Albuquerque’s Efforts to Improve Park Access Showing Real Results
May 22, 2019
Access to parks and open space in Albuquerque continues to improve as indicated by the 2019 ParkScore index from The Trust for Public Land. The results, which were released today, show Albuquerque has moved up six spots from the 2018 rankings to number 34 nationally. The report also shows that the City is making progress on Mayor Tim Keller’s pledge to increase the number of residents who live within a 10-minute walk to a park, which now stands at 87 percent (up from 82 percent in 2018).
“Albuquerque has one of the greatest parks and open space systems in the entire country,” stated Mayor Keller. “We’re thrilled to see our efforts to provide even more kids and families access to these green spaces pay off and will continue the work we’ve started to ensure every kid in Albuquerque has a safe place to play.”
Last July, Mayor Keller joined a coalition of mayors across the country to work toward ensuring that every Albuquerque resident lives within a 10-minute walk (or half-mile) of a high-quality park or green space. Since then, the Parks and Recreation Department has acquired nearly 40 acres of Open Space in the Tijeras Arroyo and opened the Anderson Heights Park in southwest Albuquerque. The Department is also in the midst of constructing Memorial Park and will soon break ground on Juan Tabo Hills Park in southeast Albuquerque.
In addition to the construction of new parks and Open Space, the Parks and Recreation Department is exploring other innovative options to improve access to already existing parks and Open Space, such as creating new access points and potentially building new infrastructure to shorten the distance it currently takes some residents to travel to get to a park or Open Space property.
The Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore index is a comprehensive rating system to measure access to and the quality of parks in cities across the country. For more information on Albuquerque’s ParkScore profile compiled by The Trust for Public Land, visit https://www.tpl.org/city/albuquerque-new-mexico. For more information on the 10-minute walk campaign, visit https://www.10minutewalk.org/.