning as well as when re- questing participation in re- lated projects in the University Area community, Combs said.
“We’re creating a map to leverage it with different op- portunities,” she said.
Join LifeLink In Celebrating National Minority Donor Awareness Week
LifeLink of Florida, the organ and tissue recovery or- ganization that serves Hills- borough and 14 other counties on the west coast of Florida, joins the transplant community across the nation to celebrate National Mi- nority Donor Awareness Week (NMDAW), August 1-7, 2017, and reflect on the inception of this observance and its successes.
Launched in 1996, NMDAW was created to in- crease awareness of the need for more organ, eye, and tis- sue donors from ethnically diverse communities. Life- Link salutes the great strides that have been made by na- tional organizations such as Minority Organ Tissue Trans- plant Education Program (MOTTEP) and the Associa- tion for Multicultural Affairs in Transplantation (AMAT).
Despite the most valiant efforts to educate and register multicul- tural donors, the per- centage of patients being added to the national transplant list surpasses the percentage of ethni- cally diverse registered organ donors.
“Observances such as Na- tional Minority Donor Aware- ness Week provide an opportunity for local organ and tissue recovery organiza- tions to engage communities that are impacted the most,” said Liz Lehr, Senior Vice
President /Executive Direc- tor, LifeLink of Florida. “Everyone at LifeLink works hard to educate diverse com- munities about the need for organ and tissue donation, but more can be done. We en- courage all who have been impacted by donation to share their experience with others. LifeLink has a won- derful volunteer program to help individuals frame and communicate their trans- plant or donation experi- ences. Log on to www.LifeLinkFoundation.org , complete our volunteer ap- plication and join our team!”
Florida’s donor registry can be accessed at any time to gather organ and tissue donor facts and register do- nation wishes. Please visit www.DonateLifeFlorida.org today.
General Facts
One organ donor can save and improve the lives of up to 75 people
Every 10 minutes another name is added to the national organ transplant waiting list
An average of 22 people die each day because the or- gans they need are not do- nated in time
The organ transplant rate for Blacks, Whites and His- panics now mirrors the need for members of these ethnic groups as reflected by the United Network for Organ Sharing
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