Community Presentation Sample: Elmwood Park

What are the physical boundaries? Describe where the neighborhood begins and ends?

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Elmwood Park is an imperfect triangle in Cook County that is sandwiched by the W Belmont Avenue and W North Avenue to the south. In the West Elmwood Park village borders N 1st Avenue and Chicago in the East.

What clues help the nurse locate/or identify boundaries (railroads, roads, change in environment, signs, etc.)?

Nurses use features such as roads and schools in Elmwood Park to locate and identify boundaries of their service for proper planning and scheduling of care. Health promotion activities in Elmwood Park are planned using school and road based boundaries to demarcate the different localities and assign them to specific healthcare personnel. In this case, Elmwood Park high school, Elmwood elementary school and early childhood center in Elmwood Park are used to provide guidance for nurses to plan health promotion by making these key physical features as centers. On the other hand, roads such as W Dickens Avenue and W Cortland Street in the south can be used as boundaries for health promotion centers whereas in the North W George Street and W Fullerton Avenue can also be used as health promotion management boundary because for instance, the W Fullerton Avenue divides the village into two (City-Data. Com, 2017).

In a village such as Elmwood Park prominent institutions and roads are very important in demarcating health promotion services for ease in resources allocation (Eldredge et al., 2016). In Elmwood Park, the village can be divided into two halves using the W Fullerton Avenue that cuts through the heart of the village.

Figure 1: Elmwood Park map

Physical

Describe appearance/age & conditions of the buildings (apartments, houses, size of lots, give description of how the homes are maintained etc.)

The conditions of buildings in a location or village are important in assessing demographics and the life status and economic characteristics of a locality. In Elmwood Park, the buildings are old but well furnished. Most of the houses range from 1 unit to 5 unit houses with several apartments. The furnishing and neighborhoods of the houses differ regarding incomes of the individuals living in the locality.

Visually describe the housing style. How similar are the houses (look for clues of wealth or impoverished), and explain why you have such assumptions?

High-income earners who are predominantly white people in Elmwood Park have well-furnished houses in prestigious neighborhoods within Elmwood Park village. On the other hand, affordable housing units in crowded locations are occupied by the low-income earners and have poor drainage systems and also they are not well maintained. The single apartments with a parking lot and playground are concentrated in neighborhoods of the well offs whereas the two and four storey apartments in the village are mostly occupied by the low-income earners. The landscaped houses in Elmwood Park village are expensive and very conducive for the living because they are less squeezed and have exceptional drainages which house only high-income earners who are a predominantly white.

Figure: Blockhouses in Elmwood Park IL

Explain open spaces. Identify statistics on the number parks and various recreational areas?

Elmwood Park has a variety of open spaces and recreation centers that are used by the local people and also the tourists from across America and the world. The family aquatic center provides the people with water pools for swimming without class or ethnic segregation. The family aquatic center is well managed and maintains high hygiene. The recreation complex which is located on the corner of Boulevard and Market Street provides free space for indoor sporting activities and meetings (City-Data. Com, 2017).

Briefly, describe the neighboring towns. Do they have similar physical appearances, or not, explain your impressions?

Franklin Park

Franklin Park is a township in Cook County in Illinois that is 6 miles from Elmwood Park. There is the close similarity in between Franklin Park and Elmwood physical appearance although Elmwood Park buildings are more densely populated than the house units in Franklin Park. However, there is a close resemblance in the houses and buildings physical appearances.

River Forest

River Forest is an affluent town and neighborhood in Cook County, Illinois. The town has a low population of people compared to Elmwood Park. As a result, there is enough space for affluent architectural designed houses inhabited by a multicultural community with less segregation regarding neighborhoods. The houses and public spaces in River Forest are well planned and spacious compared to those in Elmwood Park.

Oak Park

Oak Park is the largest and most populated town near Elmwood which has more developed neighborhoods with magnificent storey building and town centers compared to Elmwood Park. The streets in Elmwood Park are more narrow and dense compared to the wide streets in Oak Park Township.

Uncover data on air/water quality of the community, any signs of pollution, if so explain what you see, read or hear from the community?

The air quality in Elmwood Park according to the National Air Toxics Assessment is 54 on a measurement scale of 100. This scale of air pollution can be used to assess the level of respiratory diseases and also manage the industries in the village. On the other hand, the water quality is 31 on a scale of 100. This indicates the need to advise the people on possible water treatment approaches to reduce the effect of contaminated water on the people. Regarding Superfund index, Elmwood Park has an index rating of 96 to 100 which notes that there are less industrial wastes in the village. The underground sewerage systems in Elmwood Park has played a significant role in improving water quality in Elmwood Park by reducing flooding which was the primary cause of water contamination, especially during rainy seasons.

Elmwood Park residential houses are densely populated, and few neighborhoods that are inhabited by the wealthy and majority of white are the only locations with good housing. There is the need for improved sewerage systems and housing for the low-income earners to improve their living conditions and reduce the spread of communicable diseases amongst the poor households and families in Elmwood Park. The recreation spaces are well maintained and in the good state, but there is the need for the expansion of the current Elmwood Recreation Park to cater for more people to reduce overcrowding which increases the possibilities of the spread of communicable diseases especially the public swimming pools and sporting facilities. Elmwood Park has a well-developed sewerage system that has reduced flooding which causes the growth of bacteria and other harmful microorganisms. However, there is need to improve the air and water quality in the town by implementing anti-pollution policies (Willer, 2016).

Economic

Does the area look thriving or not? Thoroughly explain what you see to help account for the economics of the community?

Elmwood Park is thriving and developing regarding the economy due to the growing per capita income in the town. The metro train which is contrary placed in the town plays a significant role in promoting tourism as well as reducing the cost of doing business and travel. The quiet rural environment in Elmwood Park has made the cost of living in Elmwood Park less compared to other neighboring towns (Willer, 2016).

Thoroughly describe the stories and shopping areas? What are the main stores (Starbucks or liquor stores)? Are they adequate to meet the community needs?

Elmwood Park has a variety of shopping centers where people can access farm produce and other household requirements. Elmwood Commons plays a significant role as a shopping center where the people in Elmwood Park are able to access basic commodities easily.

How many homeless shelters/soup kitchens/food pantries within (or nearby) the community?

Homeless shelters

The harbor

The harbor is a homeless shelter in Elmwood Park that provides shelter to the young and vulnerable homeless girls of ages 12 to 21.

Womens shelter

The women`s shelter provides shelter to the homeless women in Elmwood Park. The womens shelter provides food and vocational training to women to empower them.

Food kitchens and soup pantries

Elmwood Park has well-developed food and soup pantries. However, There is the need for the empowerment of the local communities which can create food pantries and increase the sustainability of the people.

Figure: Alphabet Soup

Figure: Food Pantry

Are food stamps welcomed (common) or not? Where do families learn about such resources in the community?

Food stamps are open and allowed in public spaces such as the Elmwood Park Zoo and recreation centers. Information in Elmwood Park regarding food stamps and other community resources can get the information through communication in social media and other media advertisements at the disposal of the organizations (City-Data. Com, 2017).

Figure: A common food joint in Elmwood Park

What is the employment statistics of the community? Is there adequate employment? Where do most of the residents work? Unemployment rate?

Employment opportunities are very low in Elmwood Park, most of the population working class do not work within the village but beyond the village in other Illinois towns.

Explain the housing market? How many homes for sale? How many foreclosures? Average home price?

The housing market is booming in Elmwood Park with many houses two bedrooms to 3 bedrooms fetching 200,000 to 400, 000 dollars. There are also rental premises with a 997$ median rental cost for families in Elmwood Park.

Figure: Houses sales in Elmwood Park

What are the major story/headlines in the local newspapers? Any concerns in the local newspapers? What economic strengths can be uncovered in the local newspapers/community literature?

The new enterprise zone is an approach that has been dominating the news is an avenue through which the authorities advertise business opportunities in Elmwood Park Illinois. The business assistance initiatives seek to increase job opportunities for the local people and also develop necessary amenities.

Elmwood Park is a progressive township economically despite the challenges of job opportunities and necessary amenities in the town. There is the need for more social amenities and incentives from the local authorities that can help increase jobs and social amenities for the people. Incentives also can improve the standards of living of the people which will also improve the general health and wellness of the people in Elmwood Park (Teaford, 2016).

Services How many schools (elementary, middle, high school, and college? How are these schools rated? What is the average (ACT/SAT, and high school completion rate), are schools well maintained?

Elmwood Park is a small locality that high school, middle school and elementary schools for the people but lacks any tertiary institutions. Elmwood Park High school, Elm middle school, John Mills elementary school, Elmwood elementary school and Early childhood center are the major public education institutions. The institutions are not well managed, but they have a low ACT completion rate because of poverty and most influential families take their children in education institutions in the neighboring Oak Park township (Meeks & Smith, 2016).

Figure: Elmwood Park High School

Describe any Library access? Where can community members find access to the internet?

Elmwood Park community has access to the Elmwood Park public library...