Vote yes on park reform

THE Daily News hit the nail right on the head with its editorial urging Philadelphians to vote yes on the proposed city charter change establishing a new Commission on Parks and Recreation.

When the Next Great City coalition was formed in 2005, we set out to identify sensible, cost-effective ways to improve the city's environment while strengthening neighborhoods and increasing economic competitiveness.

Ultimately, we made 10 policy recommendations. Yet it was clear from the start that park reform was a top priority for our coalition, as well as for the businesses and residents we work with.

Polling conducted in 2006 by Terry Madonna Opinion Research showed that six out of 10 residents regularly use city parks and 40 percent of them help maintain parks by getting involved in plantings or cleanups. But almost half of Philadelphians polled had stayed away from a park in the previous year because they feared for their children's safety or their own.

A citizen inspection of parks, conducted through the Philadelphia Parks Alliance in 2007, also showed widespread problems of neglect: broken playground equipment, bathrooms and water fountains, garbage and littering, and deteriorating structures.

Our coalition decided that two main issues had to be addressed to return Fairmount Park to its rightful place as one of the city's most treasured assets.

First is improved funding. The system has suffered from decades of underfunding. Accounting for inflation, the park budget is about half of what it was 30 years ago. This shortfall means a lack of maintenance and security, making many parks unsafe or unusable.

Second is better leadership. We recommended that the outdated and undemocratic commissioner-selection process be replaced with an open, modern appointment process based on clear criteria.

On Tuesday, citizens will have the chance to vote on a ballot question to address the lack of funding and leadership that has held Fairmount Park back for so long.

The vote is the result of years of work by Council members Darrell Clarke and Blondell Reynolds Brown, the Philadelphia Parks Alliance, two mayoral administrations and the input of many parks experts, supporters and advocates.

The referendum would amend the city charter to "merge the powers and duties of the Fairmount Park Commission and the Department of Recreation into a newly created Department of Parks and Recreation, to establish a new Commission on Parks and Recreation and to provide for its powers and duties."

While the Next Great City coalition did not recommend the merger as an option for improving the parks, the vast majority of the coalition now believes it's a way to address the problems that have been plaguing the parks for too long.

The creation of a new Commission on Parks and Recreation means that commissioners will no longer be appointed by judges behind closed doors. Instead, there will be an open nomination process that will include public hearings. Candidates for these positions will have to have real qualifications and related expertise. And the mayor, who can be held accountable by voters, will make the appointments.

THE MERGER has other benefits, like increased protection for parkland. The new commission will create guidelines for the acquisition, sale, lease and development of land, deals that now have no rules and are decided without public input.

This vote is part of a reform that can help improve park funding for the parks. Already, by increasing the parking tax, Mayor Nutter and City Council approved a $1.5 million increase for Fairmount Park plus $1 million for trees in the current budget. A new commission with strong leadership can also help attract new sources of funding from foundations, charitable organizations or public-private partnerships.

Change can be scary, but it's a necessary part of growth. The old system is no longer working in the best interest of our parks and our city. Vote yes on Tuesday. *

Christine Knapp is director of outreach for Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future.