May 2022 - Parks & Recreation - 16

RESEARCH
Delving Into the 2022 Agency
Performance Review
By Melissa May
T
wo years into the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, one thing is
clear: parks and recreation is essential. Each year, 260 million people
across the United States visited a park, trail, recreation center or other
park and recreation amenity at least once. This is thanks to the efforts
of more than 165,000 full-time park and recreation staff and the hundreds of
thousands of part-time and seasonal workers and volunteers across the United
States working tirelessly to ensure that every person in every community benefits
from the programs and facilities that parks and recreation offers.
These dedicated people at the
more than 10,000 local park and
recreation agencies support services
and facilities that offer rewarding
recreation opportunities, deliver vital
emergency services and promote
better physical and mental health.
Quantifying the work of park and
recreation professionals and their
agencies helps demonstrate the
role of parks and recreation in your
community to internal colleagues,
external consultants, partners, policymakers
and key stakeholders.
The 2022 NRPA Agency Performance
Review (nrpa.org/APR) summarizes
the key findings from NRPA Park
Metrics (nrpa.org/Metrics) - the
benchmarking resource that assists
park and recreation professionals
in the effective management and
planning of their operating resources
and capital facilities. The combination
of insights from this report and
NRPA Park Metrics, along with
information about your community's
specific needs and experiences, will
help identify the optimal mix of
facilities and programming your
agency should deliver.
Throughout the report, data are
presented on the " typical " agency.
Understanding that no agency
16 Parks & Recreation | MAY 2 0 22 | PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
is " typical, " additional crosstabulations
by jurisdiction population
or
population
density
also
are
presented. More comprehensive
cross-tabulations are available
as interactive tables at nrpa.org/
Metrics. The 2022 NRPA Agency
Performance Review presents data from
more than 1,000 unique park and
recreation agencies across the United
States, as reported between 2019 and
2021.
Key findings from the 2022 NRPA
Agency Performance Review include:
Park Facilities
* Residents per Park - There is
typically one park for every 2,323
residents.
* Acres of Parkland per 1,000
Residents - The typical park and
recreation agency has 10.4 acres
of parkland for every 1,000 residents
in the jurisdiction.
* Outdoor Park and Recreation
Facilities: Prevalence and
Population per Facility - An
overwhelming majority of park
and recreation agencies have
playgrounds
(95 percent) and
basketball courts (86 percent) in
their portfolio of assets.
* Miles of Trails - The typical park
and recreation agency manages or
maintains 14 miles of trails for walking,
hiking, running and/or biking.
* Indoor Park and Recreation Facilities:
Prevalence and Population
per Facility - A majority of
agencies offer community centers
and recreation centers; two in five
agencies offer senior centers.
Programming
* Programming Offered by Park
and Recreation Agencies - Key
programming activities include
themed special events, social
recreation events, team sports,
fitness enhancement classes, and
health and wellness education.
* Targeted Programs for Children,
Older Adults and People
With Disabilities - Eighty-three
percent of agencies offer summer
camp for their communities'
younger residents.
Responsibilities of Park and
Recreation Agencies
* Key Responsibilities of Park and
Recreation Agencies - Top roles
include operating and maintaining
parks, trails and indoor facilities;
providing recreation programming
and services; and conducting
jurisdiction-wide special events.
* Other Responsibilities of Park and
Recreation Agencies - Operating,
maintaining or contracting special
purpose parks, pools and racquet
sports areas lead the list of other
agency responsibilities.
Staffing
* Park and Recreation Agency
Staffing - The typical park and recreation
agency has a payroll of 49.4
full-time equivalent staff (FTEs).
* Park and Recreation FTEs per
10,000 Residents - The typical
http://www.nrpa.org/metrics http://www.nrpa.org/metrics http://www.nrpa.org/APR http://www.nrpa.org/Metrics
May 2022 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2022 - Parks & Recreation
