Chelsea Receives Promoting Active Communities Award

The City of Chelsea has received the Promoting Active Communities Bronze Award from the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health and Sports. The awards recognize communities that make it easier for residents to be physically active. The process required the completion of an assessment of a community’s environment, policies, and programs related to promoting and supporting physical activity.

Other Washtenaw County communities that received awards were Ann Arbor (gold) and Ypsilanti (silver). The bronze level recognizes communities have taken important steps toward making it easy for people to be active.

The completion of the assessment was led by Amy Heydlauff at Chelsea Community Hospital along with representatives from the city, hospital, planning commission, and Downtown Development Authority.

A 2003 report by the Michigan Fitness Foundation calculated that the cost of physical inactivity and sedentary lifestyles in Michigan was $8.9 billion! This is why the State is working with communities to promote active lifestyles from making it easier to walk and bike to partnerships with Farmers' Markets and grocery store to educate consumers on healthy food choices.