At the Park Circle Playground in North Charleston, South Carolina, kids can explore a sensory tunnel full of colors, lights, and textures, wide enough for a wheelchair and stimulating yet calming. This sensory tunnel is part of the world’s largest inclusive playground, a place where people of all abilities and ages can be engaged, challenged, […]
On June 22, 2025, the US Conference of Mayors (USCM), at its 93nd Annual Meeting in Tampa, FL, adopted a new city parks resolution that urges the U.S. Department of the Interior to continue its strong support and to prioritize funding for the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP). The resolution passed unanimously. Cleveland, OH Mayor Justin […]
As a park and recreation planner with an eye for new technology, I’ve made a two-decade long career of looking into the future. I serve as Director of Digital Engagement at MIG, a planning, design, communications, and technology consulting firm. We were hired by City Parks Alliance to support the Parks and Technology Initiative, examining the opportunities […]
Tower Grove Park in St. Louis, MO, has long been an urban park where history, nature, culture, and community converge. And now, with an innovative stream restoration project, it is a model of how green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) can make public spaces more vibrant, sustainable, and equitable. More than just a physical upgrade, the East Stream […]
First – and only – permanent and dedicated urban parks bill ensures more Americans will have access to safe, quality parks. On December 19, 2024, Congress passed the EXPLORE Act which contains the first – and only – dedicated and permanent city park legislation. The EXPLORE Act includes the Outdoors for All Act which codifies […]
The Rainier Valley neighborhood in Southeast Seattle is known as one of the most diverse urban enclaves in the country, home to immigrants and their descendants from Italy, Japan, the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and other countries. It’s also a dense area with little green space and few places for families living in […]
The coastline in Stamford, Connecticut, is one of the city’s greatest assets. But residents of the Waterside neighborhood, despite the name, have not had much access to the water. That is now changing thanks to a sweeping renovation of Boccuzzi Park, funded in part by the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP). The 12-acre park’s design is being […]
Getting outdoors to play, walk, or just enjoy the fresh air has countless physical, mental, and social benefits, many studies have shown. But underserved communities in urban neighborhoods disproportionately lack access to parks and green space for such activities. The federal Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) program aims to change that by providing dollar-for-dollar matching funds for new parks and […]
Saint Paul, Minnesota, school teacher Hannah Reiderer lives right near Fritz Klark Park. But she usually takes her three kids to parks in other parts of town since the local park has become run-down, and the adjacent busy, wide Rice Street is inhospitable. Saint Paul’s North End neighborhood is one of the most diverse in […]
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act. This bill contains the Outdoors for All Act which would codify the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program (ORLP). Established in 2014, the ORLP focuses on providing outdoor recreation in disadvantaged communities within urban areas. Since the program’s creation, 96 […]
Seattle’s Rainier Community Center Garden Wins the 2024 Toro Urban Park Innovation Award; $50K grant to support innovation in urban food systems and workforce development Washington, DC (March 12, 2024) – Today, the City Parks Alliance and The Toro Company, a leading global provider of solutions for the outdoor environment, announced that the Rainier Community Center’s […]
The past few years have thrown parks into the spotlight. Parks are safe havens, critical urban infrastructure, and manifestations of equity, or too often the lack thereof, in our cities. The COVID-19 pandemic, the national reckoning with racial equity and justice, and the impacts of climate change have all highlighted the vital role urban parks […]