Do you have ideas about how to make Alexandria healthier? Join a community coalition and create Alexandria’s next Community Health Improvement Plan! 

Alexandria’s Community Health Improvement Plan will lay out specific, practical steps to improve Alexandria’s health over the next five years. For this upcoming plan, we will focus on:

• Landmark/Van Dorn
• Arlandria
• Citywide Mental Wellness 

These focus areas were chosen based on data from Alexandria’s most recent Community Health Assessment, detailed in the latest State of Health Report. In the assessment’s citywide survey, residents said mental health is Alexandria’s top health issue. The assessment also showed great opportunities to improve health in the Landmark/Van Dorn and Arlandria neighborhoods. 

Join a Coalition and Create a Plan for a Healthier Alexandria

Each plan will be created by a coalition made up of Alexandria residents, businesses, faith leaders, community groups, and others who work and spend time here. Alexandria Health Department and the Partnership for a Healthier Alexandria will support coalitions by facilitating the planning process, providing useful data, coordinating with other City agencies, and publishing the final plans. 

Anyone who lives, works, or is involved in our community can sign up to join one or more coalitions on the Community Health Improvement Plan website. 

Joining a coalition is a great way to make our city healthier for you, your family, and our community, based on issues you see every day. 

“The 2020-2025 Community Health Improvement Plan has significantly improved our community,” said Allen Lomax, Chair of the Partnership for a Healthier Alexandria. “Residents created solutions that included making DASH buses free, launching Alexandria’s Healthy Homes Initiative, preparing middle schoolers to pursue a college education, and providing mental health support to pregnant and postpartum clients.”

You will also meet other people, businesses, and groups dedicated to change. Coalition members will be recognized in plan materials and will help spread the word about this work.

About the Plan Creation Process

Coalitions will meet in person and/or online for activities that will last less than five hours a month. Coalitions will develop a vision for their focus area, decide on priorities, and brainstorm specific activities and solutions. Final plans will be shared in Summer 2026 to be completed over the next five years. 

The first meetings are scheduled as detailed below:

• Mental Wellness Meeting: Wednesday, October 29, 6 – 7:30 p.m. Del Pepper Community Resource Center, 4850 Mark Center Drive, Alexandria VA 22311.  
• Landmark/Van Dorn Meeting: Wednesday, November 5, 6:30 – 8 p.m. Patrick Henry Recreation Center, 4653 Taney Avenue, Alexandria VA 22304.
• Arlandria Meeting: To Be Announced

Refreshments will be provided. Interpreters are available upon request only – please RSVP with interpreter requests by October 20. 

RSVP and read more on the Community Health Improvement Plan website. 

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact Sean Curry at healthmatters@vdh.virginia.gov or call 703.244.5654, Virginia Relay 711.

If you prefer communication in another language, free interpretation and translation services are available to you. Please email LanguageAccess@alexandriava.gov or call 703.746.3960.

For media inquiries only, please contact Eve Elliott at 804.467.5160 or email eve.elliott@vdh.virginia.gov.