A recent national poll by the Trust for Public Lands suggests the economic downturn has spurred a sharp increase in families – especially those with young children – using public parks and playgrounds. From July 28 to 30, Harris Interactive asked 2,095 U.S. adults:
During this period of economic difficulty, have you and your family changed how much you make use of public parks and playgrounds?
For families with children younger than six, 38% of respondents said they now use public facilities more, 51% said they haven’t changed their usage, and 10% are using parks and playgrounds less.
Among all park users, 21% now use public recreation more, 72% haven’t changed their usage, and 7% are going less to parks and playgrounds. Also, 34% of the respondents said they didn’t use public facilities before and still don’t.
Since November, students have been learning about the natural habitat, insects and science in general in a native garden they are tending at Collins Elementary in Cupertino, California. Campus gardens are a growing trend, writes the San Jose Mercury News, but because this one uses native species, “it will need little to no maintenance over the summer months, which means parents and volunteers won’t have to be called on, and there won't be any empty garden beds during the off season.”
Parents, staff and local residents built a vegetable garden at Stadley Rough Elementary in Danbury, Connecticut. Teachers will incorporate the garden into their lesson plans, vegetables grown in it will be used in the school cafeteria, and students will help take care of the crops, which will be shared among all the families participating in the project. “The project will make kids see the connection between what we grow and what we eat,” Principal Mary Johnson told the News Times
Welcome PFP Administrator Fran Hrobak
People for Parks’ new administrator, Frances Hrobak, has extensive experience as a database manager, bookkeeper and office manager for nonprofit organizations and businesses. She also has years of experience as a volunteer, peace activist and homeless advocate.
“I bring to the job a high energy level, a strong belief in PFP’s mission, a great appreciation for parks, and a solid background in organizational skills,” she said, adding, “And I make a mean dish of pasta.”
Hrobak, who holds dual Canadian and U.S. citizenship, describes herself as a “wife, mother, grandmother, sister and irrepressibly cheerful.”
PFP Joins Call for ‘Green’ Stimulus
On Jan. 14, People for Parks and 17 other environmental advocates sent the following letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger calling for economic stimulus projects that reflect “green” and equitable development policies. Copies were also sent to Assembly Speaker Karen Bass and Senate Pres. Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg in Sacramento, as well as U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman.
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Dear Governor Schwarzenegger:
In the depths of the Great Depression, Los Angeles County emptied its relief rolls, putting 17,000 people to work paving the Los Angeles River by hand. Today, as we work to undo that monstrous miscalculation, calls are rising all over the land to put people back to work building or repairing our tattered and neglected infrastructure. Like all other hard-hit Angelinos, the undersigned environmental and environmental justice organizations welcome this economic stimulus and look forward to working with government to initiate critical public works efforts and bring them to completion.
But as governmental agencies prepare “shovel-ready” projects for a massive influx of cash we in the L.A. environmental community urge local, state and Federal authorities to make sure that all such projects reflect the principles of smart green infrastructure and equitable development, and reject proposals which attempt to set aside environmental and civil rights laws, principles, and safeguards; or compromise public health, safety and equal justice in the name of full employment. We strongly oppose your efforts to waive or modify NEPA, the National Environmental Protection Act and CEQA, the California Environmental Protection Act, in the name of haste.
In this moment of political inclusiveness, when what joins us seems more powerful than what tears us apart, we the undersigned urge that all new public works contribute to the sustainability of our air, earth, and water and to the restoration of communities, both human and the wider communities that share this planet. We believe all Federal, State, and local stimulus projects should jump-start the green Jobs movement and our long-overdue transition to a green economy. We look forward to creating and working with the broadest possible coalitions to restore our economies and the health of the earth.
Sincerely,
Audubon California – Graham Chisholm
Arroyo Seco Foundation – Meredith McKenzie
The City Project – Robert Garcia
Coalition for Clean Air – Martin Schlageter
Community Gardens Council – Glen Dake
Earth Day L.A. – John Quigley
Friends of the L.A. River – Lewis MacAdams
From Lot to Spot – Viviana Franco
Heal The Bay – Mark Gold
Latino Urban Forum – James Rojas
Mujeres de la Tierra – Irma Muñoz
Natural Resources Defense Council – Joel Reynolds
People For Parks – Carrie Sutkin
The River Project – Melanie Winter
The Sierra Club – Bill Corcoran
Tree People – Andy Lipkis
Trust For Public Land – Tori Kjer
Urban Semillas – Miguel Luna
De Leon Bill Directs $400 Million Into Parks
On Oct. 2, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed AB 31 by Assemblyman Kevin de León to channel $400 million of Prop. 84 funds for parks in the neediest communities across California. The signing took place in Taylor Yards, a popular new park carved out of a stretch of San Fernando Road previously dominated by light industry and railroads.
“Parks produce community pride, healthy children and lower crime rates. This bill means children can get off the streets and on a swing,” said De León, who will be honored as Legislator of the Year at the Parks Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
A companion bill by Assemblywoman Anna Caballero rewards local governments that meet affordable-housing goals with $200 million in Prop 1C money for parks and other resources. Caballero said her AB 2494 provides an incentive. “It says, if you do the right thing, resources like parks with be there for you.”
With a stroke of the governor's pen (top) and two years work by Assemblyman De Leon (middle), $400 million will go to create parks for the neediest Californians.
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