Photo by Graphic by Brandy Cohen
Photo courtesy National Center for Farmworker HealthA stretch of road in Kyle's eastern extraterritorial jurisdiction was deemed unsafe for walking, according to a recent audit by a Buda-based nonprofit.
On Jan. 25, about 30 community members took part in a walk starting at the intersection of Dacy Lane and Bebee Road and ending at the intersection of Goforth and High roads.
"We wanted to understand the lay of the land," said Dahlia Ture, community health worker for the National Center for Farmworker Health, the nonprofit organization that conducted the study. "We wanted to understand what obstacles there are to walking."
In collaboration with the Hays County REACH project, the organization selected the route based on the potential for connecting residential areas with nearby groceries, health care centers, schools and more, Ture said.
A strip of road stretching from Dacy Lane to Kensington Boulevard and running adjacent to Science Hall Elementary School, was deemed mildly walkable because it contained sidewalks, but after that, the group had to traverse grassy areas and shoulders, Ture said.
Hays County Precinct 1 Commissioner Debbie Gonzales Ingalsbe, whose precinct covers the audited area, said her office is receiving calls from constituents not only in her own precinct regarding the lack of pedestrian access but also from other precincts as well.
Because of the increased concern, especially for those who have no other alternative but to walk, the county may have to consider installing sidewalks or implementing other safety improvements, Gonzales Ingalsbe said.
She said funding sidewalks and other such improvements in the area would likely involve collaboration with Hays CISD and the city of Kyle.
The commissioner said she conducts regular drives through her precinct and is familiar with the needs in each area. Commissioners have identified sidewalks that would benefit from sidewalks, she said, mostly for the safety of children walking to school.
"Although building sidewalks is not something the county typically does alongside its roadways as municipalities do, it is something I will consider as we construct or reconstruct county roadways," Gonzales Ingalsbe said.
One of the main findings that came out of the National Center for Farmworker Health's community needs assessment was that the lack of accessibility to pedestrian-friendly infrastructure was leading to unhealthy lifestyles, she said.
The organization conducted focus groups and surveys in which respondents recognized obesity, diabetes and other health problems were prevalent in the community and needed to be addressed. The community's inhabitants are mostly low-income Hispanic families, Ture said.
"That's why we are focusing on this community," Ture said. "They want improvement but tend to be left out of some of the stuff."
Ture said the study remains ongoing, and a plan of action will be developed to address the community concerns.
