Albert Lea Earns Recognition During Third National Blue Zones Project Summit
Innovators and thought leaders from Blue Zones Project Communities across the country come together to share successes, best practices
Albert Lea, Minnesota — April 26, 2018 — Albert Lea earned special recognition on April 17 during the third Blue Zones Project® National Summit held in Naples, Florida, that brought together leaders and influencers passionate about transforming the health and well-being of their communities. Blue Zones Project, an exclusive partnership between Blue Zones, LLC and Sharecare, is a growing nationwide well-being improvement initiative that helps communities optimize the places people live, work, and play to make healthy choices easier. Albert Lea has been involved in the initiative since 2009 and became a certified Blue Zones Community® in 2015.
Albert Lea received the excellence in outstanding outcomes “Walkable, Bikeable and Livable Community Award” for our work in creating built environment that supports walking, biking, and natural movement. Albert Lea began with the Blue Zones Walkway in 2009 and has never looked back. As a community, we have collaborated, partnered and inspired each other to become more active and as a result raised our actively level by 40%. The South Broadway redesign is Albert Lea’s 2nd large Marquee Project in the downtown area. It is an extension of the North Broadway “Downtown Streetscape” inspired by Dan Burden’s first visit to Albert Lea in 2009. These 2 projects together have had a dramatic effect on the downtown historic area and created a beautiful and welcoming community gathering space. Many new businesses have either opened or relocated to the downtown area contributing millions of dollars in private investment. Property values have increased by 25% adding to our tax base. Pedestrian traffic has increased by 96% in the Downtown District in the last four years adding additional revenues to area businesses and spurring further growth. The South Broadway Redesign has resulted in a much safer transportation corridor. Annual crash rates have been reduced from 13 to 4. The estimated annual savings in property damage, lost productivity, medical costs and emergency assistance is estimated at $500,000 annually. Tourism rates in Albert Lea have increased by 35% over the last 5 years and Realtor.com again ranked Albert Lea, one of the top ten “Most Affordable Small Towns in America You Would Actually Want to Live”. We are the only Minnesota community to make the top ten list.
“It is really exciting to see community leaders work together to meet the challenges associated with obesity and chronic disease in America head-on,” said Michael Acker, SVP General Manager of Blue Zones Project at Sharecare. “With this honor, Albert Lea demonstrates its commitment to innovative thinking and shares in the vision of making communities across the nation healthier.“Leaders in Blue Zones Project communities are on the front lines of community transformation using a strategic, environmental approach to improvement well-being,” said Buettner. “In addition to having healthier citizens, communities benefit from lower healthcare costs, less chronic disease, and improved productivity.”
The Blue Zones Project also created three “Legacy Awards for Culture and Values” for outstanding commitment to both Culture and Values. These awards were named in honor of Blue Zones colleagues, no longer with us, who demonstrated these qualities in their daily lives and contributed so much, not only their own community, but the Blue Zones Project as a whole. Albert Lea is honored that one of those awards was named the “Randy Kehr Award for Initiative and Collaboration”. Randy was a great champion of the Blue Zones Project and his legacy will live on as our Blue Zones family continues to grow. Ann Hayashi from the Blue Zones Project – Hawaii was nominated by her colleagues as an outstanding “People Person” and was the first recipient of the award.
For Albert Lea these recognitions are to be shared and celebrated across the community—at schools, worksites, restaurants and grocery stores that have joined the Blue Zones Project movement —and with individuals who incorporate Blue Zones Project principles into their daily lives.
“This is recognition of the commitment our community has made to enhancing the well-being of its citizens, and a testament to the community leaders and volunteers who are making that promise a reality,” said Ellen Kehr, of Blue Zones Project, Albert Lea. We are at the forefront of a well-being movement that is gaining traction across the country, and we will continue our work to become one of the healthiest cities in the nation.”
During the summit, champions from more than 42 Blue Zones Project communities across nine states heard from national experts—including Dan Buettner, Blue Zones Project founder and National Geographic Fellow; Jeff Arnold, co-founder and CEO of Sharecare, and founder of WebMD; and Roy Spence, Co-founder and CEO of the Purpose Institute and author of the Wall Street Journal bestselling book It’s What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business is Driven by Purpose.