The Trust for Public Land is launching a new online tool called ParkServeTM to help cities understand park access and distribution. ParkServeTM will map existing parks and analyze access for minorities, children, low-income residents and other groups. It will provide cities free mapping of residents within a 10-minute walk of a park and tools to site new parks and prioritize improvements. The goal is to extend coverage to 270 million urban Americans and ensure everyone lives within a 10-minute walk of a park. ParkServeTM will create the first national database on park accessibility and tools to help cities understand how well their park systems meet resident needs.

1. Introducing ParkServe™
Quality parks, equitably distributed, are a
key ingredient in healthy communities. But
how is a city to understand how its parks are
distributed, whom they are serving, and
where gaps in service might be? Using its
award-winning GIS technology— and
building on its ParkScore® index of the
nation’s 100 largest cities—The Trust for
Public Land’s new ParkServe™ website will
help cities map park distribution and access,
and needs for specific communities and
groups.
An Online Web Portal
ParkServe™ will extend our data collection on
park access beyond the 100 ParkScore® cities to
cities of all sizes nationwide. Cities that participate
will receive:
• an analysis of how parks are serving minorities,
children, or low-income residents and other groups
• free mapping of residents within a 10-minute
walk of a park (usual minimum charge: $3,000)
• access to our interactive ParkEvaluator™ tool
and ParkOptimizer™ results to help site parks,
prioritize park improvements, and pinpoint the
best new park locations based on demographic
criteria

2. The Trust for Public Land
creates parks and protects land
for people, ensuring healthy,
livable communities for
generations to come.
tpl.org
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Breece Robertson Bob Heuer
National GIS Director Associate GIS Director
505.988.5922 505.988.5922
breece.robertson@tpl.org bob.heuer@tpl.org
PHOTOS: NANA TAIMOUR
PRINTED ON 100% RECYCLED PAPER. ©2015 THE TRUST FOR PUBLIC LAND.
A 10-minute Walk to the Park
ParkServe™ will create the nation’s first database
of park accessibility for cities nationwide, along
with an online mapping tool for studying
accessibility, and a website and app platform to
serve this information to the public. It’s
development is central to meeting our goal that
every American live within a 10-minute walk of a
park, playground, or protected natural area.
We hope over the next several years to extend
ParkServe™ coverage to most of the 270 million
Americans living in urban areas—more than 70%
of the population—helping to bring all of them
within a 10-minute walk of a park.
Benefits Local and Nationwide
The ParkServe™ website and app along with the
ParkEvaluator™ tool and ParkOptimizer™ results
will help cities understand how successful their
park systems are at meeting the needs of residents,
and what actions can be taken to improve park
access for everyone. The online tools will allow
them to explore specific scenarios—create
walkability maps for specific parcels, for example,
or visualize how a park in a new location could
serve specific groups.
But the data will also serve an important national
purpose. The more we know about park
accessibility, the better we will be able to make the
case for funding and support for urban parks in
general. All publically accessible parks data, as
determined by the cities that provide it, will be
added to the USGS Protected Areas Database for
the US (PAD-US), available for free at:
http://gapanalysis.usgs.gov/padus/ —an
important database for park advocates.
Thank You
The Trust for Public Land is grateful to park
leaders and data providers for participating in
ParkServe™, ParkScore®, and the Center for City
Park Excellence survey. To view ParkScore® data,
including accessibility data for the 100 largest
cities, go to www.parkscore.tpl.org .