Have some great ideas about our Parks? NYC Parks celebrates the re-imagining of its community outreach as a part of its capital design process with the launch of online community input sessions ~ responsive to the need for social distancing during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual sessions provide opportunities for more equitable outreach for capital projects.
Community input meetings provide Parks with an opportunity for community members to share their vision and thoughts on how to improve neighborhood parks; it’s an essential part of the capital process as the agency works to create thriving open spaces for all New Yorkers.
Before greenspaces are re-designed or rebuilt, Parks asks for feedback from stakeholders in the community–traditionally these meetings are held locally, in-person. This process provides an understanding of how the capital project can help this public space better serve the neighborhood. At these meetings, Parks staff asks questions about how community members arrive at the park; what they do when they go to the park; what they would like to do that they can’t do now, and more.
During this process, the objective is to hear from as many diverse voices, with different experiences, as possible in order to understand the full extent of the community’s vision and expected use. Through the new digital community input meetings, Parks can achieve this goal while engaging communities remotely: safely. Community members may now communicate with the agency and share their feedback for their local park, while maintaining safe social distance.
Parks will soon begin to schedule sessions. Those interested in participating can find information about upcoming meetings and register on Parks’ website here. Registration is required to attend the meeting, and participants will receive a link to the meeting after they have completed the registration process.
Following the meeting, the design of the capital project to improve the park will begin. Community members can learn more about the Parks capital process here.
Use the Capital Project Tracker to check the status and timeline of any of the NYC Parks capital projects.