© 2024 Western New York Public Broadcasting Association

140 Lower Terrace
Buffalo, NY 14202

Mailing Address:
Horizons Plaza P.O. Box 1263
Buffalo, NY 14240-1263

Buffalo Toronto Public Media | Phone 716-845-7000
WBFO Newsroom | Phone: 716-845-7040
Your NPR Station
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Buffalo parks move up in national ranking

The Trust for Public Land

Buffalo's parks are getting a good report card from a national group that watches and grades city parks.

The Trust for Public Land has promoted its rating of the city's parks network from 47 to 43. That is on top of the rating two years ago being 51. The group rates Minneapolis as having the best parks system in the country, beating out Washington, D.C. 

In delivering the report card, the group said the COVID-19 crisis might hit parks very hard because of possible budget cuts. Trust New York State Director Carter Strickland said a major asset for Buffalo is that parks are so close to everyone of all economic and racial groups, within a 10-minute walk.

"It is definitely a good thing. It's one of our key metrics, park access, and the 10-minute walk score, which is a real walk score," Strickland said. "So if you are crossing a highway, we shorten the time and we look at the details like park access points and the like. So a 90% score is great. Average across the country is about 55%. So that's one of the metrics where Buffalo scores very well."

Strickland said the city could use some more parkland, particularly in North Buffalo and along the city's east city line.

"A close-by park we do think is important," he said. "Nationwide, there are 100 million Americans, including 28 million children, who are not within a 10-minute walk to a park and we want to change that."

Strickland said "parks have many functions," including a "key identity of the city."

Credit The Trust for Public Land

Buffalo Parks Commissioner Andy Rabb said Buffalo is better off than many other cities because parks are close.

"One of the benefits of the legacy of Buffalo's park system is that residents, over 85% of the city's residents, are within a 10-minute walk to a park and that's a blessing," Rabb said. "Many cities don't have that. We are above average in that."

Rabb said the continuing improvement reflects the $67 million spent on capital projects by Mayor Byron Brown over his time in office, and that work is continuing.

"We are going forward with some of our capital projects now that we are getting into Phase One," he said. "So a neighborhood project that's a first for Buffalo is the creation of a cricket pitch over at Dewey Park. That project will take place this summer. We're going to continue to work on some of our small park shelter houses. This is a good time to do that type of work."

Credit The Trust for Public Land

Mike Desmond is one of Western New York’s most experienced reporters, having spent nearly a half-century covering the region for newspapers, television stations and public radio. He has been with WBFO and its predecessor, WNED-AM, since 1988. As a reporter for WBFO, he has covered literally thousands of stories involving education, science, business, the environment and many other issues. Mike has been a long-time theater reviewer for a variety of publications and was formerly a part-time reporter for The New York Times.
Related Content