NYC PARKS: THE FACTS

Sources: nycgovparks.org, centralparknyc.org, plaNYC

Who Runs NYC’s Parks?• THE PARKS IN NYC ARE HEADED BY THE NEW YORK CITY

DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

• THE PARKS COMMISSIONER IS APPOINTED BY THE MAYOR

• THE CURRENT COMMISSIONER IS VERONICA M. WHITE

The Parks Department controls more than 29,000 acres of land—About 14% of NYC. This land includes more than 5,000 individual properties, including:

• 800 athletic fields• 1,000 playgrounds• 550 tennis courts• 66 public pools• 48 recreational facilities• 17 nature centers• 13 gold courses• 14 miles of beaches• 1,200 monuments• 23 historic house

museums

Parks Department’s annual operating budget: $337 million

The Department Employs approximately 3,500 full-time employees and approximately 2,500 seasonal and transitional employees.

NYC also relies on volunteers to service and maintain parks and playgrounds.

Parks provides free public programs and services in coordination with New York City’s local elected officials, community members, and non-profit partners

Funding for NYC Parks• Taxes (of course)

• Partners to NYC Parks• These are private organizations that raise

money for parks

• Some, such as the Central Park Conservancy or the Prospect Park Alliance, service a specific park

• Others, such as the City Parks Foundation, raise funds for projects citywide

More on the Central Park Conservancy . . .

• It was founded in 1980 to combat Central Park’s decline that began in the 1970’s

• In 1998, the CPC and the City of NY signed a management agreement formalizing their partnership

• CPC is responsible for the day-to-day management of the park, and provides 85% of the park’s annual $45.8 million expenses

• The City provides the rest of the funding, as well as law enforcement. It also has policy control, control over permits and events, and provides 10% of the field staff

Under the Bloomberg Administration

Since 2007, NYC has accelerated the rate of public space renewal, making this the “3rd great era of park building” (the first 2 were in the late 1800’s with the building of large urban parks and in the 1930’s under Robert Moses).

The goal laid out in PlaNYC is for every New Yorker to live within a ten-minute walk from a park, and to ensure the quality of parks and public spaces.

These goals are set to be met by the year 2030.

The Plan for NYC Parks Includes:• Target high impact projects in

neighborhoods underserved by parks

• Create destination-level spaces for all types of recreation• This includes turning landfills into

parks• Increasing opportunities for

water-related recreation

• Promote and Protect Nature• Plant one million trees• Conserve natural areas

• Ensure long-term health of parks and public spaces