Parks and Public Space

OneNYC is a comprehensive sustainability plan for New York City’s future.

Goal: Ensure that all New Yorkers live within a ten minute walk of a park.

Park Distance

To be sure that nearly everyone is within a ten minute walk, we are tracking the numbers of New Yorkers who live within both a ½ and a ¼ mile of a park. These distances were chosen because people walk at different speeds. Our goals are to get 99% of New Yorkers within ½ mile and 85% of New Yorkers within ¼ mile of a park.

Access to parks and public space can enrich lives, promote physical and emotional well-being, and provide venues for fitness and peaceful respite. At the launch of PlaNYC in 2007, over two million New Yorkers lived more than a 10 minute walk from a park despite the more than 300 acres of parkland that was added to the city from 2002 to 2007. This shortage of open space threatens our environment, our health and our quality of life.

To encourage access to parks and public space we will target high-impact projects in the neighborhoods with the greatest open space needs. These projects will include community gardens and urban agriculture opportunities, which enrich many of the city’s neighborhoods least served by parks. We will also continue to create and renovate parks that will attract people from throughout the city. We will re-conceptualize and green our streets. And because vibrant open spaces both need and support biodiversity, we will increase the health and vitality of natural areas. Finally, we will ensure the long-term health of our open spaces and protect the great investments we have made through expanded stewardship and care.