Chicago: Providing Children with Access to Quality Parks

Last week, Chicago Mayor Emanuel announced a comprehensive strategy to ensure that every child in Chicago lives within a 10-minute walk of a new park or playground. WOW!  Here's a news story on the program, called "Chicago Plays," which will build new parks and refurbish 300 city playground over the next five years. By the end of this year alone, the city will open 5 new parks, rebuild 50 playgrounds, and acquire 200 acres of parkland.

Last year, I blogged about the issue of childrens' access to parks in Austin. Our track record here is dismal: Austin ranks 65th in the country in per capita city spending on parks operations and maintenance, and only 37% of Austin's inner-city residents live within a 10-minute walk of a public park (less than 42% of residents outside the urban core). Meanwhile, in cities such as Chicago, more than 90% of residents can walk to a park (91% in NYC, 97% in Boston, 99% in Minneapolis).

A recent City of Austin Urban Parks Workgroup report recommended that the City step up its commitment to expanding park access, by dedicating $20 million in the City's most recent bond election for new park acquisition. Instead, only a fifth of that was put on the ballot last year for voters to approve, which will barely make a dent in closing our city's park access gaps. We have a long way to go. The Chicago model is inspiring.