October 2018 - Parks & Recreation - 15

the National Recreation and Park
Association, The Trust for Public
Land and the Urban Land Institute
launched the 10-Minute Walk Cam(www.10minutewalk.org).
paign
The goal of this program is to ensure
every person in every community
across the United States lives within
a 10-minute walking distance of a
great park. Through a collective national voice, mayoral endorsements
and local community action, the
10-Minute Walk Campaign aims to
increase park quality, park funding
and park access within a 10-minute
walk of everyone's home.
Americans strongly support the
goals of the 10-Minute Walk Campaign and want their local communities to participate in the program.
Eighty-seven percent of survey
respondents indicate they would
support their communities' participation in the 10-Minute Walk
Campaign, with nearly 7 out of 10
strongly supporting the initiative.
Indeed, backing for the campaign
is solid across nearly every segment
of the U.S. population - including
those across the political spectrum
- with particularly robust support
from:
* Millennials
* Gen Xers
* Parents of children under the age
of 18
And, Americans are willing to
put their money where their mouth
is. An overwhelming majority of
survey respondents are in favor
of local governments increasing
financial support for public park
and recreation services, particularly if it helps ensure all residents
in their community can easily access a great park. Seventy-eight
percent indicate they want their
local governments to increase park

and recreation spending from the
current median monthly spending level of just under $7.00 per
resident. Among that share, 31
percent would " definitely " support increased spending while
another 46 percent would " probably " support it. The typical hike
suggested by survey respondents
would put median spending levels
at $8.00 per resident each month,
or a 22 percent increase from
current typical spending levels.
Large majorities of Americans
across all demographic segments
support greater funding for local
parks and recreation:
* Generation: Millennials (83 percent), Gen Xers (82 percent)
and baby boomers (71 percent)
Household formation: Parents (85
percent) and non-parents (75
percent)
* Political affiliation: Democrats (85
percent) and Republicans (73
percent)
* Where they live: Near a park (81
percent) and not near a park (67
percent)
* Household income: Respondents
with income less than $35,000
per year (68 percent) and those
earning more than $75,000 (82
percent)
Local political leaders, who
make parks and recreation a cornerstone of their agendas, are likely to be rewarded at the ballot box.
Seventy-six percent of Americans
are more likely to vote for a local
politician - a mayor, county executive or a member of the local
council - if that politician makes
park and recreation funding a priority. More so, a huge 92 percent
of survey respondents who support
the 10-Minute Walk Campaign are
also more likely to vote for a local

politician who makes park and recreation funding a key priority. It is
noteworthy that Americans' desire
that local politicians support park
and recreation funding is solid
across nearly every segment of the
population:
* Generation: Millennials (73 percent), Gen Xers (76 percent) and
baby boomers (76 percent)
* Household formation: Parents (80
percent) and non-parents (73
percent)
* Political affiliation: Democrats (81
percent) and Republicans (76
percent)
* Where they live: Near a park (78
percent) and not near a park (69
percent)
* Household income: Respondents
with income less than $35,000
per year (76 percent) and those
earning more than $75,000 (79
percent)
The 2018 Americans' Engagement
with Parks Report results demonstrate
that the mission of the 10-Minute
Walk Campaign enjoys solid support among members of the public,
who are willing to support increased
taxes to ensure all people have easy
access to a great park. These findings are consistent with the broader themes of the survey, which
find Americans of all stripes agree
parks and recreation is an important local government service. This
is further demonstrated by the fact
that 85 percent of Americans seek
high-quality park and recreation
amenities when they are choosing a
new place to live. Hence, they want
what is available to them to be available to all Americans. What a compelling message to share with our
political leaders.
Kevin Roth Ph.D., is NRPA's Vice President of Professional
Development, Research and Technology (kroth@nrpa.org).

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Parks & Recreation

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October 2018 - Parks & Recreation

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