What, exactly, is a park? What role have parks played in cities, and what will they need to be in the new economics and society of 21st century America? To answer these questions, noted planner and planning educator Alexander Garvin first describes the parks agenda of Frederick Law Olmsted, which dominated the design of American parks for over a century, until the last 50 years of suburbanization so radically changed the nation's landscape and society. Parks and open space, once thought of as essential to public life and an important government responsibility, are now often regarded as amenities that can be done without. In order to develop a new agenda that fits the economics, needs, and expectations of Americans in this century, Garvin studied the details of successful parks and open space projects throughout the country. He distilled a set of principles to guide the actions of public and private leaders in all aspects of park, recreation, and open space development. His ideas--many of which challenge existing practices and conventional wisdom--fit new times and circumstances in America. This beautiful report is extensively illustrated with plan drawings and the author's own color photographs of parks across America. Parks, Recreation, and Open Space was sponsored in part by the City Parks Forum (CPF), a fellowship of mayors, their park advisors, and community leaders that encourages collaboration and exchange of ideas about the role of parks in communities. The CPF is administered by the American Planning Association and supported in part by the Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. It is the first in a series of three reports by the City Parks Forum. The second report is Parks and Economic Development (PAS 502) by John L. Crompton.

As urban populations continue to grow, parks will become a critical component to creating and sustaining healthy cities. A review of literature related to landscape performance and 21st century parks reveals a paradigm shift in the ways we engage our built landscapes. No longer is it environmentally or fiscally responsible to implement and maintain resource consumptive city parks that are exclusively concerned with fulfilling social needs. To create environmentally, socially, and economically beneficial spaces, 21st century parks must include design elements and best management practices that ensure long-term sustainability. In Manhattan, Kansas, most of the city's parks are recreation centric and primarily focused on fulfilling social needs. However, Fairmont Park has yet to be fully realized, and therefore presents the city an opportunity to implement its first sustainable park. Using the Sustainable Sites Initiative's 2009 Guidelines and Performance Benchmarks as a guide, a series of sustainability evaluations were conducted on Fairmont Park's existing conditions in order to reveal its current level of sustainability. To understand how the park was originally envisioned to perform, the same analysis was conducted on Fairmont Park's 1998 Master Plan. Findings from this process revealed an opportunity to update the park's current master plan, in order to achieve enhanced environmental, social, and economic benefits. Guided by 21st century park design, implementation, and management strategies, the redesign of Fairmont Park will not only help Riley County fulfill its goal of becoming a State leader in sustainable design, but it will provide the Manhattan community with a state-of-the-art productive park, which promotes environmental education and stewardship, physical activity, local food production and composting, and stormwater management practices.