By Charlie McCabe
For a while last winter, I was writing what I thought would be a book. But my colleagues and the couple of publishers I approached both thought my target audience was too mixed, my subject matter too broad. I didn't want to rewrite. This was a passion project, and I knew my audience, because my audience was me: someone who had gotten involved as a volunteer with their local parks then progressively gotten more involved at higher levels, with citywide parks nonprofits and parks conservancies. I considered self-publishing (and still might some day), but it made more sense to break up what I had written into separate reports and make it available for free via my website.
I know my readers are out there: If you work with public parks, or just someone who spends a lot of time in parks, you’ve probably posed the same questions that I’ve heard over two decades working in city parks:
— Why aren’t there more city parks and more amenities in existing parks?
— Who is maintaining our city parks? Why are so many in bad shape? Does the city not care about the parks, or do they lack funds? Don’t my taxes cover park upkeep?
— Could a nonprofit organization help? How would a nonprofit work with the city to maintain or improve a park? What can I do to help?
— What types of nonprofits do this sort of work, and how do they get started?
— How do these organizations—such as park conservancies, foundations, and friends groups—sustain their efforts over the long term?
— Does a partnership mean that the park or park system is privatized?
These types of questions come up repeatedly in my work as a park volunteer, nonprofit leader, researcher, and consultant. Although there are several hundred parks nonprofits operating in cities across the U.S., very few people know about them or understand how they work with a public parks agency. For those who want to learn more or actively help your local park, I created this series of reports, which are interspersed with stories from my personal experiences that I hope will help illustrate my points:
Think of the Partners for Parks reports as a starter kit. I'm happy to take questions, and if you need more help or have specific challenges, I'm available as a consultant for hire. I intend to revise the series regularily and welcome comments, suggestions, or edits.
And please help me spread the word. If you know of someone working with a park conservancy, applying for a job at a citywide parks nonprofit, or thinking of starting a friends group, please pass on the links.
There are too few parks nonprofits out there. We need more—a lot more—in just about every U.S. city.
Copyright 2024-25, Charlie McCabe Consulting LLC
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