By Erika Young | Posted on June 7, 2019
The St. Charles Park District Adult Activity Center bustles with members engaged in various pastimes. You'll find older adults playing Pinochle, practicing shots around the pool table, or building a high score in Scrabble. There is something for everyone, regardless of their interests. For some, that is playing the harmonica and being a member of the Harmelodian Club.
By Chris Korbelak | Posted on May 8, 2019
The Palm Beach County, Florida, Parks to Work Program is an effort that partners to help homeless individuals who are living in John Prince Park in Lake Worth get resources to escape homelessness.
By Tracy Novak | Posted on May 3, 2018
Beginning in 2015, thanks to an updated ordinance passed by the El Paso City Council, no smoking of any kind was allowed in city parks. The Parks and Recreation Department posted no-smoking signs at every park and provided training for Parks and Recreation Department employees. Most smoke free ordinances are self-enforcing once the public is aware of the law.
By Katie VanMeter | Posted on April 4, 2018
Looking for ways to engage the community and reinvigorate a stagnate government broadcast channel, Town of Windsor Communications staff began to look beyond its walls for new ideas and new partners.
By Randy Bina, CPRE | Posted on March 1, 2018
Bismarck Parks and Recreation District (BPRD) opened the BSC Aquatic & Wellness Center (AWC) in 2010. Both the local swim club and the business community got behind a successful capital campaign to raise the necessary private funds, which BPRD augmented to create one of the state’s premier aquatic facilities.
By Tina Stanton-Chapman, Ph.D. | Posted on January 22, 2018
In 2017, Green Township, Ohio issued a request for proposals to create an accessible and stimulating playground at West Fork Park. The end result was a playground that was appropriate for all ages and abilities and included eight play zones.
By Jayna Lang | Posted on November 7, 2017
Carmody Park is an incredibly special place, because it is Lakewood’s first universal playground, offering kids of all ages and abilities the chance to play, without limits, alongside each other.
By Philip Vitale, Katrina Ortiz, Kate Robinson, Fernando Pujals | Posted on August 21, 2017
San Francisco recently commemorated the great success of being the first city in the nation where every resident lives within a 10-minute walk to a park. It is, indeed, a great feat worth celebrating. But not every 10-minute walk is the same.
By Desiré DeGrange | Posted on February 24, 2016
Nestled in western Maryland is a nature park that is one of Frederick County’s true jewels. Catoctin Creek Park captures the imagination of visitors every day as guests enjoy not only historical elements in this one hundred and thirty-nine acre park, but also miles of trails and the County’s newest green energy efficient nature center.
By Selsa Adham Gonzalez | Posted on February 22, 2016
Labor Street Park looks much different today than it did twenty years ago. Formerly part of a public housing complex, the park now sits on the border of San Antonio’s beautiful downtown amidst a neighborhood where almost everyone knows your name. In fact, part of the reason my family moved to this area was because of its sense of community.
By Doug Guild | Posted on November 19, 2015
Almost 70 percent of Henderson, Nevada residents live within a half-mile of a park or recreation amenity—the equivalent of just two laps around a track. With so many parks and trails within walking distance, Henderson residents have a unique opportunity to participate in outdoor experiences right in their own neighborhoods.
By Jennifer McClintock | Posted on July 17, 2015
In 2006, a national magazine declared Oklahoma City one of the fattest cities in the United States. That spurred Mayor Mick Cornett into action, first by losing 38 pounds on a diet based on sensible eating and exercise, then by launching a campaign to help his city lose one million pounds. “There’s no other way to put it, we were overweight,” Cornett said. “I knew if I wanted to encourage change in our citizens, I had to first change myself,” Cornett said. The campaign ignited local leadership to reshape how the city needed to change in terms of walkability and citizen fitness.
By National Recreation and Park Association | Posted on June 1, 2015
On April 18, 2015 over 100 volunteers and community members flocked to Belleville, Illinois to complete construction and dedicate a new nature-based play space! The new space, made possible by a grant from the American Water Charitable Foundation and NRPA as part of their Building Better Communities program, is a 25,000 square-foot nature-themed play area within the 27-acre Bellevue Park.
By National Recreation and Park Association | Posted on December 8, 2013
The Paseo Trail System in Chandler, Arizona, is filled with joggers, roller-bladers, bicyclists, walkers and horseback riders who frequent the urban, lighted path year-round. With multiple entry and exit points along the trail, there needed to be a way for users to know where they were along the route.
By National Recreation and Park Association | Posted on January 8, 2013
When local leaders in Vanderburgh County, Indiana, sought to increase physical activity as part of the Community Health Initiative, they realized the problem of traffic congestion at large community events could be solved as well. And the solution they found was as simple as a bicycle rack.