Automobile Access

Bike Lane Access

Traffic Volume

Transportation

Diesel Particulate Matter

Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5)

Ozone

Clean Environment

Park Access

Tree Canopy

Neighborhood

Above Poverty

Employed

Per Capita Income

Economic

Census Response

Voting

Social

Insured Adults

Healthcare Access

Homeownership

Housing Habitability

Severely Cost Burdened Low-Income Homeowners

Severely Cost Burdened Low-Income Renters

Uncrowded Housing

Housing

Bachelor's Education

High School Enrollment

Preschool Enrollment

Education

Outdoor Workers

Supermarket Access

Two Parent Households

Library Access

Safe Drinking Water

Public Transit Access

Decision Support

Everybody should have access to parks and other open spaces near their home. Parks can encourage physical activity, reduce chronic diseases, improve mental health, foster community connections, and support community resilience to climate change and pollution. Many studies have documented that living within walking distance of parks and open spaces encourages physical activity (especially for children)—helping to lower rates of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, obesity, and diabetes.

 This is especially true when combined with physical activity programs

 Parks and greenspace can also lower stress, improve cognitive functioning and mental health, help people like veterans recover from traumatic events, and promote health-protective social connections.

 Reducing paved surfaces, like roads and parking lots, and increasing greenspace and parks can also reduce heat-island effects (where hot air builds in heavily developed areas) and filter out pollutants.

 While park access is important for everyone, access is disproportionately lower for low-income communities and communities of color, who are also more likely to live near parks without sufficient space or facilities.

This indicator measures the total park area in each census tract divided by its population. 

Raynault, E., & Christopher, E. (2013). How does transportation affect public health? United States Department of Transportation. Retrieved from https://highways.dot.gov/public-roads/mayjune-2013/how-does-transportation-affect-public-health

Djurhuus, S., Hansen, H. S., Aadahl, M., & Glümer, C. (2014). The association between access to public transportation and self-reported active commuting. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 11(12), 12632–12651. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph111212632

Nahlik, M. J., & Chester, M. V. (2014). Transit-oriented smart growth can reduce life-cycle environmental impacts and household costs in Los Angeles. Transport Policy, 35, 21-30. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2014.05.004

University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. (2022). Green space & parks. The County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. Retrieved from https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/take-action-to-improve-health/what-works-for-health/strategies/green-space-parks

Jennings, V., & Bamkole, O. (2019). The relationship between social cohesion and urban green space: An avenue for health promotion. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(3), 452. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030452

Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. (2005). Does the built environment influence physical activity? Examining the evidence. Retrieved from https://www.trb.org/publications/sr/sr282.pdf

Hunter, R. F., Christian, H., Veitch, J., Astell-Burt, T., Hipp, J. A., & Schipperijn, J. (2015). The impact of interventions to promote physical activity in urban green space: A systematic review and recommendations for future research. Social Science & Medicine (1982), 124, 246–256. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.11.051

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2012, December). Physical activity guidelines for Americans midcourse report: Strategies to increase physical activity among youth. Retrieved from https://health.gov/sites/default/files/2019-09/pag-mid-course-report-final.pdf

Sallis, J., & Spoon, C. (2015). Making the case for designing active cities. Active Living Research. Retrieved from https://activelivingresearch.org/sites/activelivingresearch.org/files/MakingTheCaseReport.pdf

Wolch, J. R., Byrne, J., & Newell, J. P. (2014). Urban green space, public health, and environmental justice: The challenge of making cities ‘just green enough.’ Landscape and Urban Planning, 125, 234–244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2014.01.017

Knight, T., Price, S., Bowler, D., Hookway, A., King, S., Konno, K., & Richter, R. L. (2021). How effective is ‘greening’ of urban areas in reducing human exposure to ground-level ozone concentrations, UV exposure and the ‘Urban Heat Island Effect’? An updated systematic review. Environmental Evidence, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13750-021-00226-y

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2018, August). Estimating the environmental effects of green roofs: A case study in Kansas City, Missouri. EPA. Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/estimating-environmental-effects-green-roofs-case-study-kansas-city-missouri

Wolf, K. (2014, April 30). Water and wellness: Green infrastructure for health co-benefits. Stormwater (WEF). Retrieved from https://stormwater.wef.org/2014/04/water-wellness/

Younger, M., Morrow-Almeida, H. R., Vindigni, S. M., & Dannenberg, A. L. (2008). The built environment, climate change, and health: Opportunities for co-benefits. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 35(5), 517–526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2008.08.017

Improving access to parks requires a range of strategies to assess park conditions, plan for equitable access, and make parks safe and active. Jurisdictions seeking to improve park access should first 

. Planning efforts should typically start with an assessment of current park conditions, community needs, health conditions and gaps. In addition to the park access indicator in the Healthy Places Index, planners should consider use or burden measures such as park space per person within service areas, as well as historic capital and operations expenditures by park, neighborhood and user—with an eye to improving access and conditions in communities that have been historically left behind. A variety of tools exist to assess park access and conditions, such as the Trust for Public Land’s 

, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s 

Parks and Trails Health Impact Assessment Toolkit

Because neighborhood residents are experts about their community needs, jurisdictions should ensure that park planning, design and programming incorporates residents’ ideas. Especially in places with high 

 before initiating larger scale park construction or rehabilitation to ensure that people are not displaced, if improvements spark increased rents.

In addition to planning, jurisdictions should 

 to ensure that they maximize health benefits. Parks should be designed with active uses and safety in mind, and coupled with programming to maximize use, ensure safety, and increase physical activity. Jurisdictions should also ensure that existing parks are well maintained, and that communities know about the parks and activities open to them.

Improving park access and park quality can be expensive, but there are funding tools available to Utah jurisdictions and park districts, including the 

Utah Office of Outdoor Recreation’s Grant Program

In addition to traditional funding mechanisms like taxes and developer fees, this guide suggests partnering with non-profit hospitals’ community benefit programs to fund park improvements. Jurisdictions can also approach their local public health department for assistance in navigating health funding. Jurisdictions should carefully evaluate the distribution of their existing resources and expenditures, for instance assessing their Capital Improvement Plans and budgets to ensure equity in park funding. As part of these processes, jurisdictions should consider auditing existing park facilities and conditions (with community input and participation), assessing the relative equity of past/planned funding allocations, and investing in areas that are park poor, or with overburdened facilities. Budgeting processes should be transparent and open to the public.

Ensure that parks encourage health through thoughtful design, programs and outreach.

Physical Activity

Equity

Promising

Violence Prevention and Safety

Climate

Community Engagement and Connection

Park Design

Best Practice

Implement Specific Taxes for Community Benefit

Food Access

Strong Evidence

Park Programming

Sufficient Evidence

Education and Outreach

Existing Green Space Rehabilitation and Upkeep

Activity Programs for Older Adults

Assess current park conditions and shape policies to encourage equitable park access.

Policy Guide

Park Access

References