Kraus' Recreation and Leisure in Modern Society 10th Edition by Daniel McLean, Linda Dayer-Berenson, Brian Luke Seaward, Amy Hurd

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The Next Generation of Urban Parks
Urban parks have been part of the American fabric since the creation of the Boston Common in the mid-seventeenth century and New York's Central Park in the early nineteenth century. Each defined parks in different ways, but it was the ideal of Central Park that brought about the large urban park movement. A movement that has defined public parks for 175 years, it has been rethought, discussed, challenged, but remains for many communities the ideal.
With burgeoning populations, the resurgence of urban areas, the recognition that communities must rethink how they provide public parks, and the desire to ensure that green spaces are available to many, the concept of the urban park in the twenty-first century is receiving much attention. a Traditionally park and recreation professionals have led the discussion, but increasingly the push for change is coming from nonprofits, community organizations, and community members, all devoted to their communities.
Louisville, Kentucky has a rich park heritage. In 1891 they contracted with Frederick Law Olmsted, one of two designers of Central Park, to create a park system. The results were three major parks connected with tree-lined boulevards. The Olmsted parks are considered to be national and local treasures and examples of a premiere park system. In 2001 the community was challenged by the chairman of the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy to, "help us think of something that our generation can do that will have a 100-year impact on Louisville like the Olmsted Parks." b
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, the Parks Foundation created a series of initiatives to foster community engagement in the development of parks. The foundation has embraced the concept of "The Next Generation of Urban Parks." A series of lectures were sponsored focusing on transformative park designs around the world; a curriculum for school children was created that helps them to see the community, share responsibility for its environment, and learn to participate in public decision-making processes. In addition the Foundation has created partnerships with the University of Minnesota College of Design to help initiate creative design. One of their first initiatives, titled "RiverFirst," focuses on 5.5 miles of the Upper Mississippi River. c Parks developed along both sides of the river were conceived as a linear park establishing a riverfront park for future generations. A series of design competitions were conducted as part of the creative process. The results have encouraged the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board to establish a 20-year development plan, with specific target tasks that will anchor the project and encourage ongoing investment.
The Trust for Public Land's Center for City Park Excellence is committed to research on parks; what makes them successful; how parks contribute to the social, economic, and ecological values of their communities and users; and how parks contribute to neighborhood revitalization. d The City Parks Alliance, another nonprofit organization, focuses its efforts on a broad spectrum of individuals committed to urban parks and their contributions to urban areas and environments. e
As communities address a broad range of social and economic issues, challenges, and expectations from their residents they are discovering that government cannot do it alone. Rethinking the concept and role of urban parks has been a major national discussion since the early 1990s and has become even more acute as economic challenges have diminished many local and state governments' abilities to maintain existing services and provide new parks and recreation areas. Nonprofits are having a significant influence on the future potential of the concept, design, and management of urban parks. Part of the concept of "The Next Generation of Urban Parks" is the greater involvement of partnerships among government, nonprofits, corporations, and community groups and organizations to define, embrace, and serve as a catalyst for community understanding and commitment.
How could you help your community begin to think about creating or renewing its urban parks