October 2022 - Parks & Recreation - 20

RESEARCH
People Agree: Parks and
Recreation Is Essential
By Kevin Roth
E
ach year, NRPA's Research team surveys the public to understand better
how they connect with parks and recreation. The resulting Engagement
With Parks Report (nrpa.org/Engagement) highlights how local parks
and recreation facilities impact the lives of every person in our nation.
The ubiquity of parks and recreation
is evident in the number of
people visiting these spaces and how
often they do it. Eighty-three percent
of survey respondents - the equivalent
of 275 million people - visited a
local park or recreation facility at least
once during the 12 months ending in
May 2022. On average, people visited
22 times - or nearly twice a month
- between June 2021 and May 2022.
Five in six U.S. adults indicate
proximity to high-quality parks, playgrounds,
open spaces or other recreation
facilities is important when
choosing a neighborhood to live
in. Nearly 60 percent cite distance
to these features as " extremely " or
" very " important.
Proximity also plays a role in how
people travel to these destinations.
While most people travel by automobile
to parks, playgrounds, open spaces
or recreation centers, walking also
is a mode of transportation for half of
U.S. adults. Other methods include:
* Biking (cited by 22 percent of respondents)
*
Jogging/Running (16 percent)
* Public transit, such as buses,
trains or subways (8 percent)
* Taxi/Rideshare (7 percent)
Parks and Recreation
Is Vital
Nine in 10 U.S. adults agree parks
and recreation is an important service
provided by their local governments,
with robust support spanning
every segment of the population:
* Generation - Gen Zers (81 percent),
millennials (90 percent),
Gen Xers (91 percent), baby
boomers (93 percent)
* Race and ethnicity -
Those
who identify as non-white (84
percent), those who identify as
white (91 percent) and those who
identify as Hispanic (88 percent)
* Household formation - Households
with children (94 percent)
* Political views - Democrats (94
percent), Republicans (88 percent),
Independents (85 percent)
People understand and appreciate
parks and recreation's greater
mission. For
example, NRPA's
Three Pillars represent what they
want as the guiding principles for
their local park and recreation
agency. Nearly equal shares of survey
respondents view each pillar as
a critical agency function.
Parks and Recreation Going
Beyond Its Traditional Role
People also want their local park
and recreation agencies to continue
broadening their services to meet
our communities' many challenges.
Nine in 10 survey respondents agree
that providing emergency shelter in
their facilities and serving as distribution
points for essential supplies
20 Parks & Recreation | O CTOBER 2 0 22 | PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
to community members in the event
of extreme weather or natural disasters
is an important role for park
and recreation agencies
to
play.
Ninety percent of survey respondents
also agree on the importance
of their parks and recreation providing
job and volunteer opportunities
for youth and young adults, such as
lifeguarding jobs, camp counselor
roles and junior ranger roles.
U.S. adults also want their local
park and recreation agency to:
* Deliver programming and support
that improve community
physical and mental health (cited
by 89 percent of respondents)
* Reduce the impact of extreme
temperatures through the planting
of trees and other vegetation
(89 percent)
* Develop and maintain parks and
open spaces to minimize the impacts
of flooding (88 percent)
* Offer before- and/or after-school
childcare and summer camps for
youth (85 percent)
The 2022 Engagement With Parks
Report demonstrates that the public
views parks and recreation as vital
to their lives and an essential local
government service. The more than
10,000 local park and recreation
agencies in the United States make
their communities robust, healthy
and resilient. Their emphasis on
conservation, equity, and health and
wellness - as well as their ability
to deliver effective solutions to the
many challenges facing those communities
- highlights how parks
and recreation is not a luxury; it is
essential infrastructure in our cities,
towns and counties.
Kevin Roth is Vice President of Research,
Evaluation and Technology at NRPA
(kroth@nrpa.org).
http://www.nrpa.org/Engagement
October 2022 - Parks & Recreation

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