Making the Most of Our Parks
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Making the Most of Our Parks RECREATION EXERCISE RESPITE PLAY ENSURING GREENER, SAFER, CLEANER PARKS, TOGETHER A SUMMARY OF A REPORT BY THE CITIZENS BUDGET COMMISSION AT THE REQUEST OF NEW YORKERS FOR PARKS NEW YORK’S NONPARTISAN VOICE SEPTEMBER 2007 FOR EFFECTIVE GOVERNMENT MAKING THE MOST OF OUR PARKS the challenge to new yorkers Parks play important roles in city life. They are a source of respite from the bustle of the urban environment, a place for active recreation and exercise for adults, and a safe place for children to play outdoors. In addition, parks preserve sensitive environmen- tal areas, and, by making neighborhoods more attractive, enhance property values and the tax base of the city. Given the benefits of urban parks, it should be reassuring to New Yorkers that more than 37,000 acres, or nearly one-fifth the city’s total land area, is parkland. This pro- portion is larger than in most big cities in the United States, suggesting that New Yorkers are well endowed with parks. But New Yorkers face a distinct challenge in enjoying their parks. Their parks must accommodate an unparalleled volume of people. New York has about 217 residents for each acre of parkland, one of the highest ratios in the nation, compared to a national average among large cities of about 55 residents per acre. When the extraordinarily large number of commuters and tourists is added to New York’s resident population, the potential demand on local parks likely is greater than in any other American city. New Yorkers must be especially innovative in order to make the most of their parks. The leadership of the agency with the largest responsibility for parks in New York, the municipal Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR), has been addressing this chal- lenge and has made significant progress. The Citizens Budget Commission last analyzed the management issues confronting the Table 1 DPR in 1991, a time when local parks were in generally poor condi- Parks in New York City and 11 Large U.S. Cities tion and when the City faced significant fiscal stress. Since then the City Park Acres Parkland as Percent Residents DPR has made major strides in improving the condition of parks – of City Land Area per Park Acre often using strategies consistent with the CBC’s recommendations. New York 37,342 19% 217 The DPR has improved the condition of parks, developed a well- Los Angeles 23,410 8% 164 regarded performance measurement tool to gauge park quality, effec- Chicago 11,916 8% 240 tively used temporary workers enrolled in public assistance programs, Philadelphia 10,916 13% 135 and increased philanthropic support to supplement public resources San Francisco 5,773 19% 129 for parks. Baltimore 4,905 9% 130 Yet more can be done. This analysis points to six current issues: Boston 5,475 18% 104 Washington, DC 7,726 20% 72 1. Greater incentives are needed to pursue earned revenues, prima- Long Beach 2,768 9% 172 rily from concessions. With just a few exceptions, the City now Oakland 3,831 11% 104 retains all revenues generated in the parks to support its general Miami 1,347 6% 282 operations; DPR managers have limited incentives to optimize Minneapolis 5,359 15% 70 these revenues. 2. No comprehensive, strategic plan guides expansion of the parks Source: The Trust for Public Land, June 2006. Figures include federal, state, and local parks. network. As a result, priorities for expansion are not clear, and 2 MAKING THE MOST OF OUR PARKS there is a risk that inadequate resources will be provided for maintenance of expand- ed facilities or that existing parks will suffer as limited resources are spread thin. 3. All parks are not kept in acceptable condition, and parks in poorer neighborhoods are more likely to be in worse condition than parks in wealthier neighborhoods. About one of eight parks citywide is not in acceptable condition, and there is a sig- nificant correlation between a community district’s share of parks in unacceptable condition and its average income level. Founded in 1932, the Citizens Budget 4. The DPR has no objective measures of park use and the efficiency of delivering park services. Better management requires improved information about park use Commission (CBC) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit and the unit cost of services. civic organization committed to influencing constructive change in the finances and 5. Borrowed funds are used for routine repairs and replacements, creating incentives services of New York State and New York City to limit preventive maintenance and to replace equipment and facilities more rap- idly than might otherwise be necessary. The municipal capital, rather than operat- governments. ing, budget pays for these items, leading to the temptation to use more borrowed funds than is necessary or appropriate. This document is a summary of a report, Making the Most of Our Parks. The report was 6. The multiple, new arrangements with nonprofit partner organizations that help manage the parks have not been made fully transparent and have not been estab- prepared under the auspices of an ad hoc lished in accord with consistent guidelines for how to encourage philanthropy, committee of CBC Trustees co-chaired by how to divide responsibilities between DPR and its partners, and how to divide W. James Tozer, Jr. and Susan B. Yoss. The full concession revenues between the City and its partners. At least 50 distinct non- report and this summary were prepared by profit organizations help manage New York’s parks, with most established since Charles Brecher, Research Director, and Oliver 1991. Some diversity in the arrangements is expected and warranted, but these enti- Wise, Research Associate. Brecher is also a ties ought to be treated in a more consistent manner financially and operationally. Professor at NYU’s Wagner School. For details At the end of this document the CBC presents six recommendations to address these on source information and research credits, issues. see the full report available on the web at www.cbcny.org. New Yorkers for Parks (NY4P) is the only independent watchdog for all the City’s parks, beaches and playgrounds, and is the City’s oldest and leading expert on park conditions, efficiency and funding. While New Yorkers for Parks supported the preparation of the CBC’s report, its content is solely the responsibility of CBC. The report was made possible through generous grants from the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation and the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors. 3 MAKING THE MOST OF OUR PARKS new york city’s parks The DPR’s parks are one part of a large public park network operated by all levels of government. DPR parks comprise more than three quarters of the system, but much of the city’s park acreage is in national parks (such as Gateway National Recreation Area), State parks (such as Roberto Clemente State Park), parks maintained by public authorities (such as those in Battery Park City), and privately owned public spaces, including public plazas located near large buildings in exchange for zoning bonuses given to the buildings’ developers. The DPR’s 29,025 acres are in 1,911 different properties. Large parks (over 100 acres) comprise 69 percent or 19,894 acres; medium-sized parks (20 to 100 acres) make up 10 percent or 3,038 acres, and small parks (less than 20 acres) are about five percent. The DPR also maintains another 4,643 acres that house 542 free-standing play- grounds, 145 circles and squares, 19 parcels on parkways, and 748 other properties, many of which are small properties located at traffic intersections. Numerous recre- ational facilities, such as basketball courts, sports fields, tennis courts, and pools are found throughout the DPR’s park system. Parks facilities have grown substantially over the past 24 years. Total acreage is up 14 percent and the number of parks properties is up 20 percent. In addition, many recreational facilities such as playgrounds, athletic fields, tennis courts, and recreation centers have increased in number. Table 2 Table 3 Parks in New York City, 2006 Department of Parks and Recreation Facilities, 1982 and 2006 Acres Percent 1982 2006 Percent of Total Change City Parks 29,025 77.7% Park Acres 25,058 29,025 14% National Parks 6,982 18.7% Park Properties 1,533 1,911 20% State Parks 975 2.6% Recreation Facilities Public Authority Parks 278 0.7% Playgrounds 838 990 15% Battery Park City Authority 35 Athletic Fields 760 857 11% Hudson River Park Trust 100 Comfort Stations 635 576 -10% Brooklyn Bridge Park Development Corporation 77 Tennis Courts 627 702 11% Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation 40 Swimming Pools 46 44 -5% Economic Development Corporation 26 Recreation and Community Centers 29 36 19% Privately Owned Public Spaces 82 0.2% Miles of Beaches 14 14 0% Total 37,342 100.0% Golf Courses 13 14 7% Ice Rinks 6 6 0% Source: New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. Stadiums 4 5 20% Zoos 3 5 40% Source: New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. 4 MAKING THE MOST OF OUR PARKS resources for new york’s parks The resources available to maintain City parks can be gauged in terms of dollars and staff. Money. Resources dedicated to the DPR totaled about $885 million in fiscal year 2006 and came from taxpayers and private sources. Of the total, $780 million or 92 percent was from the City’s municipal revenues. The City’s support has three com- ponents - $288 million in operating expenditures for the DPR; $246 million in centrally allocated costs including fringe benefits and pension contributions for DPR employees, debt service on bonds that fund DPR capital projects, and judgments and claims against the DPR; another $246 million for capital expenditures, projects with long useful lives and financed with bonds.