The first category, an alphabetical listing of cities with total parkland acreage, shows that many of the largest park systems are in the South and Southwest (though by far the largest city park system is in Anchorage, Alaska, with more than 500,000 acres, most of which is a state park within the city limits).
Yet it also serves as a microcosm of the current challenges faced by the nation's park systems, and the workarounds that many use to overcome them.
Among the factors CPF examines is the size of the park systems, what percent of the city is dedicated to parks, the amount of parkland and number of playgrounds per capita, spending on parks, and how many residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park.
I'm a numbers guy, so I did a quick check of how many units of the park system are dedicated to the Civil War," he said.
And, in news that may be upsetting to residents who argue the bike stations are taking up too many parking spots, the bike system is not done expanding.
The division of parks and forestry -- an arm of the Department of Environmental Protection -- operates the state's 57 historic sites, many of which are within the park system itself.
Denver continues to grow its park system with the development of many new parks along the Platte River through the city, and with Central Park and Bluff Lake Nature Center in the Stapleton neighborhood redevelopment.
I'm convinced that the solution to many of our problems resides in our National Park System which represents the touchstone of reality in an age of "spin".
Furthermore, many parks subscribe to an active interventionist approach to perturb the system in a direction required to meet stated objectives [3], [5].
"It's not how many people can we get out there, but how many can we connect with nature and how many learn to appreciate the beauty of state parks," said Gloria Sandoval, a spokeswoman for the park system.
