Master of Regional and Community Planning / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Hyung Jin Kim / Accessing healthy food can be a challenge for people living in both rural and urban environments. A broad range of factors influences one’s food security, including the accessibility and affordability of food retailers, travel time to shopping, availability of healthy foods, and food prices. The connections between planning and food systems have begun to emerge and be examined but planners face many barriers when tackling food system issues that range from turf problems, a lack of knowledge that any problem exists, to a lack of funds. The study purposes were to 1) identify areas with low access to healthy food sources; 2) discover barriers and perceptions of healthy food accessibility among community members; and 3) explore current planning policies and practices for increasing healthy food accessibility. The study area of this case is Riley County, Kansas, which has lower food accessibility especially to health foods in low income areas located in urban neighborhoods, even though rural areas are further away from a healthy food store. The research has the potential to inform the local food system framework and provide guidance for local policy makers and stakeholder groups. Surveys were collected from 150 households in order to identify challenges and barriers respondents face when obtaining healthy food. Food prices and low income were the largest barriers survey respondents faced when obtaining healthy food. Interviews conducted among 6 individuals from planning offices, market, and community stakeholder groups and both urban and rural issues were discussed. Currently, there is understanding of the importance of healthy food but little action that follows. There are opportunities for planners and policy makers to get involved with planning for the local food system. Partnerships must be established to share resources and technical skills among stakeholders in order to plan for healthy community food systems.

In the past, cities and their food system were spatially interwoven. However, rapid urbanization and the creation of industrialized agriculture have physically isolated and psychologically disconnected urban residents from the landscape that sustains them. Cities can no longer feed themselves and must rely on a global hinterland. Vital growing, preserving, and cooking knowledge has been lost, while negative health, economic, and environmental effects continue to develop from this separation. Low-income neighborhoods have significantly been affected where a lack of income and mobility pose barriers to adequate food access. Architects have addressed food issues individually, but have yet to take an integrative approach that meaningfully engages urban citizens with all processes of the food system. Urban planners have recently taken a holistic design approach to food issues through the development of the community food system concept. By applying this idea to an architectural program I have designed a Community Food Center for the Five Points Neighborhood in East Knoxville, TN. Spatially compressing and layering food activity spaces preserves the majority of the landscape on site for food production. The kitchen, dining room, market, and garden increase access to healthy food while serving as community gathering spaces, and the business incubator kitchens provide economic opportunities. The whole facility acts to educate and engage people in the growing, harvesting, preserving, cooking, sharing, and composting of food. Cities cannot sustain themselves by only providing spaces for consumption. Architects must challenge the accepted relationships between food system spaces and strive to reincorporate productive landscapes and spaces dedicated to transforming raw ingredients into a variety of architectural programs. Although the Five Points Community Food Center is site specific, the concept of integrating multiple food activities into a single architectural entity can be used as a tool for place making by expressing a local identity through food culture while improving the social and economic fabric.

abstract: Research indicates that projected increases in global urban populations are not adequately addressed by current food production and planning. In the U.S., insufficient access to food, or the inability to access enough food for an active, healthy life affects nearly 15% of the population. In the face of these challenges, how are urban planners and other food system professionals planning for more resilient food systems? The purpose of this qualitative case study is to understand the planning and policy resources and food system approaches that might have the ability to strengthen food systems, and ultimately, urban resiliency. It proposes that by understanding food system planning in this context, planning approaches can be developed to strengthen urban food systems. The study uses the conceptual framework of urban planning for food, new community food systems, urban resiliency, and the theory of Panarchy as a model for urban planning and creation of new community food systems. Panarchy theory proposes that entrenched, non-diverse systems can change and adapt, and this study proposes that some U.S. cities are doing just that by planning for new community food systems. It studied 16 U.S. cities considered to be leaders in sustainability practices, and conducted semi-structured interviews with professionals in three of those cities: Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; and Seattle, WA. The study found that these cities are using innovative methods in food system work, with professionals from many different departments and disciplines bringing interdisciplinary approaches to food planning and policy. Supported by strong executive leadership, these cities are creating progressive urban agriculture zoning policies and other food system initiatives, and using innovative educational programs and events to engage citizens at all socio-economic levels. Food system departments are relatively new, plans and policies among the cities are not consistent, and they are faced with limited resources to adequately track food system-related data. However they are still moving forward with programming to increase food access and improve their food systems. Food-system resiliency is recognized as an important goal, but cities are in varying stages of development for resiliency planning. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Environmental Design and Planning 2014