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From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile

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From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile: How Urban Park Systems Can Best Promote Health and Wellness Related publications from The Trust for Public Land The Excellent City Park System: What Makes It Great and How to Get There (2006) The Health Benefits of Parks (2007) Measuring the Economic Value of a City Park System (2009) Funding for this project was provided by The Ittleson Foundation, New York, New York PlayCore, Inc., Chattanooga, Tennessee The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Princeton, New Jersey U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia About the authors Peter Harnik is director of The Trust for Public Land’s Center for City Park Excellence and author of Urban Green: Innovative Parks for Resurgent Cities (Island Press, 2010). Ben Welle is assistant project manager for health and road safety at the World Resources Institute. He is former assistant director of the Center for City Park Excellence and former editor of the City Parks Blog (cityparksblog.org). Special thanks to Coleen Gentles for administrative support. The Trust for Public Land Center for City Park Excellence 660 Pennsylvania Ave. SE Washington, D.C. 20003 202.543.7552 tpl.org/CCPE © 2011 The Trust for Public Land Cover photos: Darcy Kiefel From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile: How Urban Park Systems Can Best Promote Health and Wellness By Peter Harnik and Ben Welle TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 5 1. A MIXTURE OF USES AND A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PROGRAMMING 6 Cincinnati Recreation Commission 8 Fitness Zones, Los Angeles 9 Urban Ecology Center, Milwaukee 10 2. STRESS REDUCTION: CALMING TRAFFIC AND EMOTIONS 12 Golden Gate Park, San Francisco 15 Sunday Parkways, Portland, Oregon 17 Seattle’s P-Patch 18 Patterson Park, Baltimore 20 3. BEAUTY AND GREAT DESIGN 22 New York City’s Playground Program 23 4. PROXIMITY, ACCESSIBILITY, AND CO-LOCATION 25 Piedmont Park, Atlanta 28 Midtown Greenway, Minneapolis 29 Hermann Park, Houston 30 5 AN INTERCONNECTED PARK WEB 31 Platte River Greenway, Denver 32 6. PARTNERSHIPS FOR HEALTH 33 New York City Department of Parks and Recreation 35 The Medical Mile, Little Rock, Arkansas 36 CONCLUSION 37 APPENDIX 38 INTRODUCTION When it comes to health and fitness, the United In April 2008 The Trust for Public Land (TPL) States is in crisis. Forty-nine percent of Ameri- organized a colloquium to study this very ques- cans get less than the minimum recommended tion. Twenty-two leading professionals in the amount of physical activity,1 and fully 36 percent fields of public and mental health, parks and of U.S. adults engage in no leisure-time physical recreation, landscape architecture, and urban activity at all.2 These people are not all obese, planning spent two days discussing and analyz- of course, but lack of exercise is certainly a risk ing park elements such as trails, sports fields, factor for being overweight—and we are the playgrounds, drinking fountains, restrooms, most overweight nation on Earth.3 On average, and other facilities—how they are provided, an obese American racks up nearly $1,500 more promoted, and signed. Attendees also consid- per year in health care costs than an American of ered critically important (but often overlooked) normal weight, for a national total of $147 billion variables external to the parks, such as ease of in direct medical expenses.4 With health costs access, walkability, and cyclability; transit ser- collectively making up between 17 and 18 percent vice; and the density of the surrounding popula- of the U.S. gross domestic product,5 there is no tion. Finally, they discussed the critical issue of doubt that the population needs to be more fit. park safety. It is well established that physical activity helps prevent obesity and related medical problems. The mere presence of a park does And there is mounting evidence that provid- not guarantee a healthier population. ing places to exercise—parks, primarily—can . It’s time for parks to be more improve health.6 Research is also uncovering than simply pretty places. physical and mental health benefits simply from interacting with nature: reduced levels of at- tention deficit in children,7 improved cognitive Based on this work, the group agreed on the ability,8 reduced aggressive behavior9—a general overriding principle for a park system to foster recharge of the brain.10 mental and physical well-being: it must be well used by the public. The attendees also con- The mere presence of a park, however, does not curred on the six major factors that can stimu- guarantee a healthier population. Thousands of late this public use. acres of city parks are not, for one reason or an- other, serving the important purpose of helping That guidance, followed up by a good deal of people become healthier. With a growing clamor research and analysis and a search for best prac- from doctors, parents, overweight persons, and tices, has yielded this booklet. We hope it aids even those who just want to strengthen muscles, Americans in achieving better health. lungs, and hearts, it’s time for parks to be more than simply pretty places. How can individual parks—and entire city park systems—actually help people be healthier and more fit? From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile: How Urban Park Systems Can Best Promote Health and Wellness 5 1 A Mixture of Uses and a Maximum Amount of Programming Physical activity is key to health, and city parks a ball, toss a Frisbee, play catch, throw sticks to are a resource for active urbanites. a dog, or much more. Thick woods are wonder- ful sanctuaries for wildlife and the occasional But many parks don’t make it easy to exercise. intrepid bushwhacker; forests with manicured Some are too small, some too big and confusing, trails, the occasional bench, and periodic grassy some too far away, some too frightening, some openings attract many more users. too unattractive and unimaginative. Some are mainly athletic complexes for specialized users— Of course, mixing uses has its challenges and baseball, soccer, or tennis players as far as the eye requires good design, adequate signage, and clear can see. Others are primarily natural areas with rules. Trail use, for example, can create conflict occasional looping trails, boring for many com- between walkers, skaters, and fast cyclists. Many petitive young (and not-so-young) people. cities appropriately prohibit fast cycling on trails shared by pedestrians. On the other hand, hard In the starkest terms, most parks simply don’t pedaling and fast running provide more health offer enough choices and opportunities for activ- benefit than casual spinning and jogging. Other ity. Rather than being like old-fashioned hard- than putting bikes on roadways (see page 15), the ware stores, filled to the brim with unexpected only safe solution is to provide parallel treadways delights and choices, many are more like conve- for fast and slow users—and to clearly mark the nience stores, with a small, predictable number allowed uses by location or time of day. Then, of lowest-common-denominator wares. too, the alternate trails need occasional enforce- ment. The more facilities and discrete spaces that are layered onto a park, the more use it can get from Even if a park system offers varied spaces for people with different interests and skills. A golf physical activity, not everyone will know how course can serve a couple of hundred people a to take advantage of them. Some users need to day; add a running track around the perimeter learn new skills, some need encouragement, and the same space can serve thousands. (The some need an exercise regimen, some need social one encircling Memorial Park Golf Course support. Even with all this, many require other in Houston hosts 10,000 runners a day and is assistance—partners, equipment, referees, time- reputed to be the most heavily used exercise keepers, music, safety paraphernalia, and more. trail in the country.) A playground is a nice place In a word, programming. Good programming for small children to race through and practice can increase park use many times over, make motor skills; adding an adjacent fitness zone of activity more enjoyable, and increase its benefits adult exercise equipment allows moms, dads, and to health and fitness. nannies to get into shape while they’re watching the kids. A softball diamond is a great place for Traditional park programming consists of league 18 players; unstructured field space nearby opens sports, exercise routines, children’s camps, and up unending possibilities for twosomes to kick oldies-but-goodies such as ballroom dancing. 6 From Fitness Zones to the Medical Mile: How Urban Park Systems Can Best Promote Health and Wellness THE MORE YOU CAN DO, THE BETTER! It’s no surprise that New York’s Central Park welcomes more visitors than any other park in the world: there’s something for everyone. • Run, bike, or skate on miles of car-free roadway • Meditate on a Greek statue at the Metropolitan • Paddle a canoe or row a boat Museum of Art • Visit the lions at the zoo • Climb aboard a pedicab for a human-powered • Ride a wooden horse at the carousel park tour • Catch and release a fish in the lake or Harlem Meer • Listen to a concerto during a SummerStage • Swing in one of 21 playgrounds concert • Climb on the Alice in Wonderland statue • Marvel at syncopated roller dancing • Hum a John Lennon tune at Strawberry Fields • Get rhythm in the middle of a drum circle • Applaud a performance at Shakespeare in the Park • Get married in a flower garden • Float a model sloop in the sailboat pond • Join a historical
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