Indianapolis Parks Fall Below National Average

A new study of the 100 largest U.S. cities shows access to Indianapolis parks is below the national average. Only, 32 percent of residents live within 10 minutes of a park –– the national average is 70 percent.

Indianapolis did not officially participate in the study, but the report still released data on the city’s parks.

Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation director Linda Broadfoot says they chose not to participate in the study because of the hefty time commitment.

"People may know about the really big parks or the older parks. There’s stuff happening in neighborhood parks, and there are trails to walk on and food programs being delivered," Broadfoot says. "There’s so much going on we always just need the community to help us spread the word about all that great work. 

Broadfoot says this past year says the parks department implemented new programs like Shakespeare performances and programs to get children on bikes in parks.

The Trust for Public Land’s yearly report looks at a number of factors, including spending per resident and median park size to rank cities.

Minnesota claimed the top two spots in the study. Minneapolis ranked No. 1 and St. Paul was No. 2. San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Portland rounded out the top five.