Community Health Mapping: Malden, MA by Ty Summers

Introduction/Overview

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-08 11:38:02 UTC

Malden, Massachusetts is the city I grew up and resided in the longest. In the early 2000's they self proclaimed being the "best place to raise your children" prompting lots of people migrating there at the time. Since then, the've longed ditched that moniker-seeming to focus more on economic infrastructure growth and community outreach projects. Our mayor is Gary Christenson, who is appreciated by the people and is often seen engaging with the community, cleaning up litter, and announcing city and school events.

The crime level seems to be manageable, and mostly isolated incidents. The drug use has been on the rise (similar to most of Massachusetts over the past decade) which has led to a combination of incidents such as illegal distribution, breaking and entering, overdoses, etc. There were stints with gang violence here and there.

In a relatively tight community when someone passes away it is usually widespread news, felt by the whole community, especially if it's a young person.

Public transportation is prominent and widely used the city. The pros are you can get almost anywhere from anywhere. The cons are too many bus lanes/stops obstructing traffic and parking, and unreliable schedules due to the large amount of pedestrians.

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-08 11:54:45 UTC

Malden has the perfect mix of city and wildlife biospheres. Areas like Malden Square and commercial street are bustling with restaurants and businesses. There seems to be a new apartment building being built on a yearly basis as well as the ones that have long existed. In addition to that there are a couple of ponds and nature reserves that span through Malden and a few other cities. I've encountered plenty of common North American animals such as geese/ducks, turkeys, beavers, snakes, chipmunks, and plenty of fish and bird species. For plants there are ferns, lavender, mullein, and more (I know animals much better than I know plants).

The city has two train stations, not too far from each other. Many primary schools and even a few high schools. Depending on what part you are in you'll have easy access to plenty of surrounding cities such as Melrose, Medford, Everett, Saugus, and Revere.

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-08 11:56:09 UTC

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-08 11:56:25 UTC

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-08 12:00:35 UTC

Malden is one of the most diverse places in the country, with Malden High School ranking #1 in diversity in the State. I Grew up with people of all races, ethnicities, and backgrounds having friends from The Caribbean Islands, East and Western Asia, Africa, South America and more. Malden has grown a very large East Asian and Haitian community, often having translations in their native languages.

With the massive diversity comes a melting pot of culture which spills over into different facets of life. The food selection here is second to none, you will find restaurants serving Brazilian, Haitian, Thai, American, and Mediterranean food just to name a few.

We also are very prideful of our blue and gold colors which are sported by our elementary and high school sports teams and MHS's official colors.

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-09 11:29:05 UTC

tjsummers1 — 2025-10-09 11:43:25 UTC

Malden is a relatively healthy place to live-physically, mentally, and in terms of nutrition. It's a safe place to live regardless of where you stay (excluding isolated incidents obviously) and it's easy to exercise whether it be at an outdoor calisthenics park or one of the many gyms. You can always grab a healthy bite to eat at one of the many ethnic restaurants or something like a plant based option or acai bowl/smoothie.

In terms of mental health, the city is very progressive and takes peoples identities, safety, and well-being serious. There are support groups, cultural groups, and useful resources to help you with whatever you need.