RUNNING HEAD: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT

Community Problem Report

Jesus K Silva
The University of Texas at El Paso

RUNNING HEAD: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT

Parks and recreations are obsolete in terms of importance to our community, not only in
The El Paso community, but all around The United States. Why? Lets trace back a few steps to
our day-to-day habits, such as the time we spend on our cellphones texting or on the internet, the
time we spend watching television, or the time we spend isolated inside our homes, all these
activities do not include any physical activity or time outside our house, therefore excluding
parks and recreations from the community. In the following report we will explore the
consequences and effects that the non-use of parks and recreations in our community and all
around The U.S. have, as well as the value that these locations offer to our community.
What do Parks and common wise places offer to our community? Several of these sites
give a nonmarket value to the community through the use that the citizens make of these. The
leisure activities that take place in parks all around The United States are what keep America
healthy and active, many of these recreation activities are sponsored by campaigns or social
groups that have a positive goal towards the community; breast cancer campaigns, heart disease
campaigns, environmentalists, and many more have their rallies or activities take place in parks
or public access spaces, which allow the community to come together as one. Many of these
campaigns promote recreations involving exercise or physical activity which in occasions have a
purpose either to raise funds for the campaign or simply to create awareness to their cause.
Parks offer a place for people to enjoy their free time, without charge. The metropolitan
cities must and deserve to have a place to get away from all the noise and pollution. A study done
recently demonstrated that 80 percent of Americans lived in metropolitan areas in 2000, which
had risen from 49 percent back in 1940 providing a certain re-assurance that Americans need a
green haven where they can enjoy nature and themselves. This issue also involves the health
aspect where Americans battle obesity and depression caused by obesity, it has been proven that

RUNNING HEAD: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT

cities with more parks in them have a lower obesity percentage in their citizens due to the high
physical involvement the people in the city have. New York is a great example where half of the
citys 59 community boards have an estimate of less than 1.5 acres per 1000 residents, meaning
that there is very small space for leisure activities or recreations, consequently, leading to high
levels of obesity and heart diseases.
The nonmarket value these sites bring to communities is relatable to the value of things
you interact with the most, yet they dont really count as valuable to anyone else that doesnt
understand the meaning. For example, the basketball that you won the high school championship
with, if you ask anybody else the value they would give that basketball, they would value that
basketball as any other, yet to you that basketball is priceless, the same thing takes place with the
value that parks bring to cities. Parks bring value to communities through the low crime rates it
consequently brings, the low health problems, the high community interaction, and other points
that make up the reasons why parks bring a value that simply does not have a price. The fact
people are willing to give their time and money (taxes) to ensure the maintenance of these sites,
provides proof that their value cannot be subject to pricing, and not to mention that many of
these locations do not have an entrance fee.
We can discuss the evident benefits of parks such as positive health impacts and
interaction within the community, but lets look at the issue many people give very little attention
being a huge benefits of parks and recreations, which is the low crime rate that parks cause as a
reciprocal reaction of the citizens interaction in their community, that consequently and
unconsciously keeps them out of trouble. Case studies such as The STARS program (Success
Through Academics and Recreational Support) nicknamed Midnight Basketball that took place
on 1990 in Fort Myers, Florida revealed to provide a 28 percent drop in juvenile arrests. The

RUNNING HEAD: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT

length of the program was intended to last only a one-year period, but due to the high efficiency
rate, it grew in many cities all around The U.S., for example, Fort Worth, Texas had a 28 percent
drop during their year in the program, and Kansas City, Kansas had a 25 percent drop,
Parks now face a greater threat than they ever have due to the low funding they receive
from the government. If the park is not a national park or a tourist attraction, the government
discards it from its priority, why? The funding on many of these sites, as mentioned before,
comes from the tax payers, and this tax money is used according to what the government
considers important for the public interest, leading to local government facing maintenance fees
such as watering the green life, water fountains, mowing of the grass in the park, pesticides, etc.,
that ultimately add up. If we the citizens do not give enough interest or demonstrate our
involvement in our local parks, logically, the local government will cut funding for maintenance
of local parks short, and spend the tax money on other issues that need attention. We never stop
to reflect on who is funding our landscapes until they are not in the governments priority,
leading to unattended parks increasing litter, crime, no services, etc.
What is the next step to help our community parks stay green and alive? Get involved in
your community board, vouch for the preservation, maintenance, and investment in these
community sites. Making a movement, such as an event in which the purpose is to have all your
community attend this event and reflect on the importance of parks in your community in which
you could have interactive games, recreational sports, competitive races, etc., the objective is to
bring light to such important issue such as this one in the effort to raise awareness before it is too
late.

RUNNING HEAD: COMMUNITY PROBLEM REPORT

REFERENCES
Bedimo-Rung, A. L., Mowen, A. J., & Cohen, D. A. (2005). The significance of parks to physical
activity and public health: a conceptual model. American journal of preventive medicine,
28(2), 159-168.
Cesario, F. J. (1976). Value of time in recreation benefit studies.
Land economics, 52(1), 32-41.
Godbey, G., Caldwell, L., Floyd, M., & Payne, L. (2005). Implications from leisure studies and
recreation and park management research for active living. American Journal of
Preventive Medicine, 28(2S2), 150-158.
Lockwood, M., & Tracy, K. (1995). Nonmarket economic valuation of an urban recreation park.
Journal of Leisure Research, 27(2), 155.
Sherer, P. M., (2003) Parks For People, Trust For Public Law, 9-11. Retrieved from
http://www.eastshorepark.org/benefits_of_parks%20tpl.pdf
Hobbs, F., & Stoops, N. (2002). Demographic trends in the 20th century (Vol. 4). US Census
Bureau.