Mr. Aaron Stepp
Manager of Internal Services
Oakland County Parks and Recreation
Waterford, Michigan
Mr. Jim Dunleavy
Manager of Parks and Recreation Operations
Oakland County Parks and Recreation
Waterford, Michigan
Ms. Melissa Prowse
Manager of Planning and Development
Oakland County Parks and Recreation
Waterford, Michigan
Mr. Jarret Winget
Administrative Division Director
Greenville County Parks, Recreation and Tourism
Taylors, South Carolina
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Tap into our collective experience. Send your question and some background to the editor and we will include it in the next NACPRO News.
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Residents use 'tactical urbanism' to ward off overcrowding at inner-city parks
Courtesy of CBC News
By Elise Stolte
ALBERTA, CANADA - As more people move into Calgary's inner-city neighbourhoods, community leaders worry they'll put pressure on park spaces and amenities.
That's one reason Adam Schwartz is trying to help build new ones. He works for the Federation of Calgary Communities, approving grants and helping volunteers navigate city bylaws to create 30 small park projects a year.
Other groups of volunteers have used the federation grants to install tetherballs, paint murals, build a mobile and rentable lemonade stand and paint intersections to slow vehicle traffic.
Read more:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/killarney-activateyyc-federation-calgary-1.7309037
Building playgrounds for heat waves
Courtesy of Parks and Recreation Business +
By Karen Fischer
High temperatures are especially troubling for little ones who, by virtue of size, are closer to the ground than the average adult and feel the impacts of extreme heat more. At the worst, heat waves on playgrounds can cause injuries, burns, or disengagement from play spaces if there is no way to cool off.
The following are playground-design considerations that parks and recreation teams can use in the offseason to give facilities a facelift for high-season activities, even without extensive resources.
Read more:
https://flipbooklets.com/pdfflipbooklets/prb-november-2024?ref=prbplus.com#page16
Philadelphia's Rebuild Initiative
Courtesy of NRPA
By Casey Heilig
PENNSYLVANIA - Launched in 2017, Rebuild represents one of the most extensive capital project programs ever undertaken by City of Philadelphia. At its core, Rebuild is a transformative investment of more than $500 million into the renovation of 72 public parks, recreation centers and libraries. These sites were selected based on their physical condition and location, typically in historically under-resourced neighborhoods. This ensures that the program’s impact reaches communities most in need of revitalized public spaces in the hope that investment in public space has a stabilizing or revitalizing effect on the sites’ surrounding neighborhoods.
Rebuild’s funding structure is as innovative as its approach to community development. Structured as a public-private partnership, the program draws from a diverse pool of financial resources. These include bond dollars from the Philadelphia Beverage Tax, city capital funds and a historic $100 million investment from the William Penn Foundation — the largest grant in the foundation’s history, and one of the largest private grants funding public spaces in the country.
Read more:
https://www.nrpa.org/parks-recreation-magazine/2024/november/philadelphias-rebuild-initiative/
The Park Of Tomorrow
Courtesy of Parks and Recreation Business +
By Adam Arndt
Moss Universal Park will be the first of its kind in the United States, aiming to bridge the gap between accessibility and true inclusivity. While the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has been in place for more than three decades, the park aspires to go beyond mere compliance to offer a space where individuals of all ages and abilities can fully engage. From the forest trails to the baseball fields, and from sensory rooms to picnic areas, every aspect of the park is designed with inclusivity in mind.
Read more:
https://flipbooklets.com/pdfflipbooklets/prb-november-2024?ref=prbplus.com#page46
Committee on Navigable Streams mull access to only 5% of state waters
Courtesy of SORP
GEORGIA - The special House Study Committee on Navigable Streams, organized to determine where Georgians should have the right to boat, fish and hunt on Georgia’s streams, has thus far hinted at taking a narrow view of these rights. The stance could spell doom for many small businesses and have a chilling effect on Georgia’s record-setting tourism industry, according to outdoor recreation advocates.
One proposal put forth during the 2024 legislative session and referenced in committee documents would ensure the public’s right to boat, fish and hunt on just 5% of the some 70,000 miles of streams and rivers in Georgia.
Read more:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/committee-navigable-streams-mull-access-210100196.html
How Social Media Is Influencing Our Interactions with Public Lands
Courtesy of Planetizen
By Paige Gross
Technology and the rise of social media has driven new people to visit public parks and lands, as the platforms make it easier to showcase the great outdoors. But outdoor enthusiasts and environmental conservationists say social media has also contributed to “selfie tourism” or the influx of visitation to specific landmarks that go viral on social media.
Every year, there are incidents of people having such dangerous interactions with wildlife, or getting lost in the parks, or even losing their lives. It’s hard to quantify how exactly social media influences the decision-making or behavior of park visitors, but several nearly fatal and fatal incidents have been connected to attempting to capture content.
Read more:
https://www.planetizen.com/features/132382-how-social-media-influencing-our-interactions-public-lands
Trees for All
Courtesy of NRPA
By Clement Lau
CALIFORNIA - In urban areas, where space is often limited, community forestry programs focus on maximizing the value of every tree by carefully selecting species, locations, and management practices that best meet the needs of the community. These programs also emphasize the importance of maintaining and protecting existing trees, which are often the most valuable assets due to their size and maturity.
As cities face increasing challenges from climate change, such as rising temperatures, more frequent and intense storms, and prolonged droughts, community forests can provide critical resilience. Trees and green spaces help communities absorb and recover from these impacts by cooling the air, reducing flood risks, and providing shade and refuge during extreme weather events.
Recognizing the importance of trees and the need for a strategic and coordinated approach to community forestry, Los Angeles County has developed the Community Forest Management Plan (CFMP or the Plan).
Read more:
https://www.nrpa.org/blog/trees-for-all/
Richmond’s plans to combat urban heat no longer on ice
Courtesy of the Bay Journal
By Lauren Hines-Acosta
VIRGINIA - RVAGreen 2050 strives to reduce urban heat by increasing tree canopy and by adding cooling surfaces that reflect light, such as lightly colored pavements or roof gardens. The plan also calls for all residents to be within a 10-minute walking distance of a park.
As of 2017, 75% of Richmonders were within that 10-minute range. Since then, the city Department of Parks and Recreation and local nonprofits have expanded that to 80%.
Working groups appointed by Mayor Levar Stoney found five plots of unused city-owned land, comprising 36 acres, in 2020. The city council later that year approved an ordinance to ensure the acreage would become parkland.
Read more:
https://www.bayjournal.com/news/growth_conservation/richmond-s-plans-to-combat-urban-heat-no-longer-on-ice/article_6e2dd66a-9092-11ef-9bbc-df7a79538b93.html
University of Tennessee now offering Recreation and Park Management Courses
Courtesy of the Bay Journal
KNOXVILLE – Students hoping to work for national or state parks can now take courses under the new University of Tennessee Outdoor Recreation and Park Management (ORPM) concentration. The courses are available in the Herbert College of Agriculture School of Natural Resources. Courses in this new undergraduate forestry major concentration rolled out in Fall 2024.
Read more:
https://www.morningagclips.com/students-can-now-register-for-outdoor-recreation-and-park-management-courses/
The Forest Service is Losing 2,400 Jobs—Including Most of its Seasonal Workers
Courtesy of backpacker.com
By Nathan Pipenberg
The U.S. Forest Service manages 193 million acres of land, an area about the size of Texas. Next year, the agency will have to manage that land without its seasonal workforce. In September, the agency announced that it would be suspending all seasonal hiring for the 2025 season, a decision that will cut about 2,400 jobs. Nearly all of those positions are field-based jobs, ranging from biologists and timber workers to trail technicians and recreation staff. In addition, the agency is freezing all external hiring for permanent positions. The only exception to the hiring freeze are the roughly 11,300 firefighters hired by the agency every year.
Read more:
https://www.backpacker.com/news-and-events/news/us-forest-service-job-eliminations-trail-workers/
Grant Opportunity
Courtesy of National Special Districts Coalition
FY 2025 Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program
WHAT DOES IT FUND? This program seeks to develop community capacity to sustain local natural resources for future generations by supporting diverse local partnerships focused on improving water quality, watersheds, and the species and habitats they support.
WHO'S ELIGIBLE? Non-profit 501(c) organizations, state government agencies, local governments, municipal governments, tribal governments and organizations, and educational institutions.
TOTAL FUNDING AMOUNT? $2.5 million
WHEN'S IT DUE? January 30, 2025
Read more:
https://www.nfwf.org/programs/five-star-and-urban-waters-restoration-grant-program/five-star-and-urban-waters
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NEW – Community Services Director
Desert Recreation District
Indio, California
$158,398.00 Annually
Application Deadline: Open until filled
Executive Director
City of Elgin, Illinois
$131,908 - $176,770 Annually
Application Deadline: Nov 30, 2024
Assistant Director
County of Los Angeles Dept. of Parks and Recreation
Alhambra, California
$152,555 - $237,255 Annually
Application Deadline: Open until filled
Associate Division Director
Community Engagement Parks & Recreation
Salt Lake County, Utah
$100,250 - $150,376 Annually
Application Deadline: Nov 17, 2024
Executive Director
Hickory Hills Park District
Hickory Hills, Illinois
$100,000 - $135,000 Annually
Application Deadline: Dec 20, 2024
Executive Director
Byron Forest Preserve District
Byron, Illinois
$110,000 - $160,000 Annually
Application Deadline: Feb 7, 2025
Park and Recreation Director
City of Fort Worth, Texas
$185,000 - $190,000 Annually
Application Deadline: Dec 9, 2024
Education Manager - Central
Great Parks
Cincinnati, Ohio
$55,120 - $68,890 Annually
Application Deadline: Nov 30, 2024
Parks & Recreation Superintendent (Division Head- Programming)
City of Fairfield, California
$136,594 - $166,026 Annually
Application Deadline: Nov 12, 2024
Director of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities
City of Alexandria, Virginia
Salary: Negotiable
Application Deadline: Open until filled
Assistant Superintendent – Recreation Programs & Facilities
Recreation and Park Commission for the Parish of East Baton Rouge (BREC)
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Salary: Negotiable
Application Deadline: Open until filled
For more information:
https://nacpro.mcjobboard.net/jobs
Got a vacancy to fill?
NACPRO will post your vacancy on our website and email a copy to our mailing list of over 1100 parks and recreation professionals for a fee of $100 for NACPRO members and $200 for non-members.
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The next issue of NACPRO News will be delivered on December 3, 2024.
If you have news or an article to share, please send it to the editor by December 2.
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