Parks & Recreation May 2020

M AY 2020 N R PA .O RG

JULIAN AGYEMAN A VISIONARY FOR JUST SUSTAINABILITIES

SPECIAL COVID-19 COVERAGE Maintaining Communications in a Pandemic Funding Impacts Outbreak Reveals Inequalities

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contentsmay 2020 volume 55 | number 5 | parksandrecreation.org

FEATURES

36 Julian Agyeman: A Visionary for Just Sustainabilities Kristine Stratton

For more than 20 years, Julian Agyeman, professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University, has been on a journey that has taken him around the world with one distinct mission in mind: to educate governments and policymakers about the “intentional integration of social justice and environmental sustainability” in urban planning and design. Known as just sustainabilities, this emerging concept has received worldwide attention and has solidified Agyeman’s profile as not only the concept’s originator, but also as a leading authority and source of inspiration in the field.

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42 Collaboration in the Time of Pandemic Paul Gilbert

Park and recreation professionals have always made certain to maintain effective communications strategies for their staff and the community members they serve. But, what happens when you’re faced with a global outbreak that not only has a dramatic impact on your agency, but also at the city, county and state level? During this fast-changing COVID-19 pandemic crisis, a group of park and recreation directors in Northern Virginia have built on wellestablished ties to provide a coordinated response and work through difficult decisions together.

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contents may

columns 6

departments 10 We Are Parks & Recreation A Park Planner’s Perspective on the COVID-19 Pandemic 10 CAPRA Can Take an Agency from Good to Great 14 2020 Annual Conference Education Programming Overview 15 LSPR Honors Tom Lovell with Community Center Dedication 16 Member Benefit: NRPA Career Center Resources 16

17 Park Pulse Parks Are Essential, Especially During a Health Crisis

Perspectives Strong Leadership and Communications Are Vital in a Crisis Kristine Stratton

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Editor’s Letter Uncovering Disparities in the Age of COVID-19 Gina Mullins-Cohen

20 Finance for the Field The Impact of Trails and Greenways on Property Values John L. Crompton, Ph.D.

22 Advocacy Advocating in Challenging Times Jackie Ostfeld and Paul Sanford

24 Health & Wellness

18 Research How COVID-19 Impacts Park and Recreation Funding Kevin Roth

46 Operations Synthetic Turf: The World’s Fastest-Growing Play Surface 46 Kevin Kinsley Planning for the 2020 Parks Build Community Project 48 Suzanne Nathan

51 Park Essentials 55 Advertiser Index 56 Park Bench Golden Gate Park: Virtually Celebrating 150 Years Lindsay Collins

Older Adult Health and Well-Being: Still a National Priority in a ‘New Normal’ Lesha Spencer-Brown, MPH, CPH

26 Conservation Conservation at the Crossroads Erica L. Place

28 Social Equity Is COVID-19 Uncovering Park Inequities?

Kimberly Burrowes

30 Law Review Reconsidering the Spectator Protection ‘Baseball Rule’ James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D.

Page 24

Cover image: Photograph by Alonso Nichols/ Tufts University

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P E R S P E C T I V E S A M E S S A G E F R O M N R P A’ S L E A D E R S

Strong Leadership and Communications Are Vital in a Crisis During this time of COVID-19, this time of great upheaval and confusion, it is more important than ever before for our highly skilled park and recreation professionals to lead their employees and their communities through this crisis to recovery. Times of crisis demand different things from us as leaders, and they are the things that park and recreation professionals gravitate toward.

There is no one better prepared for this role at this time, because these are qualities you display in your work, day after day. In the book Crisis Leadership, authored by Gene Klann, there are a set of key attributes that effective leaders demonstrate in times of crisis. They are acutely relevant during this pandemic, and they are intrinsic to being parks and recreation.

Seek credible information. In any time of crisis, it’s critical to go to the experts for guidance — in the case of the pandemic, it’s the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Going to the experts is the basis for everything that we do — from the trauma-informed care approach that we take with our youth programming to the evidencedbased foundation of our physical and therapeutic recreation programs, to the environmental science that informs our landscape management.

Communicate clearly and often. In the best of times, we can’t assume that people receive information, let alone understand it if they do. In times of crisis, that challenge is compounded. Still worse, in the absence of clear and frequent communication, people fill in the gaps themselves — which can fuel speculation and fear. This is the time to amplify your communications pace and frequency. Continue to use multiple channels for your communications and, as Klann suggests, “review, repeat and reinforce.” This is

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especially true for your staff. It is imperative that we are explaining what we understand of the situation and what we are doing in response. This needs to be in real time as much as possible. It’s OK to adapt — this situation demands that we adapt as we go.

Bring your staff and community along with you by communicating often.

Be present and visible. Now is the time to connect — to reinforce all the relationships that you have built, to be present with your colleagues, staff, community members and partners. While we are physical distancing, it will take extra effort to do this, but it’s essential. The park and recreation community is renown for showing up and for lending a hand. This comes naturally and is essential in times of crisis.

Another important lesson during challenging times is the experience itself. As a leader in a time of crisis, it’s important to use the same learning approach you do in your programs and park and recreation management each year. We all know that reserving resources for contingencies is extremely difficult in the best of times, but we can at least train, drill and plan for our response. Use this experience to inform how you can prepare for the next crisis.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, maintain perspective and practice self-care. Maintaining clarity so you can focus on the current crisis response and the bigger picture, while you are also experiencing the stress and emotions of this pandemic, is extremely hard. The only way to do that effectively is to make sure that you’re taking care of yourself. Get the sleep and support you need and practice the self-care tools that help you to be at your best. Doing so will help you stay focused and positive so that everyone around you can do the same.

KRISTINE STR AT TON President and CEO

2377 Belmont Ridge Rd. | Ashburn, VA 20148 2 703.858.0784 | nrpa.org

NRPA’S MISSION: To advance parks, recreation and environmental conservation efforts that enhance the quality of life for all people.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Chair of the Board of Directors Jack Kardys J. Kardys Strategies Miami, Florida

Joanna Lombard University of Miami School of Architecture; Miller School of Medicine Department of Public Health Sciences Miami, Florida

Chair-Elect Michael P. Kelly Chicago Park District Chicago, Illinois Treasurer Jesús Aguirre, CPRE

Carolyn McKnight-Fredd, CPRP

Seattle Parks and Recreation Seattle, Washington

Herman Parker

Previously with BREC Dallas, Texas

Joshua Medeiros, Ed.D., CPRP, AFO City of Bristol Parks & Recreation Bristol, Connecticut

Secretary Carolyn McKnight-Fredd, CPRP

Formerly of City of San Diego, California, Parks and Recreation Department San Diego, California

Previously with BREC Dallas, Texas

Ian Proud

President and CEO Kristine Stratton, Ex Officio National Recreation and Park Association Ashburn, Virginia

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Michael Abbaté, FASLA, LEED AP Abbaté Designs Portland, Oregon

Jesús Aguirre, CPRE Seattle Parks and Recreation Seattle, Washington

Hayden Brooks American Realty Corporation Austin, Texas

Kong Chang City of Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Saint Paul, Minnesota

Kevin Coyle, J.D.

Atlanta Beltline, Inc. Atlanta, Georgia

Xavier D. Urrutia Alamo Colleges District San Antonio, Texas

Greg A. Weitzel, M.S., CPRP City of Las Vegas Parks and Recreation Las Vegas, Nevada

Philip Wu, M.D. Formerly of Kaiser Permanente Northwest Region Portland, Oregon

LIFE TRUSTEES Beverly D. Chrisman Lexington, South Carolina

Jose Felix Diaz

James H. Evans

Ballard Partners Miami, Florida

New York, New York

Victor Dover

Sugar Hill, New Hampshire

Dover, Kohl & Partners Town Planning Miami, Florida

Earl T. Groves

Richard Gulley

Charles E. Hartsoe, Ph.D.

J. Kardys Strategies Miami, Florida

Fort Mill, South Carolina

Rosemary Hall Evans

Gastonia, North Carolina Richmond, Virginia

Harry G. Haskell, Jr. Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania

Kathryn A. Porter

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EDITOR’S LET TER

Uncovering Disparities in the Age of COVID-19 COVID-19 has devastated communities across the nation and affected the lives of all, whether it be loss of work, constant exposure to a dismal news cycle, upheaval of routine due to ‘stay-at-home’ orders or direct association with the disease itself. Yet, research shows that some populations are more impacted than others, both by the disease itself (tinyurl. com/skkpc3z) and by the economic fallout (tinyurl.com/vqo3hbe). In addition to older adults and individuals with underlying health conditions, the people most at risk of being acutely affected include groups that face increased barriers in access to economic opportunities and healthcare — and preliminary data specific to COVID-19 shows that these people are disproportionately black and Latino (tinyurl.com/tguofln).

This imbalance of burden-bearing remains true for many of the issues the world faces today and will face in the coming months and years. One such example is climate change, which is a global concern, but the effects of which are disproportionately experienced by disadvantaged groups (tinyurl.com/su3asbg). In response to these disparities, Julian Agyeman, author and professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University in Massachusetts, developed a concept about the “intentional integration of social justice and environmental sustainability,” called “just sustainabilities.” According to Agyeman, “…just sustainabilities was about acknowledging that we could probably legislate for a green planet, but if that planet [weren’t] also socially just, would it really be sustainable in the longer term?” In our cover feature beginning on page 36, titled “Julian Agyeman: A Visionary for Just Sustainabilities,” NRPA President and CEO Kristine Stratton speaks with Agyeman to discuss the concept of just sustainabilities and its application for parks and recreation.

Then, in “Collaboration in the Time of Pandemic” on page 42, contributor Paul Gilbert tells how a group of park directors from Northern Virginia are turning to each other for ideas and support, and to develop a unified message for their park users during the pandemic. “As a profession of highly adaptive and creative public servants, the park and recreation field is uniquely positioned to help our communities in the days ahead,” says Gilbert.

While COVID-19 has revealed some of the inequities our communities face, park and recreation professionals are working hard to provide lifesaving benefits to all people in all communities. Parks and recreation has always stood for inclusive spaces that provide health, wellness and quality of life for everyone. In these challenging times, the role of parks and recreation in promoting these values has been brought to the forefront, and professionals in the field are working in solidarity to address the current challenges. In future issues, we will explore further how park and recreation professionals are addressing this pandemic in their own community and agency.

Lastly, I would like to introduce our newest member of the NRPA team, Vitisia “Vi” Paynich as Parks & Recreation’s executive editor. Vi has been freelance writing for the magazine since 2016, and has extensive experience in print and digital publishing.

We here at NRPA thank you for all you are doing to make our world a healthier, safer place, and will continue to provide the support you need. For a list of our COVID-19 resources, visit nrpa.org/Coronavirus.

GINA MULLINS-COHEN Vice President of Communications and Chief Marketing Officer 8

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PRESIDENT AND CEO Kristine Stratton VICE PRESIDENT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER Gina Mullins-Cohen gcohen@nrpa.org EXECUTIVE EDITOR, PRINT AND ONLINE CONTENT Vitisia Paynich vpaynich@nrpa.org ASSOCIATE EDITOR Lindsay Collins lcollins@nrpa.org PUBLICATION DESIGN Kim Mabon/Creative By Design CreativeByDesign.net SENIOR SALES MANAGER EASTERN REGION AND EUROPE Kip Ongstad 703.858.2174 kongstad@nrpa.org SENIOR SALES MANAGER WESTERN REGION AND ASIA Michelle Dellner 949.248.1057 mdellner@nrpa.org SALES COORDINATOR Meghan Fredriksen 703.858.2190 mfredriksen@nrpa.org PHOTOGRAPHY Dreamstime.com or NRPA (unless otherwise noted) MAGAZINE ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS Anthony-Paul Diaz, Chair Michael Abbaté, FASLA Neelay Bhatt Ryan Eaker Beau Fieldsend Robert García Kathleen Gibi Paul Gilbert, CPRP Tim Herd, CPRE Brian Johnson, CPSI Denise Johnson-Caldwell Roslyn Johnson, CPRP Michele Lemons Sam Mendelsohn Maria Nardi Lisa Paradis, CPRP Paula Sliefert Shonnda Smith, CPRP, AFO Anne-Marie Spencer Stephen Springs

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WE ARE PARKS & RECREATION A Park Planner’s Perspective on the COVID-19 Pandemic

By Clement Lau, AICP, DPPD

O

n November 18, 2019, Woodcrest Play Park opened to the public. This innovative project transformed previously underutilized space at Woodcrest Library to a vibrant public park, and is the result of a collaboration between the Los Angeles County Library and the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation. The park consists of a children’s play area with book-themed elements, a seating area with USB and laptop charging stations, an outdoor fitness zone, and over 1,500 new drought-tolerant plants.

Park Need, Access and Benefits

PHOTOS BY LOS ANGELES COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

Woodcrest Play Park is located in the unincorporated community of Westmont, which has about 33,000 residents and a very high level of park need per the 2016 Los Angeles Countywide Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment. This park has increased the percentage of Westmont residents living within a 10-minute walk of a park from 35 to 57 percent, which translates to an additional 7,000 residents, including 2,000 youth, being able to access a nearby park.

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Sadly, a few months after its opening, the park closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While it is a necessary precaution, it is still disheartening to know the park and its wonderful amenities are not accessible to residents who need them most, even if it is temporary.

We all need parks. Not only was this the tag line for our needs assessment, but it is also a statement that has been validated repeatedly during the COVID-19 pandemic. At a time of need, our parks, beaches and trails revealed themselves as the essential

civic infrastructure they are.

It is unfortunate that it took a pandemic for many to realize what park and recreation professionals have known and argued for a long time: we must invest in parks because they are critical to our quality of life and offer multiple vital benefits that are quantifiable (nrpa.org/HealthFactSheets).

Park Equity The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on the park inequities that exist in L.A. and across the country. Our most underinvested communities are the ones most dependent on parks for their health and well-being. When failures to comply with physical distancing guidelines result in the closure of certain amenities and even entire parks and trails, lower-income residents suffer the most. As Catherine Nagel, executive director of City Parks Alliance, said in a recently released statement, “Parks and green infrastructure — especially in lowincome communities where their many benefits are often most needed — is often limited, leaving many residents without access to quality parks, recreational opportunities, and other positive environmental conditions.

To help our communities recover, cities must invest equitably in parks and recreation facilities, redressing decades-long underinvestment.”

With the issuance of stay-at-home Only a few months after its opening, Woodcrest Play Park was forced to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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A ribbon-cutting ceremony for Woodcrest Play Park took place on November 18, 2019.

as providing GIS and administrative support at the L.A. County Office of Emergency Management and helping to staff a call center to assist small businesses. Some are working on efforts to temporarily convert indoor gyms at parks to emergency homeless shelters. The rest of us are continuing to do the necessary behind-the-scenes work to improve existing parks and develop new ones. orders, we have been asked to stay home as much as possible, but are allowed to walk around our neighborhoods to get some fresh air or exercise. This makes sense because cabin fever is real and being inside for an extended period of time is challenging. However, not all neighborhoods are created equal. Specifically, lower-income residents often live in neighborhoods that have safety issues and/or lack the pedestrian infrastructure (like sidewalks, crosswalks, curb ramps and trees) and conditions that make walking safe and comfortable. In addition, while wealthier folks are likely to have sizable backyards, swimming pools and/or personal gyms, those living in underinvested communities do not have such luxuries.

Ideas to Consider A crisis like we’re experiencing is also an opportunity to reexamine current practices and contemplate new ideas. An important question that has emerged with the closure of many parks in L.A. is, “Can’t we find ways to manage recreation facilities without outlawing their use?” as Manal Aboelata, a parent and deputy executive director of Prevention Institute, 12

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asked in a letter to the editor.

Perhaps the concept of carrying capacity offers part of the answer.

While the term is typically associated with national parks and is more concerned about the protection of these areas from overcrowding, I wonder if it could be adapted for local parks. Within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the goal would be to have some objective or scientific way, using GIS and other tools, to determine the capacity of a park, beach or trail, while considering physical distancing guidelines.

Another idea worth considering is the temporary conversion of some streets to public spaces where people can walk, exercise, bike and hang out without worrying about vehicular traffic. This is one of the recommendations that the National Association of City Transportation Officials has for cities as a way to create more space during COVID-19.

The Work Continues So, what are L.A. County’s park planning and development professionals doing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic? Well, a few of my colleagues have been activated as disaster service workers on assignments, such

Stay Positive and Strong For all my fellow park and recreation professionals, we must stay strong and continue to serve our communities to the best of our ability. There will be a day when the pandemic is over. There will be a day when our beloved beaches, trails and parks — like Woodcrest Play Park — will be re-opened. I look forward to that day.

For more information from the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation, please see the COVID-19 Updates from L.A. County Parks webpage (parks.la county.gov/covid-19).

For more information about NRPA’s response to COVID-19, as well as available resources for park and recreation professionals, please see our Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) webpage (nrpa.org/ Coronavirus).

Editor’s Note: This article has been adapted from its original version posted to NRPA’s Open Space Blog (nrpa. org/Blog). To read the full text, visit nrpa.org/Covid19ParkPlanners.

Clement Lau, AICP, DPPD, is a Departmental Facilities Planner with the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation (clau@parks. lacounty.gov).

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W E A R E P A R K S & R E C R E AT I O N

CAPRA Can Take an Agency from Good to Great

By Stacey Dicke, CPRP

C

ity of New Braunfels Parks and Recreation serves a city with a population of about 85,000. The department has 84 full-time employees, 110 part-time employees and an additional 180 seasonal staff. The city has a little more than 700 acres of parkland, one 18-hole golf course, one 74,000-square-foot recreation center, three outdoor pools and two historic cemeteries. The civic/convention center is also a part of the department.

City of New Braunfels Parks and Recreation initiated completion of all 151 CAPRA standards.

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PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF CITY OF NEW BRAUNFELS

I began my journey with NRPA’s Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies (CAPRA) in 2010 when I attended a CAPRA visitor training at the NRPA Annual Conference in Minneapolis. I left intrigued by the process and wondering if this would be something I would want to pursue back home.

My first visit to Grove City, Ohio, did not disappoint. The city’s parks and recreation director, Kim Conrad, and her crew were gracious hosts and gave me an incredible firsttime visitor experience. I worked with a team, led by parks and recreation director of St. Helena, California, Andre Pichly, that was patient,

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motivating and set me on the course for visitor success. I followed up that experience with visits for the next several years, even serving as a lead in Garner, North Carolina.

One of the things I loved best about serving on a visitation team was the amazing people I met. I have made not just professional contacts, but also lasting friendships. I loved taking a deep dive into some of the best agencies in the country, expanded my thought processes regarding agency makeup and protocols and brought home creative programs, ideas for innovative parks and facilities, and best practices for our profession.

I soon knew I wanted to pursue accreditation for my own department. I began by sharing my experiences with our staff when returning home from a visit. This insight of best practices began to pique curiosity within our staff. When our state association held a CAPRA training at our annual conference, I signed up all our staff to attend. This was a great way to have their questions answered and for them to talk with other agencies pursuing accreditation. It offered a chance to not only discuss the process, but also discov-

er the reasons why these agencies were interested in CAPRA. It gave us a better understanding that the journey was not about checking another box or receiving acclamations, but rather about taking a department from good to great, and from doing our job well to defining and documenting our roles.

We started our journey by assessing each standard for compliance.

This gave us a clear picture of the work ahead of us. We set an annual goal for each manager to complete a portion of the standards.

This seemed like a comfortable way to allow staff to “dip their toes” in the waters of CAPRA. After two years of this practice, we initiated completion of all 151 standards. We organized a smartsheet to track our progress and gave regular updates on completion rates to the organization.

In April 2019, we were fortunate to bring a CAPRA training on-site and included all managers, supervisors and coordinators. We officially submitted our paperwork to NRPA in July 2019 and, at this writing, are scheduled for our site visit this upcoming June 2020. Due to a rapidly changing environment as a result of COVID-19, our visit will likely be different than we expected, but we are ready. We are proud of the work we have done, the improvements we have made and the course we have set for the future.

Stacey Dicke, CPRP, is Director of Parks and Recreation at City of New Braunfels, Texas (sdicke@nbtexas.org).

2020 Annual Conference Education Programming Overview

By John Prue

T

his year, NRPA received more than 700 education session topic submissions for the 2020 NRPA Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, to be held October 27–29. Narrowing this record amount of proposals to around 185 sessions is the duty of the Conference Program Committee (CPC), a committee of dedicated volunteers representing the diversity of the park and recreation industry, working in a variety of capacities within their respective agencies. These volunteers sacrificed long hours over the December holidays and into the new year, reading and ranking each proposal for final selection discussions that took place at the winter meeting in Orlando on January 30 and 31.

Working hand-in-hand with NRPA staff, 12 topic subcommittees discussed the “best-of-the-best” in each category, attempting to provide an inclusive distribution of topics that covered a diversity of perspectives on the current challenges and opportunities that park and recreation professionals face. The open call for sessions delivered an abundance of proposals for Leadership & Management, Recreation &

Sports Programming, Social Equity & Inclusion, and Planning, Design & Maintenance. The winter meeting allowed the CPC to convene and validate final selections, creating a distribution between 11 and 19 sessions within each of the 12 tracks and to note gaps in programming for the committee and NRPA to fill leading up to the main event.

The CPC and NRPA’s overall mission is always to select the best,

most relevant education sessions to serve our peers and support NRPA’s Three Pillars. In addition, we also are working on future processes to continue to improve the way the CPC/NRPA determine what topics would be of most value to our colleagues, seeking out top speakers in the field, developing the diversity of the profession and ultimately improving how we sift through hundreds of session proposals in an intentional, mission-driven manner.

The winter meeting was also an opportunity for the CPC to experience the host city, guided by the generosity of Marcia Bowen, CPRP, from the city of Orlando.

Marcia’s programmed tours of the city parks, meetings with elected officials and shared information regarding the city of Orlando helped to inform the topics that were finally selected to align with the 2020 NRPA Annual Conference setting and suggested off-site institutes.

By the time we all arrive in Orlando, we will have spent the better part of the year setting up educational sessions to be offered at this year’s conference. This is my seventh year on the committee and as the chairperson for this year, I’ve never been prouder of the work we have done and of my fellow members on the CPC. John Prue is Installation Program Director at Morale, Welfare and Recreation, Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois, and the 2020 NRPA Annual Conference Program Committee Chair (john.prue@navy.mil).

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W E A R E P A R K S & R E C R E AT I O N

LSPR Honors Tom Lovell with Community Center Dedication

O

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF TOM LOVELL

n September 12, 2019, Lee’s Summit Parks and Recreation (LSPR) in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, renamed and dedicated its principal community center in honor of the department’s former administrator, Tom Lovell. What was previously the Legacy Park Community Center is now the J. Thomas Lovell Jr. Community Center at Legacy Park.

“Tom Lovell was the driving force behind the successes and accomplishments of LSPR for 38 years,” says Joe Snook, current LSPR administrator, in a press release (tinyurl.com/ ujwuapc). “I cannot think of a more appropriate way to honor his legacy than to name our flagship community center after Mr. Lovell.”

During Lovell’s service as administrator of LSPR from 1979 to 2017, the department grew from 12 staff members to 42 full-time employees and hundreds of part-time and seasonal employees. Under Lovell’s leadership, LSPR acquired more than 950 acres of new open space and developed 77 miles of trails, 30 neighborhood parks, three Tom Lovell (left) poses for a picture with community centers Missouri Governor Mike Parson. and a water park.

In addition, LSPR earned CAPRA accreditation in 2003 and became reaccredited in 2008 and 2013. In 2010, the department was awarded the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration’s National Gold Medal Award.

“This is such a surprise and special honor to have this flagship facility renamed after me,” says Lovell. “[Legacy Park Community Center] has served the community and has substantiated the beliefs in the parks system to provide services, benefits to our health and generate revenue for Lee’s Summit. I am humbled and would like to thank all the people involved in the development of the facility and those renaming [it].”

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Member Benefit: NRPA Career Center Resources

W

hether you are a job seeker or an employer who is looking to hire qualified individuals, the NRPA Career Center is here to help during this difficult time.

Job Seeker Resources: • Choosing a Career in Parks and Recreation – Visit our page that highlights different professions throughout the field and also takes a look at 10 typical park and recreation agency position salaries.

• Job Alerts – Once you select your search criteria and submit a search, you will have the option to set up a Job Alert to receive emails daily with matching jobs.

• Upload Your Résumé – Post your résumé for employers to find and contact you.

Employer Resources: • Google for Jobs Integration – Jobs posted to the NRPA Career Center are automatically searchable through Google for Jobs, creating even greater exposure. The Google for Jobs application appears before Google’s standard search results, prioritizing your positions.

• Easily Manage Your Applications – After your job listing is posted, it then becomes time to manage all the applications you’ve received. Stay organized by marking candidates you are interested in and deleting applicants who don’t fit the position.

• Job Posting Tips & Sample Descriptions – The Career Center offers employer resources to help your job posts stand out and attract top candidates. It also includes a summary of best practices for posting jobs online following government compliance.

The NRPA Career Center is the best online resource for reaching qualified park and recreation professionals. Not only can you post or browse current job opportunities from around the country, but there are also internship and seasonal positions.

NRPA members can post both internship and seasonal opportunities for free. Visit nrpa.org/Careers to see all the resources available.

NRPA PARK PULSE

Parks Are Essential, Especially During a Health Crisis

83%

of adults find exercising at local parks, trails and open spaces essential to maintaining their mental and physical health during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BIKING

JOGGING

WALKING

HIKING

59%

of respondents say it is very or extremely essential to exercise in parks and green spaces to relieve stress and remain healthy during this crisis.

Numerous studies show there are physical and mental health benefits to spending time in green spaces. Local parks, trails and open spaces have recently become even more of a respite from stress. In March 2020, NRPA released a joint statement about using parks and open spaces while maintaining physical distancing. To date, more than 1,000 groups nationwide have signed on to voice support of the safe use of parks during this crisis. Visit www.nrpa.org/Coronavirus for more information.

Each month, through a poll of 1,000 U.S. residents focused on park and recreation issues, NRPA Park Pulse helps tell the park and recreation story. Questions span from the serious to the more lighthearted. The survey was conducted by Wakefield Research (www.wakefieldresearch.com).

Visit nrpa.org/ParkPulse for more information.

RESEARCH How COVID-19 Impacts Park and Recreation Funding

By Kevin Roth

T

he time is now.

We have written in these pages, delivered in presentations and imparted in our classes the importance of making the case for your work. The public’s strong support for parks and recreation is not enough to guarantee your agency receives the needed financial and staffing resources to deliver on its mission. At any time, every dollar of your agency’s budget is at risk.

In 2017, NRPA commissioned a study (nrpa.org/LocalOfficials) that found local elected and appointed public officials freely acknowledge that they target park and recreation agencies for substantial budget cuts when their city, town or county faces a fiscal crisis.

This is despite the fact they wholeheartedly agree that parks and recreation significantly benefit their communities, especially in enhancing quality of life and promoting healthy lifestyles.

We know this is not a theoretical idea. A 2018 Penn State study (nrpa. org/RecessionImpact) examining the impact of the Great Recession found that local park and recreation agency funding plunged an inflation-adjusted 21 percent in the years between 2009 and 2013. No local government service — public safety, education or 18

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transportation — suffered as much.

Even worse, park and recreation agency funding (and staffing) were slow to rebound during the economic recovery.

These research findings demonstrate just how precarious park and recreation funding is, especially when the economy hits a downturn. In recent years, we noted that it was just a matter of time before the economy would fall into a recession, when local governments would face squeezing tax revenues and rising demand for local government services.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has extracted a high human cost across our nation and around the world. In response, local, state and federal governments have had to redirect their financial resources in their battle against the virus. At the same time, tax revenues plummeted at all three levels of government, as business activity halted and employers laid off workers. It will be some time before we fully understand COVID-19’s economic impact, but we know it will be staggering. And, even the best minds can only guess at this time on the strength of the

eventual economic recovery and when business activity and tax revenues will return to “normal.”

What is not speculative is that local and state governments will be facing tremendous fiscal pressures over the coming months and years.

As a result, policymakers will be facing difficult decisions on the budgets and staffing of their jurisdiction’s services.

Making the Case for P&R You have a compelling story to tell.

Park and recreation professionals at more than 10,000 agencies across the United States advance their communities in many different ways. You have a positive impact on the lives of millions of people every day. Striking dollars from park and recreation budgets deprives people of open spaces to exercise for no or little cost, a place for hurried individuals to reconnect with nature and community resources where one can get a nutritious meal.

Also significant in any “making the case” argument is the economic benefits that your agency brings to your community. Sparking economic activity and creating jobs is park and recreation’s number one priority.

Unfortunately, mayors, county executives, city managers and council members may not be aware of how the work of park and recreation professionals and their agencies bring economic prosperity.

This is where the latest NRPA research report comes in. The NRPA

Economic Impact of Parks report (nrpa.org/ParkEcon Report), conducted by the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University and published in April, highlights how your agency is an engine of business activity locally, statewide and across our nation. The new study found that local park and recreation agencies generated more than $166 billion in U.S. economic activity and supported 1.1 million jobs from their operations and capital spending in 2017.

The researchers derived this finding from U.S. Census Bureau data that shows local park and recreation agencies employed nearly 380,000 full-time and parttime employees in 2017. That translates to almost $39.6 billion of operations spending by the nation’s local park and recreation agencies. These agencies also made $28.9 billion in capital expenditures during that same year. The combined operations and capital spending ripples through the national, regional and local economies as park and recreation employees spend their paychecks, park and recreation agency vendors hire workers, and both agencies and their vendors purchase products and services to serve their clients.

The new report also features similar estimates of economic impact and jobs generated for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. California’s local park and recreation agencies’ operations and capital spending generated more than $16 billion of economic activity and supported nearly 110,000 jobs. Following California, the states enjoying the most significant economic benefit from local parks and recreation are Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas.

Beyond the impact of local park and recreation agency spending, other critical economic impact contributions from public parks include conservation and resiliency, health and wellness, property values and visitor spending.

Park and recreation agency spending generates three significant effects: • Direct effects that reflect the spending by local park and recreation agencies and include wages and benefits to agency employees and spending on equipment, utilities, goods and services • Indirect effects that capture the spending associated with local park and recreation agencies’ vendors • Induced effects that track the impact of consumer spending (from wages) by park and recreation agency employees and employees working for agencies’ vendors

The implications are clear. Cutting park and recreation funding may provide a short-term respite for a local government’s budget shortfall. Still, the impact of these cuts ripples beyond the initial savings, cutting jobs and reducing business activity in an already sluggish economic environment, sparking a vicious cycle that leads to further budget cuts and reduced services.

Now more than ever, park and recreation professionals and their advocates need to educate policymakers, key stakeholders and the general public on the broad impact of their work. When combined with the ability to deliver healthier and happier communities, parks and recreation’s powerful economic impact highlights the fact that your agency’s offerings are not merely a “niceto-have,” luxury government service. Instead, parks and recreation transforms our cities, towns and counties into vibrant and prosperous communities for all.

The time to tell that story is now.

Kevin Roth is Vice President of Research, Evaluation and Technology at NRPA (kroth@nrpa.org).

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FINANCE FOR THE FIELD The Impact of Trails and Greenways on Property Values

By John L. Crompton, Ph.D.

I

n 1989, the President’s Commission on Americans Outdoors recommended the nation develop a system of recreational corridors: “Fingers of green that reach out from and around and through communities all across America.” They called for a “prairie fire of local action” to implement the vision.

Three factors came together to create a “perfect storm,” which ignited that vision.

First, Congress was concerned the dramatic contraction of active rail lines from their peak of 254,251 miles in 1916 to 141,000 miles by 1980 was resulting in a loss of land corridors — which preempted any future reactivation that may be desired for military or mass transportation purposes.

Consequently, in 1983 to preserve the corridors for potential future transportation uses, Congress amended section 8(d) of the National Trail Systems Act (often called the Railbanking Act or the Rails-to-Trails Act) to preserve established railroad corridors for interim trail and future rail use. This legislation spurred an extraordinary surge in trails.

The lack of funding needed to compensate adjacent landowners and to pay for the cost of transitioning rail line beds to hike-bike trails was a bar-

rier to realizing the potential of the railbanking provision. The second element in the “perfect storm” was the 1992 federal Transportation Bill. This included a component that funded nontraditional projects that enhanced the existing transportation infrastructure. The funds provided up to 80 percent of the cost of a project, so local and state entities were required to finance only 20 percent of the cost. This offered a strong incentive for local trail initiatives. Similar enhancement funding has been included in every subsequent Transportation Bill.

The third factor emerged in the last quarter of the 20th century, when Americans became much more aware of the importance of exercise in maintaining good health. During the 1970s and 1980s, 25 million Americans took up running while many more engaged in regular walking. The most recent survey by the National Association of Homebuilders reported that walking/ jogging trails ranked third or fourth among all homebuyer age groups as most desired local amenities on a list of 19. This reflects the growing prominence of trails in both the commuting and leisure dimensions of people’s lives.

Gauging Property Owners’ Perceptions For the most part, the rationale un20 Parks & Recreation

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derlying the proposition that trails and greenways may positively influence property values differs from that associated with parks. Unlike parks, any added property value is not likely to come from the views of nature or open space that a property owner enjoys, because in many cases, especially in urban trail contexts, there are no such vistas. Rather, any added value derives from access to the linear trail.

It is a trail’s functionality or activity potential that is likely to confer added value, not the panorama of attractive open space.

In a recent article published in the Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, Sarah Nicholls, a professor in the department of business at Swansea University’s School of Management, and I reviewed findings of studies that evaluated the impact of trails on property values. Those conducted in the 1980s and 1990s relied on responses to surveys by people living next to trails.

Typically, they were asked two questions. First, did the trail increase or decrease their property’s value?

Opinion surveys from the 10 urban studies addressing this question reported that among 2,647 households residing proximate to 24 urban trails, only 6 percent perceived trails had a negative impact on their property. In contrast, 47 percent believed the trail increased their property’s value.

Among the 1,212 proximate property owners along eight primarily rural trails, most perceived the trail did not influence their property’s value. Again, only 6 percent report-

ed a decrease, but the proportion perceiving an increase was much lower than along the urban trails (16 percent compared to 47 percent).

These findings were important because they strongly suggested that exposure to a trail after it has been open for a number of years led those most impacted to conclude that fears of negative financial repercussions associated with a trail are generally without merit.

Second, was the property likely to sell more quickly or more slowly because of its proximity to the trail? Responses were reflective of those to the first question. Among those residing proximate to urban trails, 62 percent perceived a sale would be faster and 8 percent slower, while the rural residents’ re-

sponses were 29 percent faster and 9 percent slower.

Analyzing the Data This approach had three obvious limitations. First, responses were subjective best guesses given by homeowners who, in many cases, had given little or no thought to the issue, and whose answers were not informed either by personal experience with recent market transactions or by knowledge of comparable sales transactions. Second, the sample sizes of these studies were small. Third, only one of the 18 studies appeared in a refereed journal, which means they may not possess the rigor that is expected in peerreviewed social science research.

The emergence of much more advanced electronic technology in the

late 1990s enabled these issues to be addressed by using more sophisticated research and statistical processes, and databases comprised of sales transactions. We identified 20 studies that investigated the impact of trails on residential property values. The results indicated that a small positive premium of between 3 percent and 5 percent was the most widespread outcome for a single-family home located next to a trail. However, there were outliers that suggested the premium might be as high as 15 percent in some cases, while in other contexts there may be a small negative impact.

John L. Crompton, Ph.D., is a University Distinguished Professor, Regents Professor and Presidential Professor for Teaching Excellence in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Sciences at Texas A&M University and an elected Councilmember for the City of College Station (jcrompton@tamu.edu).

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ADVOCACY

Advocating in Challenging Times OAK urges states to support Every Kid Outdoors in State Parks Campaign

By Jackie Ostfeld and Paul Sanford

W

e are living in strange and difficult times. At the Outdoors Alliance for Kids (OAK), we know this international pandemic is challenging for everyone. Physical distancing and sheltering in place are particularly difficult for people who know the value of spending time outdoors with friends and family.

OAK believes strongly in our collective responsibility to do our part to minimize the impacts of COVID-19. That’s why OAK’s advocates, including NRPA, have embraced physical distancing and minimized our face-to-face interactions. As a result of these challenging circumstances, we are finding new ways to do the work of advocating for getting more kids outdoors.

To be clear, our work continues.

Even as we join efforts to reduce the spread of this disease, we are preparing for the day when we can all emerge from our homes and begin enjoying the outdoors again with people we care about.

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Outdoor Recreation Habits Declining We do this work with renewed conviction because evidence suggests the need has never been greater. Earlier this year, the Outdoor Foundation released its annual outdoor participation report. Overshadowed by recent events, this report tracks the outdoor recreation habits of Americans, and the 2019 results were particularly dire. Little more than half of individuals in the United States went on a single outing over the course of the year. Less than 18 percent got outdoors even once per week.

These figures are striking, but the statistics for young people are of the greatest concern. On average,

kids went on 15 percent fewer annual outings in 2018 than they did in 2012. While participation on outings increased among Latino youth, two things stayed constant: youth participation outdoors remained overwhelmingly white, and total youth participation continued going down.

The steady decline in youth activity should be particularly concerning, as youth participation is a strong indicator of future activity as an adult. In fact, adults who were active outdoors during childhood are twice as likely to be active in adulthood. In other words, a kid who does not get outdoors early in life is unlikely to do so later.

But, why aren’t kids going outdoors? Part of the reason is the availability of other entertainment.

Television, video games and other electronic media offer today’s kids a virtual world at their fingertips.

Another reason is a lack of access.

Fewer than half of all U.S. residents live within walking distance of a park. What’s more, a lack of quality public transportation makes it incredibly difficult for individuals — and especially families — to get to a park.

And, parking, entrance and other fees can quickly make a trip to a park costprohibitive for working-class families.

Every Kid Outdoors in State Parks Campaign Since its formation in 2010, OAK has worked to make the outdoors more accessible to kids and families. One of our greatest achievements was supporting the development of the Every Kid in a Park pass. Established

in 2015 and renamed Every Kid Outdoors in 2019, the pass program was launched to welcome a new generation of children onto their public lands by providing fourth graders and their families with free entry to national parks and other federal public lands. The program was an immediate hit, with more than 2 million kids and their families downloading the pass and leveraging $5 million in private funding. In 2019, after advocacy

by OAK, the Every Kid Outdoors Act was signed into law, extending the program for seven years and ensuring that nearly 4 million children can visit national parks annually free of charge.

However, national parks are not the only way to experience the outdoors, and even with the Every Kid Outdoors pass, getting to a national park is not easy for all families. That’s why OAK is preparing to launch a new initiative for 2020. Through its Every Kid Outdoors in State Parks campaign, OAK will urge governors across the country to accept the national pass in their state park systems, allowing youth, kids and families to access these outdoor spaces without paying fees.

Several states have already begun accepting the national pass or launched their own equivalent programs, and OAK is looking to grow nationwide support to get every kid outdoors. Access to the outdoors is a human right, and every child has the right to experience the benefits of time in nature regardless of their zip code. That’s why the campaign will also build and facilitate partnerships and promote state, local and regional park and recreation agency efforts to connect youth to the outdoors. You can support the campaign by joining and sharing

your programming and partnerships that your agency uses to promote youth outdoors access. Learn more and pledge your support to get every kid outdoors today at everykidoutdoors.org.

Jackie Ostfeld is Director of Outdoors for All, Sierra Club and Chair of Outdoors Alliance for Kids (jackie. ostfeld@sierraclub.org). Paul Sanford is National Director of Recreation Policy at The Wilderness Society and Vice Chair of Outdoors Alliance for Kids (psanford@tws.org).

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HEALTH & WELLNESS

Older Adult Health and Well-Being: Still a National Priority in a ‘New Normal’

By Lesha Spencer-Brown, MPH, CPH

W

e have all been living in unprecedented times that have called for new ways of daily living from the way we interact and spend time with our family, friends and neighbors, to the way we recreate and maintain healthy lifestyles. Coupled with the fact that many of us are still coming to terms with new ways of being, there is uncertainty, fear and anxiousness about when things will get back to “normal.” This has been particularly troubling and challenging for many older adults and people with serious underlying medical conditions, who are at an increased risk for potentially severe complications if exposed to COVID-19. Given this, it is now more crucial than ever before that we help older adults maintain a healthy lifestyle.

While a healthy lifestyle is important at any age, it is especially important for older adults, because data tells us that at least 60 percent of older adults suffer from one chronic condition, and at least 80 percent suffer from two or more chronic conditions. Putting this into perspective, additional public health efforts

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to help those already suffering from chronic conditions manage their illnesses and efforts to prevent or delay the onset of chronic conditions are critically warranted.

A Role for P&R The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that older

adults engage in health-promoting skills and behaviors (tinyurl.com/ r5b88gj), such as physical activity and healthy eating, good sleeping habits, staying socially connected, and seeking regular healthcare screenings to improve and maintain good health.

With older adults being particularly urged by public health officials to ‘shelter in place’ and practice physical distancing in efforts to reduce potential exposure, it has been challenging to establish new routines to maintain a healthy lifestyle. But for the past several weeks, park and recreation agencies across the country have stepped into new roles, offering open spaces as places of refuge, and reinventing program offerings to continue to meet

the most pressing needs of the community — most notably in the areas of physical, social and nutrition health needs.

Addressing Physical Health Needs Staying physically active is an important part of a healthy lifestyle that can prevent, delay or manage chronic diseases, make it easier to perform activities of daily living (e.g., getting in and out of a chair or bed), and preserve physical function and mobility for older adults.

To continue efforts to help older adults maintain a physically active lifestyle, park and recreation professionals have begun offering home-based and virtual physical activity resources that range from the sharing of existing resources (e.g., YouTube videos, Go4Life, SilverSneaker On-Demand), to the development of new resources. For example, Newport Parks and Recreation, Oregon, (newportoregon.gov/dept/par/sc) has provided existing YouTube resources, while the town of Lincoln Parks and Recreation, Massachusetts, created a webpage dedicated to home-based programming (lincolnrec.com/1184/Home-Based-Programming) that includes exercise videos produced by recreation instructors for adults and youths. Other agencies have developed virtual recreation centers and are using technology platforms to offer live virtual programming.

The great thing about virtual programming is that it also presents as a solution to reach populations that are often hard to reach (given that the capability to take advantage of remote programming exists), especially in rural communities.

Addressing Healthy Eating Needs Having reliable access to healthy meals is also an important determinant of healthy aging. For many people, accessing a healthy meal at a congregate meal site or getting a home-delivered meal is the only option to get a hot meal for the day. Furthermore, most older adults who rely on these meals are often low-income, live alone and lack proper transportation. To fill the gaps, agencies like Lewisville Parks and Recreation, Texas, (tinyurl.com/uufqchs) are delivering shelf-stable meals that will last for several days, while other agencies are providing grab-and-go and drive-thru meal pickups.

Addressing Social Health Needs Many older adults today are lonely and socially isolat

ed, both of which are associated with higher risks for chronic conditions and mental health issues. Conversely, people who engage in meaningful, productive activities with others tend to live longer, boost their mood and have a sense of purpose that helps them maintain their well-being. For example, City of Patterson Parks and Recreation, California, (ci.patterson.ca.us) has kept the lines of communication open with the older adults they serve, outreaching and ensuring that they are hearing a friendly and familiar voice.

There is no denying that local park and recreation agencies across the country have stepped up in the midst of a crisis to fulfill the needs of older adults in their community. In the words of Maxwell Maltz, “Close scrutiny will show that most crisis situations are opportunities to either advance or stay where you are.”

Cheers to parks and recreation still making older adult health and well-being a national priority in our new normal!

Lesha Spencer-Brown, MPH, CPH, is Health and Wellness Senior Program Manager at NRPA (lspencer@nrpa.org)

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PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF STORY COUNTY CONSERVATION

CONSERVATION CONSERVATION

Conservation at the Crossroads

By Erica L. Place

I

n Story County, Iowa, an undevelopable wild area sat in the middle of a planned commercial development. The developer, Iowa State University’s Research Park, saw the potential for an amenity rather than an obstacle. What began as discussions between the research park and the county quickly grew into multi-agency conversations about a shared vision — a learning corridor that would provide a place where people could see first-hand how the urban-rural interface was not only possible, but also could improve the economy, environment and quality of life.

The Four Cs The park’s namesake, Ted Tedesco, has been a stalwart of conservation and community betterment, serving as Ames mayor, on the Ames Planning and Zoning Commission, Ames City Council and Story County Conservation Board. Tedesco’s heart is in bringing people together and investing in future generations and our environment, and it was important these ideals were represented in the corridor. The “four Cs” concept coined by Tedes26 Parks & Recreation

Live stake plantings and root wads armor the curves in the stream and protect against erosion.

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co would guide us through development: collaboration, cooperation, conservation and connectivity.

In order to create a space that embodied the four Cs, habitat restoration had to be a large part of the process. The landscape was greatly altered from its historic form; the stream was flashy, incised and disconnected from the floodplain, and invasive species had taken the place of pre-settlement wet meadow and upland prairie. We needed to do more than just repair the landscape.

It had to become a live learning laboratory, modeling conservation techniques and sustainable technologies. And, because it was nestled in the heart of development, we had an opportunity to showcase stormwater management. Retention basins, which replicated wetlands, encouraged infiltration and also added aesthetically pleasing and functional habitat. Stream restoration work presented another opportunity to model up-andcoming sustainable strategies. Bioengineering techniques included using trees that had been removed during the prairie restoration to stabilize the banks. We strived to incorporate “greener” approaches to typical park amenities. Prairie reconstructed with local eco-type seed replaced traditional mowed turf grass. Repurposed shipping

containers made perfect shelters.

Filterpave — a new permeable surfacing material with recycled glass content — was used on secondary trails to further drive home a waterquality message. Interpretive panels throughout the park deliver messages about the value of these innovations and inspire others to think hard about habitat health.

The most recent Story County community health needs assessment identified physical activity and exercise as a priority. Therefore, making sure this venue is easily accessible for exercise and recreation was important. Situated on a bus route and located within city limits, the park is very accessible to residents. Upon arrival, visitors find a network of paved and mulched trails, boardwalks, and stream accesses and crossings to get them active and up close with nature. Connections to existing and future roads and trails ensure the park will remain stitched into the network of the surrounding communities as they grow.

Because the corridor is nestled between buildings where technology is developed and used, it is a prime candidate for technologyrelated amenities. Oftentimes, outdoor recreation is seen and promoted as an unplugged experience. But this space welcomes technology, creating an environment that all users can find comfort in. Solar-powered charging stations bring employees outside for meetings. Experiencing the park with a mobile device in hand doesn’t necessarily separate you from the resource; it can actually create better connections to fellow park users through social media and other digital experiences. And more technology is still being incorpo

rated — future plans include incorporating citizen science time-lapse photography, allowing the community to take part in documenting the success of this new public space. An interactive touchscreen display inside the core facility of the research park will walk the user through restoration work and conservation practices. In the corridor, technology is bringing people together rather than separating them.

A Recipe for Success The vision for the corridor was shaped through cooperation and collaboration among county, city, university and state partners, including the Research Park, Iowa State University, the Iowa Department of Transportation and the

city of Ames. And, the positive feedback gathered in public meetings early on evolved into volunteerism and advocacy from multiple civic groups and individuals.

Private donations complemented the grants and public dollars. A Kiwanis club has adopted the nowopen park, doing trash pickup and other park beautification duties.

This living classroom provides a nexus between natural resource management, economic development and community well-being.

Through coming together, we demonstrate synergy of environmental stewardship, healthy lifestyles, economic developments and water-quality improvements.

Erica L. Place is Outreach Coordinator for Story County Conservation (eplace@storycountyiowa.gov).

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SOCIAL EQUITY

Is COVID-19 Uncovering Park Inequities?

By Kimberly Burrowes

O

ver the past six months, COVID-19 has brought more than a health crisis — it has impacted the way we live and work in our communities across the nation. With policies (tinyurl.com/ rdtxsef) encouraging people to practice physical distancing, enact curfews and shelter in place, there are now less interactions in the public realm to slow the spread of the disease. The U.S. National Park Service, along with local government-managed park and recreation departments, face challenges keeping parks open to encourage physical activity and promote good mental health. Park system leaders also recognize that park space may prompt large gatherings and expose employees to health risks by maintaining the green spaces. While ensuring access to parks is an opportunity to diversify daily life, it creates a severe concern for advancing the spread of COVID-19.

Yet, even amidst this balancing act, there is the growing recognition that access to parks and recreational spaces are not equitable (tpl.org/10MinuteWalk). There are several communities that have historically lacked access to parks and continue to remain disconnected in a time when getting outdoors is one of the few permissible activities. In many cities across the United States, there are fewer quality parks in close proximity to low-income residents and communities of color, and even

when they live close by, they are less likely to frequent these spaces. Barriers, like perception of public safety, park entry fees and perceived racial discrimination, have prevented residents across the more vulnerable income, education and race groups from accessing parks. Examining the value of parks in a time of physical distancing can help unearth the inequities in the types and quality of spaces available for residents and determine if the communities’ values and priorities are being addressed.

Prioritizing Equitable Investments in COVID-19 In citywide budget cuts, park agency funding is one of the first to go, although parks have tremendous benefits. Parks and green space promote physical activities, encourage mental well-being, are valuable for the environment and bring communities together. While many cities have closed their large parks to uphold the CDC’s physical distancing restrictions, others have embraced the opportunity for residents to utilize the outdoors. According to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, the nationwide trail use grew by 200 percent from March 16 to 22.

As we move from response to recovery to resilience in this period of COVID-19, there is an opportunity to apply the observations of park inequities to improve future park development and programming.

These lessons were adapted from the 2019 Urban Institute report, “Investing in Equitable Urban Park Systems” (tinyurl.com/rsb8lal).

They were always essential for inclusive city planning but are now even more important as community resilience strategies.

Leveraging funding through multiple sources. Parks are mostly funded through traditional city sources, such as budget appropriations, dedicated tax and revenues, or earned fees. As priorities shift for COVID-19, many of these funding streams are dwindling or non-existent. Now is the time for park agencies to align investments with other local programs and policies, to tap new

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28 Parks & Recreation

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Boost Resident Experiences with Tech funding in creative ways, while benefiting the community.

Braiding and blending funding from different sources, such as philanthropic giving, federal grants and local bonds can be strategies to provide additional capital for parks. The Yonkers Greenway project (tinyurl.com/yx35nesk) in New York unlocked multiple sources of funding — state Department of Transportation funding, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency brownfield funds and state environmental funds — to revitalize the downtown area with a large park.

Engaging resident support in under-resourced communities. Smaller cities with financial constraints have to think creatively to source support for the operations and maintenance of parks and green space. Capital funding for parks is more likely to come from non-traditional sources, whereas taking care of and programming existing assets have typically come from the city or state. With this limitation in mind, the city of Brownsville, Texas, leveraged $3 million worth of volunteer hours for the maintenance of its parks through the Keep Brownsville Beautiful program. Involving the residents both eased the financial burden of maintaining the park and ensured they found value in the community asset.

Increasing park equity through health system partners. Health equity is an important consideration during COVID-19 and a significant benefit of parks. Kaiser Permanente and the California Wellness Foundation funded the HEAL Cities Campaign for Complete Parks Systems (tinyurl.com/ ueb43fh) to improve access to and active use of parks. Residents in Colton and Placentia, California, were engaged through advocacy workshops, planning meetings and other forms of stakeholder consultation to offer input in the planning and implementation of more equitable park policies. As a consequence of this, park agencies can demonstrate the health benefits of parks to encourage not just an increase in use, but also more funding.

COVID-19 has uncovered inequities in park quality and access that always existed in communities. These strategies, among several others, can help park agencies to remain resilient, but these alone will not be enough. Closing the park equity gap will require park and recreation agency leaders and their partners in government and communities to work together. New forms of funding will need to be aligned with citywide equity frames and complement national initiatives for inclusion (nrpa. org/ParksForInclusion). When equity is placed at the center of park investments (cityparksalliance.org/Equitable-ParkFunding) and funding decisions, the benefits are better positioned for residents and the city is more inclusive.

By Alex Gauthier

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Kimberly Burrowes is a Technical Assistance Specialist with the Research to Action Lab at the Urban Institute (kburrowes@urban.org).

A

s I physically distance myself and work on this article from home in late March, I can’t help but wonder where we’d be without technology. If the COVID-19 crisis has emphasized anything, it’s the importance of technology to keep the public and private sectors from falling apart. Leveraging technology to improve park and recreation operations and community engagement is not unheard of.

Everywhere you look, you are bound to find stakeholders who are either resisting tech or trying to be its cheerleader. There’s no denying that technology is at the heart of communities looking to stay connected and engaged, even if they can’t be together physically.

The time has never been better to evaluate how we choose to invest in and take advantage of the digital tools at our disposal. Every interaction an agency has with its residents is an experience; technology can help deliver an experience that is as impressive online as it is offline. As more and more people get accustomed to evaluating choices online before making a decision, park and recreation agencies must be ready to engage with residents by leveraging everything technology has to offer.

So what does tech have to offer? For starters, it helps agencies set up more efficient processes so that leaders can focus on finding i nnovative ways to better engage all, not some, community segments.

Tech helps monitor which initiatives engage communities and which don’t, and course-correct in real time instead of at end-of-year reviews.

Pure software as a service tech ensures agency operations remain relatively unaffected and on track (especially during exceptional times) by keeping their platforms running and ready to handle an influx of traffic. And finally, tech helps park and recreation professionals pave the way for future-proof agencies that are not only financially sustainable, but also at par with the online experiences that residents have come to expect in the digital age.

Visit smartrec.com to discover how to put your residents first.

Alex Gauthier is Chief Operating Officer at Amilia (alex.g@amilia.com).

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Reconsidering the Spectator Protection ‘Baseball Rule’

By James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D.

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n the case of Summer J. v. United States Baseball Federation, 2020 Cal. App. LEXIS 124 (2/18/2020), 12-year-old Summer J. was seriously injured by a line drive foul ball while watching a baseball game sponsored by defendant U.S. Baseball.

Summer attended U.S. Baseball’s national team trials on August 17, 2014 at Blair Field, located on the campus of California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), a stadium jointly owned and maintained by the city of Long Beach and CSULB. Summer was seated in the grandstand or “spectator bleachers,” an area of the stadium without a protective screen or netting.

When she was “momentarily distracted from the field of play,” Summer was struck in the face by a line drive foul ball that caused 30 Parks & Recreation

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serious injury, including damage to her optic nerve.

Summer sued the city of Long Beach, CSULB and U.S. Baseball, alleging negligence and premises liability. In so doing, Summer alleged defendant U.S. Baseball sponsored the game at which she was injured and controlled the stadium on that day.

Summer further alleged inadequate protective netting was provided for spectators at Blair Field “in the perceived zone of danger behind home plate.” In particular, she claimed the “presence of some

limited netting at the stadium gave Summer a false sense of security that watching the game in a seat beyond this protected area would be safe.” In addition, Summer alleged “U.S. Baseball and the other defendants were aware of the inadequate nature of the netting, yet failed to provide any warnings regarding the danger of being struck by a batted ball.”

In response, U.S. Baseball claimed Summer’s lawsuit was barred under the primary assumption of risk doctrine. U.S. Baseball also argued the alleged dangerous condition at the stadium was open and obvious, relieving it of any duty to warn or correct the condition it might otherwise have.

Under the circumstances of this

case, Summer argued primary assumption of risk should not apply because “dangers at Blair Field from hard-hit foul balls that were not inherent risks in the sport of baseball.” In particular, she alleged inherent dangers had been unreasonably increased by “the failure to install protective netting for field-level seating along the firstand third-base lines between the batter’s box and the dugouts.” Further, Summer claimed “the configuration of seating that brought spectators in the front rows closer to the field of play than 70 feet, as recommended for college stadiums.” In addition, she contended “the provision of enhanced Wi-Fi to encourage use of mobile devices and brightly colored advertising on the outfield fences” had “distracted fans from the activity on the field.”

The trial court agreed with U.S. Baseball and granted the motion to dismiss the case. In so doing, the trial court found Summer’s complaint had failed to allege any legal basis for liability because her claims were “barred under the primary assumption of risk doctrine.”

Summer appealed.

Participants Assume Inherent Risks As cited by the appeals court, the primary assumption of risk doctrine is based on the following “straightforward policy foundation”: [Primary assumption of risk addresses] the need to avoid chilling vigorous participation in or sponsorship of recreational activities by imposing a tort duty [i.e., personal injury liability law] to eliminate or reduce the risks of harm inherent in those activities.

It operates on the premise that imposing such a legal duty would work a basic alteration — or cause abandonment of the activity.

Moreover, within the context of assumption of risk in a “sport setting,” the court would find injured participants “to have assumed the particular risks inherent in a sport by choosing to participate and the defendant generally owes no duty to protect the plaintiff from those risks.” Further, in determining the applicability of assumption of risk, the appeals court would “evaluate the fundamental nature of the sport and the defendant’s role in or relationship to that sport in order to determine whether the defendant owes a duty to protect a plaintiff from the particular risk of harm.”

In particular, the appeals court noted “operators, instructors and participants in the activity owe other participants only the duty not to act so as to increase the risk of injury over that inherent in the activity.” Further, within the “context of businesses selling recreational opportunities,” the court found “those responsible for maintaining athletic facilities have a similar duty not to increase the inherent risks”: Safety is important, but so is the freedom to engage in recreation and challenge one’s limits.

The primary assumption of risk doctrine balances these competing concerns by absolving operators of activities with inherent risks from an obligation to protect their customers from those risks.

That being said, “while the operator or organizer of a recreational activity has no duty to decrease risks inherent to the sport,” the appeals court would find “a duty to

reasonably minimize extrinsic risks so as not to unreasonably expose participants to an increased risk of harm.” (Emphasis of court) Further, the court found: “Duties with respect to the same risk may vary according to the role played by particular defendants involved in the sport.” For example, the court made the following distinction between a batter in a baseball game and the duty owed by the stadium to spectators at the game: [A] batter in baseball has no duty to avoid carelessly throwing a bat after hitting the ball — such conduct being an inherent risk of the sport — but a stadium owner, because of his or her different relationship to the sport, may have a duty to take reasonable measures to protect spectators from carelessly thrown bats. For the stadium owner, reasonable steps may minimize the risk without altering the nature of the sport.

The court found the primary assumption of risk doctrine would not “absolve operators of any obligation to protect the safety of their customers.”

Accordingly, in applying the assumption of risk doctrine, the court would consider the “significance of the defendant’s role as the operator or organizer of the activity in defining the scope of its duty to an injured participant or bystander.”

In so doing, the court found the primary assumption of risk doctrine would not “absolve operators of any obligation to protect the safety of their customers.” On the contrary, the court acknowledged “the

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primary assumption of risk doctrine has never relieved an operator of its duty to take reasonable steps to minimize inherent risks without altering the nature of the activity”: As a general rule, where an operator can take a measure that would increase safety and minimize the risks of the activity without also altering the nature of the activity, the operator is required to do so.” (Emphasis of court)

Major Leagues Expand Protection On appeal, this California state appeals court further indicated it would consider the extent to which a more “modern, practical view of the importance of protective netting” for baseball spectators should reshape the traditional “Baseball Rule,” which had limited “the responsibility of stadium owners to minimize spectator in32 Parks & Recreation

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juries from foul balls.”

As cited by the appeals court, in the 1929 case of Murphy v.

Steeplechase Amusement Co., 250 N.Y. 479,166 N.E. 173, Benjamin Cardozo, chief justice of the New York Supreme Court, had described what has become know as the “Baseball Rule,” defining “a baseball fan’s fundamental responsibility to protect himself or herself from injury from a foul ball.” According to Cardozo: “One who takes part in such a sport accepts the dangers that inhere in it so far as they are obvious and necessary, just as ... a spectator at a ball game the chance of contact with the ball.”

Under the traditional “Baseball Rule,” courts in a majority of jurisdictions have held that “a stadium operator had a limited duty to provide a screened area at the ball park” only in the “zone of danger”; i.e., directly behind home plate

where spectators would be unable to react in time to avoid being struck by a speeding foul ball. Accordingly, contrary to Summer’s argument, the traditional Baseball Rule would not require protective screening down the baselines. Unlike the unavoidable risk of being struck by a speeding foul ball directly behind home plate, spectators down the baselines would presumably have time and opportunity, looking out for their own safety, to avoid being struck by a foul ball.

The state appeals court in this particular case acknowledged the traditional Baseball Rule had reflected the majority “judicial view of fans’ accountability for their own protection from balls hit into the stands.”

However, in “sharp contrast” to the traditional Baseball Rule applied by courts over the past century, the court noted Major League Baseball had recently decided to expand spectator protection beyond a limited “zone of danger” directly behind home plate: [A]t Major League Baseball’s 2019 winter meetings, Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that all 30 major league teams will expand the protective netting in their stadiums “substantially beyond the end of the dugout” for the 2020 season and that seven or eight stadiums will run netting all the way to the foul poles.... Extended netting is also being installed in many minor league ball parks.

In light of these recent developments, the question before the state appeals court was whether the traditional legal duty of a ballpark operator to provide “adequate protective netting in a perceived zone of danger behind home plate” should be expanded to include “field-level

seating along the first- and thirdbase lines between home plate and the dugouts.” In addressing this issue, the court would consider whether such a requirement would “increase safety and minimize the risk of injury to spectators without altering the nature of baseball as it is played today in professional and college ball parks.”

In her complaint, Summer had alleged that “Blair Field had inadequate protective netting in the perceived zone of danger behind home plate,” as well as “field-level seating along the first- and thirdbase lines between home plate and the dugouts.”

Summer had also alleged “the danger to spectators of being hit by hard-hit foul balls in the high-risk,

unscreened area at Blair Field had been increased by addition of box seats on the field level along the first- and third-base lines.” Specifically, Summer claimed these seats were more dangerous because these seats “were closer to the field of play than the distance recommended for college baseball stadiums by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).”

In her complaint, Summer further claimed owners and operators of the stadium had increased the danger to spectators by creating “unnecessary distractions at the ball park, including large, colorful advertising on the outfield wall and Wi-Fi ready access to encourage spectators to use their mobile devices during ball games.”

The trial court had ruled these allegations in Summer’s complaint were “insufficient to state a cause of action for either negligence or premises liability because being hit by a foul ball is an inherent risk to spectators attending baseball games.” According to the trial court: “The lack of netting is not an increase of inherent risks.” Applying the reasoning of the traditional Baseball Rule, the trial court had found no legal duty to install extra netting that “might decrease the inherent risks of being hit by a foul ball.”

On appeal, U.S. Baseball reaffirmed the ruling of the trial court, which had found no legal basis for Summer’s claims of negligence and premises liability. Specifically, U.S.

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Baseball argued: “There is no legal duty to eliminate the inherent risk of being hit by a ball while watching a baseball game or to otherwise protect a spectator from being hit by a ball.”

[A]s a matter of policy, in the context of risks inherent in a sporting event, the duty to be imposed on sponsors is limited to a duty not to increase those risks. Primary 34 Parks & Recreation

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assumption of risk precludes any other duty relative to the inherent risks of the sport.

Increase Safety and Minimize Risks As characterized by the appeals court, this argument by U.S. Baseball and the ruling of the trial court “fundamentally misperceive the nature of U.S. Baseball’s duty to

fans attending the August 17, 2014 national team trials.” While readily acknowledging “foul balls are part of baseball,” the appeals court found U.S. Baseball’s legal duty was not necessarily limited to exercising “due care not to increase the risks to spectators inherent in the game.” On the contrary, in the opinion of the appeals court, the applicable legal duty might require the owner or operator of a stadium to “take reasonable measures that would increase safety and minimize those risks without altering the nature of the game.” In the opinion of the appeals court: “Installing protective netting down the first- and third-base lines at least to the dugouts would certainly increase safety and minimize risk to fans sitting in those areas.” The question before the appeals court was, therefore, whether imposing such a legal duty would “alter the nature of the game.”

As cited by the appeals court, precedent in an earlier case had found “protective screens would interfere with the players’ ability to reach into the spectator area to catch foul balls, changing the very nature of the game itself.” Similarly, another case had found “it would be impossible to play the game...if foul balls hit into the stands were eliminated.”

While past generations of courts have agreed with this reasoning, the appeals court took particular note of the above described plans by Major League Baseball and many minor league teams “to expand protective netting in their stadiums substantially beyond the end of the dugouts for the upcoming 2020 season.” According to the appeals court, these plans may

have been in response to “developments during the past 25 years that have increased the risk of being injured by foul balls at professional baseball games.” Such developments have included “changes in stadium construction that bring spectators closer to the playing field, elevated velocity of pitched balls and increased distractions, such as free Wi-Fi.” The appeals court further noted that Summer had cited in her complaint the views of “experienced baseball professionals,” which favored “extending protective netting along the first- and third-base lines” to “minimize the inherent risk of being injured by a foul ball without fundamentally changing the game.”

In light of these recent developments, the appeals court would allow Summer an opportunity to amend her original complaint to allege “U.S. Baseball had a duty to ensure there was adequate protective netting at Blair Field on August 17, 2014.” Accordingly, in her negligence claim, Summer could claim U.S. Baseball had “acted unreasonably” and breached the applicable duty of care by “failing to provide netting on the field level along the first- and third-base lines at least from home plate to the dugouts.”

The appeals court would then determine whether the evidence would support the allegations in the amended complaint. In so doing, the appeals court would have the trial court reevaluate the amended complaint to consider “the extent of the stadium’s existing netting, the proximity of unprotected seats to the playing field and the history of previous injuries in the seating area at issue.”

Open and Obvious Danger In her negligence claim, Summer had also alleged “U.S. Baseball was aware of the inadequate nature of the netting at Blair Field, yet failed to warn her of the danger of being struck by a foul ball where she was seated.” In response, U.S. Baseball had contended “that danger was so obvious it had no duty to warn Summer of the risk.” The appeals court described the “open and obvious danger” rule as follows: Generally, if a danger is so obvious that a person could reasonably be expected to see it, the condition itself serves as a warning, and the landowner is under no further duty to remedy or warn of the condition. In that situation, owners and possessors of land are entitled to assume others will “perceive the obvious” and take action to avoid the dangerous condition.

In response to U.S. Baseball’s open-and-obvious defense, Summer had argued “the nature of the risk of injury had been concealed.” Specifically, she claimed “the presence of some protective netting misled her (as well as other reasonably prudent spectators) into believing the unprotected seats were outside the perceived zone of danger with a high risk of injury from foul balls.” In addition, Summer claimed the risk was not “open and obvious,” because “the protective netting behind home plate was unusually narrow and the spectator seats atypically close to the field of play.” Accordingly, Summer maintained the dangers in the unprotected seating at Blair Field “are noticeable only if the spectator has expertise in mathematics, physics, human factors, or stadium design.”

In the opinion of the appeals

court, these points cited by Summer were sufficient, if proven at trial, to provide a legal basis for liability. Accordingly, the appeals court would require the trial court to conduct further proceedings to determine “whether the danger of injury from foul balls in unprotected seating was sufficiently obvious to relieve U.S. Baseball of its duty to warn Summer of its existence.”

“U.S. Baseball was aware of the inadequate nature of the netting at Blair Field, yet failed to warn her of the danger of being struck by a foul ball where she was seated.”

Conclusion Having found a potential legal basis for liability under the circumstances of this particular case, the appeals court ordered the trial court to vacate its order which had dismissed her liability claims as “barred under the primary assumption of risk doctrine.” On remand, the trial court would fully consider Summer’s claims of negligence and premises liability consistent with the above described opinion by the appeals court.

For further reading, check out the article, “Majority ‘Baseball Rule’ Limits Spectator Liability”

by James C. Kozlowski, Parks & Recreation, May 2013, Vol. 48, Iss. 5 at cehdclass.gmu.edu/jkozlows/ lawarts/05MAY13.pdf.

James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D., is an Attorney and Associate Professor in the School of Sport, Recreation, and Tourism Management at George Mason University (jkozlows@gmu.edu).

Webpage with link to law review articles archive (1982 to present): mason.gmu.edu/~jkozlows.

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Julian Agyeman: A Visionary for Just Sustainabilities The university scholar, author and advocate emphasizes the need for justice in sustainable urban planning and design, and discusses parks and recreation’s role in advancing this concept, especially during this time of pandemic

By Kristine Stratton, NRPA President and CEO

F

or more than 20 years, Julian Agyeman has been on a journey.

One that has taken him around the world and across the United States with one distinct mission in mind: to educate governments and policymakers about the “intentional integration of social justice and environmental sustainability” in urban planning and design.

Known as just sustainabilities, this concept has received worldwide attention and has solidified Agyeman’s profile as not only the concept’s originator, but also as a leading authority and source of inspiration in the field.

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PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF ALONSO NICHOLS/TUFTS UNIVERSITY

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JULIAN AGYEMAN

Born and trained in the U.K., Agyeman has a bachelor’s degree in geography and botany (University of Durham), a master’s in conservation policy (Middlesex University), and a doctorate in urban studies (University of London).

He identifies himself as a critical urban planning and environmental social science scholar. Agyeman is professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University in Massachusetts, as well as an acclaimed author of 12 books — many of which center on just sustainabilities principles.

The just sustainabilities idea is not simply social justice, it recognizes the need to practice more socially just ways of living, within the limits of supporting ecosystems.

I personally had the honor of having Professor Agyeman as my academic advisor while completing a master’s in environmental policy and planning at Tufts. His courses, supporting lectures and guidance not only inspired me, but also influenced the way I saw the world, and more importantly, the way I envisioned it could be.

Recently, I reunited with Professor Agyeman for an interview for Parks & Recreation magazine, in which he discusses the concept behind just sustainabilities, the importance of maintaining a “co-production” mindset with communities, and how parks and recreation can help promote these practices in our respective parks and communities.

Kristine Stratton: Could you start by explaining the concept of just sustainabilities?

Julian Agyeman: Sure. The con38 Parks & Recreation

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cept of just sustainabilities came out of a realization that I had in the late ’90s post Rio Earth Summit. There was what I called an “equity deficit” in most sustainability discourse, practice and academic research. So, a group of us got together and really thought about…how the environmental justice movement was on the rise in the ’90s, and how do we get the “justice” of environmental justice and insert it into this new policy conversation, called sustainability or sustainable development? And we thought, “Hey, what about the concept of just sustainabilities?”

So, we hammered out this idea and really gave it a very broad definition: improving people’s quality of life now and into the future in a just and equitable manner, while living within the limits of ecosystems.

The just sustainabilities idea is not simply social justice, it recognizes the need to practice more socially just ways of living, within the limits of supporting ecosystems. We recognize that there is no planet B. So, just sustainabilities was about acknowledging that we could probably legislate for a green planet, but if that planet [weren’t] also socially just, would it really be sustainable in the longer term? So, that was the origin. My work is on how do we bring just sustainabilities into public policy and planning?

Stratton: When you take that global concept and think about the context of civic institutions, our state and local governments and agencies, how do you see this concept of just sustainabilities applying to parks and recreation?

Agyeman: Well, I’m going to go back to another concept that I’ve been working on…[which is] this

idea of belonging and becoming.

When you think about cities, in many ways, what [they] are better at is saying, “We want to become a smart city. We want to become more resilient. We want to become sustainable. We want to become healthy.” And, that’s good.

We need optimism, vision and the notion that we can move to a better place. But at the same time, these cities are being gentrified — inequality is increasing. We are denying belonging to more and more people.

So, what do I see? I see the city and its institutions and parks as almost being a gatekeeper. And, I want those cities to dream big of what they can become, but at the moment, the deficit is in belonging. We are denying increasing numbers of people the right to belong. And, ultimately, our cities will only become as good as we allow people to belong. If we just allow the urban elites to define what cities can become, we’re not going to be in a good place. We are going to define elite spaces, which will not be inclusive or welcoming to people who don’t feel that they’re part of that elite.

Stratton: Let’s dig into that idea of inclusion. Of course, parks and recreation controls many of the public gathering spaces: parks, recreation centers, senior centers, etc. When you think about that vision of having inclusive spaces where every member of the community feels like they belong and can access those resources, what advice would you give park and rec professionals in moving from where we are today to a future state where people do feel like they belong?

Agyeman: I think there are three key aspects of park and rec opera-

tions that you could think about.

And, this can apply also to other city building or city-maintaining professionals — design, management and programming. Who designs our spaces? Who manages these spaces?

And, who programs these spaces?

If your organization doesn’t look like the community it serves, are you legitimate? Going forward, are you going to be trusted? Are you effective? Can you get funding? I want to give a shout out to the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative in Boston, which in the early 1980s, before they set up the organization, they did a demographic survey of the neighborhood and constituted their board of directors to look like the community. Forty years on, the DSNI is going strong. The funders love them, they’ve developed hundreds of affordable homes, they’ve developed the Dudley Commons, and they’re part of the Dudley Food Hub. And, they participated in the Article 89 rezoning in Boston, which allowed two of their community land, trust lands, to become farms.

The success of this organization is palpable, and I attribute a lot of it to the fact that they look like the communities, so there is trust. I mean…do your park professionals feel that they represent or look like communities in which they’re serving? In this world where belonging is becoming increasingly denied in urban spaces, how do we get to the point where our professionals do reflect the communities in which they serve? [This applies to] design professionals who design these public spaces and parks, [along with] the managers of these spaces and the programmers of these spaces.

I want to propose something that I’m increasingly interested in, [which] is the idea of co

production. Co-production breaks down the barrier between provider and user, or manager and user. One very simple example is from my own personal experience. When I first came to Cambridge about 20 years ago, the city was doing some street tree planting. And, they leafleted the neighborhood. They honestly said, “Look, we can’t be watering these every week in the summer.

Would you pledge to throw a bucket of water over it once a week?” And I said, “Absolutely!” And now, I can go to that tree, look at it and say, “I co-produced you! You are a co-production between me and Cambridge City Council.” That’s the simplest level. And, we’ve done it for a long time.

Here’s a charge I could put out to you [park professionals]. In what ways could the design, management and programming functions of parks be seen as a co-production effort with local communities?

Now, I want to lay out straight from the beginning that I don’t see this as cheap labor. Some people say: “Oh my God, Julian, come on! You know this is cheap labor. This is parks. We know where the budgets get slashed first. It’s always parks.”

I was on the Stewardship Council of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and we looked at state parks and everything. We were always getting our budget slashed, but this isn’t that. This is a new way of thinking. This is a very distributed form of governance, and this is a way to make people feel they belong. This gets to the belonging piece, and if we look after the belonging piece, the becoming piece will take care of itself.

Stratton: How do you see planning and policy influencing positive outcomes that help

reinforce this idea of just sustainabilities?

Agyeman: One thing that I’m increasingly interested in is the role of leadership. When I look around the world — where very positive, pro equity, pro justice things have happened in cities — there’s always a strong leader. Go back to Curitiba (Brazil) and Jaime Lerner who basically went out and looked at his city and said, “How do we get people to move around so that they can gain access? How can we design a more equitable system?” He didn’t design a more green system; that wasn’t his primary goal. It was a more equitable system. The result, though, was an increasingly green transport system, which people still go to Curitiba to see.

In what ways could the design, management and programming functions of parks be seen as a co-production effort with local communities?

Belo Horizonte, Brazil, is a city that Frances Moore Lappé calls “the city that abolished hunger,” because a mayor in the early ’90s, who himself had come from a background of food insecurity, designed a civic directorate of the city that looked at food security in terms of the city fixing certain prices of certain foods for people on benefits.

The private-sector retailers could sell at whatever price they want to [for] other people. But for people on benefits, they [must] sell it at certain prices. They also started giving unemployed people plots of city land and resources to help train people to do things. The result was a city of 3 to 4 million

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JULIAN AGYEMAN

[people] in Brazil, a capitalist nation, that imposed a food security policy, which even today — given successive administrations — [is] still operating and is still the envy of the world, and fulfills many of the goals of what’s called the Milan Urban Food Policy Pact.

These examples were where social justice and equity were at the core. They were not afterthoughts.

It wasn’t, “let’s get the economics right, let’s get the environmental bits right, and oh, it would be great if, on a second level, we could improve social equity and justice.”

In parks and public spaces, how do we get people to talk across difference? How do we have neighbors becoming real neighbors rather than strangers?

I think parks and public spaces have a real role in that, in terms of that possibility of contact.

Going back to the food policy, [Brazil] built this food security platform in the early ’90s on the basis of social justice, the Brazilian right to food, which is enshrined in the constitution, and food with dignity.

And, I think this is really important, especially in these COVID-19 days, we need to reintroduce words into public policy that are very human — like dignity, empathy, altruism. These are words that maybe we [once] thought about as public policymakers, but I want them to come back into our lexicon. We need to make public policy that is dignified, altruistic, that is just, and that bears the signs of empathy.

Stratton: It’s interesting to think about your Curitiba example, 40 Parks & Recreation

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that idea of having a vision of “let’s have people move around and get access to where they need to be.” It wasn’t, “oh, let’s fix this narrow little problem.”

Agyeman: Nobody remembers the brilliant technical urban planner, but we all remember the visionaries like Ebenezer Howard, Jane Jacobs, Jaime Lerner. We all remember them because they translated a vision into practice.

If you look at places like Copenhagen, they took a dream from the early ’60s and incrementally every year, they increased the amount of pedestrian space, increased the number of parks, increased the number of people cycling and walking to work. And, they have a very pleasant city today [as a result of] urban planning. In downtown Copenhagen, there’s a zoning regulation that building frontages must be 75 percent glass, because they want interaction in the social realm. There are all of these very clever ideas. They don’t want enclosures; they want the commons. Cities are shared spaces, and we need to think of the urban commons as the network of spaces, places, streets — of places where people are and can be human beings.

And, let’s not forget the fabulous example of Superkilen Park in the Norrebro district [of Copenhagen]. Superkilen is a linear park [that has] a very heavily immigrant neighborhood. The city and the design firm looked at it and asked: “How do we try and make this a culturally inclusive space?” One of the ideas was to ask the community about what artifacts they would like to see. So, you walk through this space and you see everything from bollards, which were painted with the flag of Ghana, West Afri-

ca, benches from Iran and Mexico, and I saw one of these poles with a bull on the top from Spain. The idea of asking people what kind of spaces they want — in a sense, Superkilen is a co-production between the city, the design firm and the community.

In parks and public spaces, how do we get people to talk across difference? How do we have neighbors becoming real neighbors rather than strangers? I think parks and public spaces have a real role in that, in terms of that possibility of contact. And, ‘contact theory’ says that the more contact you have with people who are different to you, the more likely you are to become more tolerant and even more accepting of policies that promote diversity. In these COVID-19 times, distancing, yes, but let’s not lose contact.

Stratton: There are examples of where P&R has helped to address food injustice and food deserts through providing nutritious meals for kids, farmers markets and community gardens. What should P&R professionals be thinking about as they work toward doing more in this space?

Agyeman: Taking a step back, the goal on the personnel side has to be diversification of the profession. That’s the goal. In the meantime, how culturally competent do our design, management and programming staff feel? There are some statistics that say 80 percent of the population would love to be more culturally competent, but they don’t know how to go about it.

And one of the things about us humans is we are afraid of offending people. So, rather than attempt to make contact across difference, we shy back. That might be interpreted

as, “they don’t care.” Cultural competency is really important.

Deep ethnographies of neighborhoods, understanding neighborhoods, not just the [demographic] stats; I want to know about the lives of people, the daily practices.

That’s what deep ethnography would bring us. Imagine a parks department that said, “We are going to work with the community…with school groups, with elder groups on community histories. We are going to build up a deep knowledge of this community.” That would go a long way to building trust. It would also fulfill some of the conditions of restorative justice. Cultural competency, the idea of coproducing, deep ethnographies — these are the ways that we learn about how practices might go forward.

Stratton: I love the fact that you explore an idea and then you explore the next idea.

What do you think has yet to be explored or what do you see digging into next?

Agyeman: Is just sustainabilities a destination or a journey? I actually think it’s a journey. There may be a destination somewhere along the line, but it’s a journey. And we’re on that journey — whether we like it or not. We can choose to go backwards and retrace our steps, and we might have to do that for a short while and then go forward again. For me, just sustainabilities for 20 years has been this platform through which I’ve explored issues of food, sharing cities, urban design, and how urban design can complete streets, how it can lead to gentrification and deepen inequality.

The news is quite good in many ways that a lot of cities are engaging with some of the principles of just sustainabilities, but the downside is: nobody, virtually, is looking at them all simultaneously. So, some are doing the more environmental bits, some are doing the justice bits. People are engaged with various aspects, but the challenge is: how do we get cities to deal simultaneously with all of these aspects? In many ways, just sustainabilities is more than the sum of its parts. It’s an intersectional set of ideas that, if practiced together, would make really deep change.

For more information on “just sustainabilities” and Professor Agyeman’s other research and writings, visit julianagyeman.com.

The Latest Park and Recreation News and Trends

On the Go Available on iTunes and Google Play

www.openspaceradio.org

The Official Podcast of NRPA

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Collaboration in the Time of

Pandemic A group of park directors discuss the importance of unified messaging and communications

By Paul Gilbert

A

s park and recreation professionals, we make certain that our agency maintains an effective communication strategy for our staff and community members we serve. However, what happens when you’re faced with a global outbreak that is not only having a dramatic impact on your agency, but also at the city, county and state level? During this fastchanging COVID-19 pandemic crisis, a group of park and recreation directors have built on well-established ties to provide a coordinated response and work through difficult decisions together.

The Northern Virginia region in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., is an area where regionalism has long been a unifying force. For decades, the park directors in this area have gotten together periodically and worked in collaborative ways. As the pandemic began to unfold rapidly in March 2020, the amount of emails and discussions among the park directors in the region picked up. For several days, the information exchange and coordination changed by the hour. For all those engaged in the fast-paced dialog, it was a silver lining to an otherwise stressful situation.

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C O L L A B O R AT I O N

Sharing Experiences and Challenges

IMAGES COURTESY OF NOVA PARKS

Reflecting on why this group has coordinated so seamlessly, Cindy Roeder, director for parks and recreation for the Town of Herndon, says that it was “something we’ve built over many years, most recently illustrated by the success we had producing the state conference a few short months ago. We’ve banded together on legislative issues, shared needs assessments, accreditation and planning documents, rejoiced in successes and commiserated over budget woes, many times before.” This strong foundation was put to the test with the pandemic.

NOVA Parks, the regional park system in this area — with facilities in three counties and three cities — has rapidly transitioned through the following steps, a pattern similar to most of the other agencies: • March 10 – Level I – Sanitation: A higher cleaning regiment was put in place • March 12 – Level II – Reduction: Cancelled all planned programming/events • March 16 – Level III – Separation: Closed all buildings to the public. Cross-trained and

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separated staff needed for key functions • March 24 – Level IV – Passive Access: Closed gates and parking areas to reduce groups from gathering, with only trails open • March 30 – Reduced staff scheduled, and implemented more direct social media efforts to encourage the public to only go to parks within a walk or bike ride from their home At every stage, these colleagues worked together, and in many cases, took the same actions at or about the same time.

One of the benefits of this collaboration was working on crafting the right response when information from political leaders was not always clear and consistent.

With so many spokespeople for the pandemic, there have been many mixed messages at the federal, state and local levels. One example that affected parks was the Virginia governor’s order on March 20, closing most businesses and making it illegal for groups of more than 10 to gather. In that same announcement, the governor encouraged the public to use parks and trails for exercise.

On the following weekend, large

crowds gathered in many Northern Virginia parks, with hundreds and, in some cases, thousands of individuals and families using some of the last public gathering places that were open. This unsafe situation was unintentional, but needed to be addressed to preserve public safety. After a great deal of dialog among the park directors, a number of the park systems in the area closed their gates and parking areas to reduce the crowds. “For me, the greatest win in this horrendous situation has been our effort to share and consult each other, in order to help coordinate our actions in the NOVA region. This has been a plank of support for each of us as we have made these tough decisions related to public health and our park system,” remarks Kirk Kincannon, executive director of Fairfax County Park Authority.

The range of issues has been long.

Should playgrounds be closed? How do we keep pick-up basketball games from happening? How best do we communicate these and other issues to the public? What are the plans for facility and program startup, when the time is right? In many cases, the best advice came from this group of colleagues. Jane Rudolph, Arlington

NOVA Parks displays signage throughout parks that illustrates critical physical distancing practices.

A group of Northern Virginia park directors.

From left to right: Paul Gilbert, Seth Handler-Voss, Kirk Kincannon, Laura Kowalski, Cindy Hoeder and Jane Rudolph.

County director, Department of Parks and Recreation, reflects, “In this time of so many unknowns, having regional colleagues to ask questions, get feedback and coordinate our decisions is vital. Northern Virginia’s park systems are intertwined from our extensive trail network to our residents, engaging in each other’s programs and facilities. Our coordination and collaboration has ensured that the same messages to our residents are consistent. I am grateful to work with these park and recreation leaders during this time, and I am buoyed by their dedication and empathy.” Leslie Herman, Town of Vienna director of parks and recreation, shares a similar appreciation for being able to work through the many issues together. She says, “I have not had to navigate this uncharted territory alone. It has been reassuring to discuss the concerns we all are experiencing.”

Strength in Numbers The field of parks and recreation is one where we are all working to serve the public in new and exciting ways. We are normally trying to attract people to our places and programs. Shifting to closing down activities and discouraging gatherings [are] completely counter, and very difficult to adjust to. But as responsible public servants, we have shifted to focus on reducing the spread of the virus until this crisis is resolved.

“Bottom line is that members from the community within the region benefit by these coordinated efforts. It has certainly made it easier when I am asked ‘what are other agencies/departments doing about this?’” says Danny Schlitt, City of Falls Church director of parks and recreation.

While this loose group of about 10 park and recreation directors have known each other for years and worked on many things, there has never been a time when the connections, trust and mutual support among these directors have been more critical. It is one region and one media market. Many people in this dense urban/suburban area are not clear where the city, county and town lines are, so common and coordinated messaging from the park agencies is a great help to the public.

We all can think of situations where stress has brought out the worst in people, but when positive connections and networks are in place, they can also bring out the best in people. “It was impressive how the Northern Virginia agencies made it a priority to respond and keep one another informed in a very fast-moving environment.

It aided greatly when informing our boards and the public,” says Laura Kowalski, Reston Association’s director of recreation and environmental education.

Steve Torpy, Loudoun County director of parks, recreation and community services, remarks on this dynamic that has been observed and appreciated by the group of directors when he says, “In a time when uncertainty and anxiety are both in unlimited amounts, people look to parks and recreation to be

the calm in the storm. For so many citizens, we are the face of county government, and they look to county government in times of emergency. Having the ability to lean on the other directors, share ideas and decisions, and even find time for laughter, which is so important to remember to do, has helped me in my efforts to be that calm for my own department.”

At the most immediate level, the pandemic is a world health crisis like none that we have seen in 100 years. In the medium and long term, this will be a fiscal crisis with huge effects. But, it also can be a time to come together around a common set of challenges and shared values. In Northern Virginia, the network of park leaders formed over the years has taken on a new importance. As a profession of highly adaptive and creative public servants, the park and recreation field is uniquely positioned to help our communities in the days ahead. And in Northern Virginia, we will look at our professional networks in a new light, knowing how important they can be in a time of crisis.

Tune in to the May bonus episode of Open Space Radio (openspaceradio. org) to hear Gilbert talk about collaboration during a pandemic.

Paul Gilbert is Executive Director of NOVA Parks (pgilbert@nvrpa.org).

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OPERATIONS Synthetic Turf: The World’s Fastest-Growing Play Surface

By Kevin Kinsley

O

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF FOREVERLAWN

ver the past 10 years, a new trend in surfacing has emerged as parks, schools and recreational facilities have chosen synthetic turf as a preferred play surface. Recreational facilities, ranging from elementary school playgrounds to professional sports fields, are providing longer playing times, more consistent safety and improved performance — with significantly less maintenance — thanks to synthetic turf.

These benefits have led to a growing demand for synthetic turf. Environmental concerns, such as water conservation and pesticide use, have further expanded the desire for this popular surfacing option.

In the United States alone, there are approximately 13,000 synthetic turf sports fields with around 1,500 new installations each year. Add playgrounds and play areas to those figures, and it’s easy to see why the use of synthetic turf is projected to nearly double by 2025.

Improved Technology Consumers today can choose from hundreds of products engineered 46 Parks & Recreation

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for virtually any need, from a lush lawn, to a clean neighborhood dog park, to a rugged sports field. In addition to the wider variety of products available, the yarn that makes up the individual blades of grass has undergone improvements. The characteristics of the blades are far more realistic and significantly reduce the probability of turf-related injuries in sports applications.

Always Ready for Play Thanks to the effective drainage and durability of synthetic turf, it’s no longer necessary to close facilities after it rains due to muddy, unsafe conditions. Synthetic turf does not get muddy or dirty, and athletes who play outdoor sports benefit from the predictable, consistent surface designed to provide benefits, such as shock absorption and favorable conditions year-round.

Accessibility Play areas are among the public spaces covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ensuring that inclusive recreational areas exist for people of all abilities at parks, schools, childcare facilities, shopping centers and public places is a growing priority. Synthetic turf

surfaces are universally accessible, offering a consistent surface that allows wheelchairs to roll easily and other mobility devices, such as braces, to be used without sinking into the ground. Some synthetic turf even offers static reduction and antimicrobial agents for added protection and accessibility.

Low Maintenance Since synthetic turf requires no water and less upkeep than natural grass, schools and businesses continue to switch from natural to synthetic to save money and resources.

Synthetic turf maintenance can be as simple as removing debris with a leaf blower, compared to seeding, mowing, weeding and pest control for natural grass.

Promotes Safety and Good Health Local park departments and schools strive to provide safe, accessible play facilities where people of all ages can lead active, healthy lifestyles. Synthetic turf is not prone to mildew and bacteria that can exist on surfaces, like wet mulch, nor does it contain allergens. Holes and uneven surfaces on fields are no longer a concern. With the current technology incorporated into the design of today’s synthetic turf fields, surfaces are becoming safer and more predictable, maximizing the play experience.

Kevin Kinsley is Brand Leader, Playground Grass at ForeverLawn (kevin@foreverlawn.com).

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O P E R AT I O N S

Planning for the 2020 Parks Build Community Project Preparations for Orlando Grand Avenue Park renovation are well underway

By Suzanne Nathan

G

rand Avenue Park in Orlando, Florida, is the site of the 2020 Parks Build Community (PBC) project. NRPA and the City of Orlando Families, Parks and Recreation Department (OFPRD) are working with generous corporate donors on preparations for the project.

The 12-acre park was selected because it is at the center of a neighborhood in need of a renovated public space to serve the community. The renovated park is NRPA’s 10th Parks Build project and will be unveiled during the 2020 NRPA Annual Conference (nrpa.org/Conference) in Orlando, Florida, this October.

IMAGE COURTESY OF ORLANDO FAMILIES, PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT

“The vision for Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center and Park imagines a welcoming, safe environment for residents and visitors of all ages. Many in the neighborhood have longtime, emotional connec-

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tions with the school building, so we wanted to help people reconnect with it and, at the same time, take a feeling of ownership and belonging to the park,” says Ken Pelham, landscape architect, RLA, LEED-AP, at

OFPRD. “Through a series of public meetings, we’ve been able to get input into what the community loves most about the site and what they would like to see added to it. The PBC project allows us to give the park a facelift with a 21st century look and style while blending with the early 20th century style of the historic 1926 Grand Avenue School building.”

Denise Riccio, planner and grants manager at OFPRD, adds, “We’re so excited about the renovation and expansion of the Grand Avenue building and park! The community has been very involved in the planning of the project, which has helped us make sure we’re providing the resources they want. We’re saving and reusing a historic building that’s important to the neighborhood, as well as expanding the facility. We have fantastic partners, including Orange County Public Schools and NRPA, who are helping bring the whole thing to life. We’ll be able to offer amenities — such as brand new picnic facilities, play spaces and exercise equipment in the park, as well as programs for children and adults — in a beautiful new and renovated building. The Holden Heights community needs and wants this project very much and we are so happy that we’re able to provide this resource, especially the much-needed children’s programs that are planned for them.”

OFPRD site map for Grand Avenue Park renovation.

Above: Inclusive fitness areas allow those with mobility impairments to exercise alongside the rest of the community. Right: The Konnection® Swing brings children and caregivers together in a new way and helps engage everyone in the play space.

and building outdoor fitness gyms that are multigenerational, inclusive and social in nature, thereby creating open-air community centers and encouraging all park visitors to engage in physical activity,” says Sam Mendelsohn, president

and CEO of Greenfields Outdoor Fitness, Inc. “As part of our commitment to support NRPA’s 2020 PBC initiative, Greenfields is donating six outdoor fitness units that can serve up to 16 people at once.

Two of the exercise stations are designed for those in wheelchairs,

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF ULTRA SITE, A PLAYCORE COMPANY

NRPA, along with OFPRD, is proud to work alongside a growing group of generous donors that are contributing to the project. And, PBC donors are excited to be a part of the project too.

“Being involved in Parks Build Community is a project close to us because it aligns so well with our mission. It’s impactful to be part of something that creates a space for people to gather, develop and move and that will, in both the long and short term, help communities thrive,” says Sarah Lisiecki, marketing communications specialist with BCI Burke. “Our 5–12 playground design encompasses a variety of play components that will help everyone get the most from their play experience. With a focus on connection, the Konnection® Swing creates intergenerational engagement when a caregiver and child swing together.

The Taktiks® and Manitou™ climbers introduce climbing challenges that help children develop cognitive planning, problem solving and resiliency. Having play within a community keeps everyone happier, healthier and more engaged.”

“Greenfields’ mission is to promote wellness and fight obesity and inactivity. We do it by designing

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF BCI BURKE COMPANY

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF GREENFIELDS OUTDOOR FITNESS

Forging Corporate Partnerships

Ultra Site, a PlayCore company, donates a picnic table to be part of the Grand Avenue Park renovation.

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O P E R AT I O N S

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF EPIC OUTDOOR CINEMA

Residents enjoy a movie night in Baltimore, Maryland, the site of the 2019 Parks Build Community project where Epic Outdoor Cinema provided the screen donation.

as Greenfields places great importance on the inclusion of those with mobility impairments, and we take pride in our ability to do so.

By adding a Greenfields Outdoor Fitness area to Grand Park, we are giving community members the opportunity to engage in

2020 PBC Donors Include: • Greenfields Outdoor Fitness (gfoutdoorfitness.com) • BCI Burke Company (bciburke.com) • GameTime/PlayCore (gametime.com) • Musco Lighting (musco.com) • DuMor Site Furnishings (dumor.com) • ForeverLawn (foreverlawn.com) • Epic Outdoor Cinema (epicoutdoorcinema.com) • Most Dependable Fountains, Inc. (mostdependable.com) • Ultra Site (ultra-site.com) • Gared Sports (garedsports.com) • Shade Systems, Inc. (shadesystemsinc.com) • Freenotes Harmony Park (freenotesharmonypark.com) • Dero (dero.com)

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activities [that] they otherwise will not have access to. Some may have gym memberships, but the reality is that life has become extremely sedentary, and the excuses to avoid physical activity just continue to grow. Exercising outdoors is fun, social, the scenery is nicer (especially at Grand Park), and you can even bring your companion to join you. We look forward to providing this wellness-focused amenity for the Orlando community to enjoy for years to come.”

“Epic Outdoor Cinema is proud to participate in the 2020 Parks Build project in Orlando. Our new versatile and portable screen will give Orlando Grand Avenue Park an innovative tool to create exciting activities in open spaces,” says Nick Toutoungi, CEO of EPIC Outdoor Cinema. “Epic’s continued involvement is inspired by the impactful results of enhancing underserved neighborhoods — one park at a time — as a true community centerpiece with an evening of laughter, suspense and EPIC experiences outdoors.”

“Everyone at PlayCore, GameTime Ultra Site and Freenotes Harmony Park is excited about participating in Parks Build again and about how our contributions might help intergenerational communities unite across fitness-based play, music and simply relaxing,” says Anne-Marie Spencer, corporate VP of marketing for PlayCore. “Intergenerational play and recreation have a multitude of benefits to foster inclusion and bring people together to improve life for people of all ages. It promotes contact between generations for the common good, strengthens social relations to reflect a commitment to one another, breaks down silos between generations, and encourages us to mobilize all people as valuable resources that can help build communities.”

NRPA’s Parks Build Community is a national initiative aimed at demonstrating the transformative value of parks on the health and vitality of communities across America. Living close to parks and other recreation facilities is consistently related to higher physical activity levels for both adults and youth.

To learn more about the NRPA Parks Build Community initiative, visit nrpa.org/ParksBuildCommu nity and follow the hashtag #Parks BuildCommunity. To learn more about participating in the 2020 Parks Build project, please contact Gina Mullins-Cohen, NRPA’s VP of communications and chief marketing officer, at gcohen@nrpa.com.

Suzanne Nathan is Public Relations Manager at NRPA (snathan@nrpa.org).

THANK YOU TO THE DONORS OF THE 2020 NRPA PARKS BUILD COMMUNITY PROJECT

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE NATIONAL RECREATION AND PARK ASSOCIATION

NRPA.ORG/PARKSBUILDCOMMUNITY

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Fountain People/Water Odyssey.....................................................27

Synthetic Surfaces................................................................................54

GameTime/PlayCore.......................................................................... C4

Toro Company......................................................................................... 5

Gared .......................................................................................................53

ULINE.......................................................................................................25

Goldenteak/The Wood Carver, Inc..................................................53

Vermont Systems, Inc............................................................................ 7

John Deere..............................................................................................13

World Class Athletic Surfaces...........................................................47

advertiser index

Amilia.......................................................................................................29

(ISSN 0031-2215) is published monthly by the National Recreation and Park Association, 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148, a service organization supported by membership dues and voluntary contributions.

Copyright Š2020 by the National Recreation and Park Association. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Opinions expressed in signed articles are those of the writers and not necessarily those of NRPA. Issued to members at the annual subscription price of $30, included in dues. Subscription: $46 a year in the U.S.; $56 elsewhere. Single copy price: $7. Library rate: $58 a year in the U.S.; $68 elsewhere. Periodical postage paid at Ashburn, Virginia, and at additional mailing offices. Editorial and advertising offices at 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148. 703.858.0784. Postmaster, send address changes to Parks & Recreation, 22377 Belmont Ridge Rd., Ashburn, VA 20148.

PA R K S A N D R E C R E AT I O N .O R G | M AY 2 02 0 |

Parks & Recreation

55

Park Bench

PHOTO COURTESY OF JAMES WATKINS/SAN FRANCISCO RECREATION AND PARKS

Golden Gate Park: Virtually Celebrating 150 Years Saturday, April 4, 2020 marked the 150th birthday of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, a landmark “affectionately known around here in San Francisco as ‘everybody’s park,’ because it literally has something within its 1,017 acres for everyone — for people of all ages and all walks of life,” says Phil Ginsburg, general manager of the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, in an interview for NRPA’s Open Space Radio (openspaceradio.org).

The day of the park’s sesquicentennial was also intended to be a day of gathering to celebrate through music, entertainment, food and the launch of a 150-foot observation wheel that offers riders sweeping views of the park and beyond. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, plans changed, but the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department staff were determined to host a celebration to honor the monumental event. “Ironically, we wanted the exact opposite of what we can all do now, which is to have at least 150,000 people in this park, all arm-in-arm, shoulder-to-shoulder, celebrating the park and celebrating the community that the park invites,” says Ginsburg. “We couldn’t do that, so we took it online.”

The now virtual commemoration features events and activities, such as a virtual concert series, live webcams showcasing penguins and a coral reef tank at the California Academy of Sciences, videos of the bison of Golden Gate Park and the National AIDS Memorial Grove, virtual tours of some of the park’s most beloved sites, photo albums of the park’s history and lesser-known treasures, and more.

Though the COVID-19 situation has forced the department to change its plans, the celebration is far from lost. In fact, Ginsburg is able to find a silver lining for his agency in these challenging times. “Usually, I like to joke that I have 880,000 bosses and they all have an opinion about how our park system should be run,” he says. “During this response, what we’re now hearing from people is just how much they appreciate their parks and the work that my staff does. It has really kept us going.”

Golden Gate Park has an expansive and fascinating history that begins with its inception only five years after the Civil War and includes the first playground in America, a buffalo paddock, a role as sanctuary after the devastating 1906 earthquake, and Twitter’s first tweet, among much more. And, Ginsburg is certain the park will continue to make history. “Golden Gate Park will never be done. It’s 150 years old, and it continues to evolve,” he says. “It’s been built and reinvented over generations and generations. We’ve had all this innovation and all this remarkable history, and Golden Gate Park is the keeper of those stories.”

To take part in the virtual celebration of Golden Gate Park’s 150th anniversary, visit goldengatepark150.com.

– Lindsay Collins, Associate Editor for Parks & Recreation magazine

56 Parks & Recreation

| M AY 2 02 0 | PA R K S A N D R E C R E AT I O N .O R G

YOU are a HERO - Thank You for Serving Your Communities COVID-19 Resources for Parks and Recreation Park and recreation professionals everywhere have stepped up to serve their communities in unprecedented ways during the COVID-19 pandemic. NRPA is here to support you and provide the most up-to-date resources related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In our dedicated resource center you can find: •

Printable infographics on how to use parks safely

•

Continually updated guidance for parks and recreation

•

Public policy updates and action alerts around key legislation affecting the field

•

Examples of how park and recreation agencies are responding to the pandemic

Find all these resources at: nrpa.org/Coronavirus

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PARKS & RECREATION MAY 2020 ◆ JULIAN AGYEMAN ◆ MAINTAINING COMMUNICATIONS IN A PANDEMIC ◆ SPECIAL COVID-19 COVERAGE