Phoenix receives middling rank on access to community parks
May 29, 2014, 5:15 PM | Updated: 5:15 pm
PHOENIX — Phoenix performed fairly on a national survey analyzing 60 of the largest U.S. cities for meeting the need for parks in their city.
According to ParkScore , Phoenix ranks at spot 28 followed by Tucson at 42.
Mesa ranked low with only 22 percent of its residents living less than a mile away from a park, and three playgrounds per 10,000 residents.
Phoenix performed better with 14 parks per 10,000 residents with Tucson at a close 18.
ParkScore uses an advanced GIS (Geographic Information System) to identify how many people are able to reach a park within a 10-minute walk.
The analysis also considered median park size, population, parkland as percent of city area, and the amount of spending per resident.
At the top of the list was Minneapolis and New York, with 38 and 40 percent of its residents close to parks, respectively.
Last on the list were Louisville and Fresno with 4 and 16 percent, respectively.
