Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Cincinnati Is Tops In Annual Park Ranking Survey

Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
Children play in the fountains at Smale Riverfront Park.

Cincinnati Parks have 10 top 10 rankings in a survey released Wednesday by the Trust for Public Land.The survey compares data provided by the 100 most populous cities in the U.S.

"Cincinnati has a lot of recreational amenities that it offers to its citizens," says the Trust's Ali Hiple, program coordinator, Center for City Park Excellence.

"Cincinnati has both a parks board and the recreation commission and that gives the city a really robust approach to both recreation and parks management," Hiple says.

Per capita, Cincinnati ranks:

  • 1st - number of nature centers: 6
  • 2nd - number of golf courses: 6
  • 2nd - number of swimming pools: 23
  • 3rd - number of volleyball nets: 45
  • 4th - number of baseball/softball diamonds: 119
  • 5th - number of basketball hoops: 275
  • 5th - number of disc golf courses: 4
  • 5th - number of playgrounds: 155
  • 5th - number of restrooms: 193
  • 9th - number of splashpads: 14

One possible area of improvement, Hiple suggests, is the percentage of people living within a 10-minute walk of a park.
"Only 71 percent of residents in Cincinnati live within a 10-minute walk to a park. The Trust for Public Land is working to put 100 percent of people living everywhere in the country within a 10-minute walk to a great park."

The Trust's mission is to create parks and protect land for public recreational use.

Credit Courtesy of the Trust for Public Land

Credit Courtesy of the Trust for Public Land

Senior Editor and reporter at WVXU with more than 20 years experience in public radio; formerly news and public affairs producer with WMUB. Would really like to meet your dog.