News Release

Interior Department Announces $254 Million for Local Parks, Largest Investment Ever in Program’s History

A group of adults clad in bright colors of blue, red, purple and yellow ride bikes along a black asphalt road, surrounded by green grass and towering trees underneath a bright blue sky
Bikers pedal at the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge park in St. Louis, Missouri, which opened spring 2024 with support from an Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership grant.

Great Rivers Greenway

News Release Date: September 25, 2024

Contact: NewsMedia@nps.gov

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior announced today the single largest grant investment ever from the Land and Water Conservation Fund’s Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program (ORLP). Through ORLP, the National Park Service (NPS) will invest $254.68 million into 54 projects in 24 states for the redevelopment or creation of new local parks.

The ORLP program advances President Biden’s America the Beautiful Initiative, a locally led, voluntary conservation and restoration effort that aims to address the nature and climate crises, improve equitable access to the outdoors, and strengthen the economy. Providing safe outdoor spaces for communities that are park-deprived is one of six areas of focus. The program also helps advance the Administration's Justice40 Initiative that aims to have 40 percent of the benefits of federal funding flow to disadvantaged communities.

“Everyone deserves to experience the restorative power of nature, but increasing access to public outdoor spaces has not always received the investment and drive needed to make an impact. Supporting the communities that benefit from the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program has been a top priority for our Administration, and a critical step to bringing more green spaces to urban and disadvantaged communities” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “Today, this program makes history with the largest investment since its inception.”

“The enthusiasm for this program is wonderful, with the highest number of applications we’ve ever seen,” said Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks Shannon Estenoz. “After traveling across the United States to increase awareness of the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Program, I’m thrilled to see so many cities receive grants for the first time.”

In August, Secretary Haaland and Assistant Secretary Estenoz toured ORLP projects underway in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. They visited Yeargan Park and Smoky Hollow Park, where investments from the program will construct new part infrastructure, upgrade trails, and expand play and picnic areas, cultivating community connection and outdoor access.

Today’s announcement follows a nationwide tour by Assistant Secretary Estenoz to hear directly from community members on the need to connect communities with access to the outdoors, and to encourage state participation in the ORLP program. This latest round of funding draws from the greatest number of applications received by the NPS in the program’s history.

“It’s great to see such an increase in community investment in the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program,” said NPS Director Chuck Sams. “This investment into these 54 locally led projects is a prime example of the vital work the National Park Service is doing to improve access to the outdoors in your community and beyond national park borders.”

The ORLP program, established in 2014, is a nationally competitive, dollar-for-dollar matching grant program that aids disadvantaged, urban communities that lack access to close-by outdoor recreation. The program provides grants for community sponsored park projects where population is greater that 30,000 residents. Managed by the NPS and funded through the LWCF, the program provides matching grants up to 50% of total project costs.

See the list of projects below.

AL

Downtown Gadsden Greenway

City of Gadsden

 $2,996,000.00 

CA

Campus Park

City of Oxnard

$6,700,000.00 

CA

La Palma Park

City of Anaheim

 $6,000,000.00 

CA

Martin Luther King Jr. Park

City of Bakersfield

 $11,909,000.00

CA

Bryte Park

City of West Sacramento

 $15,000,000.00

CA

Spartan-Keyes Park

City of San Jose

 $4,500,000.00 

CA

Central Park

City of Glendale

 $5,950,000.00 

CA

Roadside Park

City of Baldwin Park

 $2,109,000.00 

CA

Jordan Downs Central Park

County of Los Angeles 

 $10,999,000.00 

CA

Panorama Park

City of Redding

 $4,000,000.00 

CA

Van Buskirk Revitalization Park

City of Stockton

 $7,017,000.00 

CA

Puente Hills Landfill Park

County of Los Angeles 

 $15,000,000.00 

CA

Stewart Park

City of Beaumont

 $3,100,000.00 

CA

Quail Valley Nature Park

City of Menifee

 $750,000.00 

CA

Bellflower Park

City of Adelanto

 $1,000,000.00 

CA

Veterans Memorial Park

City of La Puente

 $1,000,000.00 

CO

La Alma-Lincoln Park

Denver Parks and Recreation

 $8,400,000.00 

CO

Gold Strike Park

Colorado Parks and Wildlife

 $7,329,000.00 

CT

Cummings Park/West Beach

City of Stamford

 $5,000,000.00 

CT

Rockwell Park

City of Bristol

 $1,930,000.00 

DC

11th Street Bridge Park

City of Washington D.C. 

 $15,000,000.00 

FL

Carter Park

City of Fort Lauderdale

 $2,181,000.00 

FL

Sunset Park

City of Hollywood

 $7,581,000.00 

FL

Marva Bannerman Park

Miami-Dade County

 $2,518,000.00 

FL

City Park

City of Oakland Park

 $2,500,000.00 

GA

Burdett Park Natural Area

City of South Fulton

 $1,081,000.00 

IA

Comiskey Park

City of Dubuque

 $1,974,000.00 

KY

Riverfront Park, Barren River

City of Bowling Green

 $3,640,000.00 

MD

Baltimore Greenway Trail Network

Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City

 $1,375,000.00 

MD

Hill Street Park

City of Frederick

 $1,000,000.00 

MI

Flint Riverbank Park

Genesee County

 $5,000,000.00 

MN

Dr Martin Luther King JR (MLK) Park

City of Rochester

 $1,522,000.00 

MO

Parr Hill Park

City of Joplin

 $485,000.00 

NC

Deaverview Mountain Acquisition

Buncombe County

 $4,475,000.00 

ND

Downtown Gateway and Greenway

City of Grand Forks

 $3,490,000.00 

ND

Turtle Mountain Family Recreation Areas

Turtle Mountain

$1,000,000.00

NM

Mesa Verde Park

City of Albuquerque

 $1,350,000.00 

NY

Payne Park

City of North Tonawanda

 $4,084,000.00 

OH

Reverend H.V. Savage Park

City of Toledo

 $1,151,000.00 

OH

Irishtown Bend

Cleveland Metroparks

 $10,813,000.00 

OH

Cuyahoga Riverfront Property

Cleveland Metroparks

 $2,950,000.00 

OH

Cain Park

City of Cleveland Heights

 $390,000.00

OK

Dream Keepers Park

City of Tulsa

 $3,612,000.00 

PA

Hillside Pool

City of Reading

 $672,000.00 

PA

Weston Field

City of Scranton

 $672,000.00 

SC

Regional Park

City of Rock Hill

 $15,000,000.00 

TN

Gooch Park

Memphis Parks

 $3,339,000.00 

TX

Community Park

City of Dallas

 $8,663,000.00 

TX

Woodlawn Lake Park

City of San Antonio

 $3,250,000.00 

TX

Burnett Bayland Park

Harris County

 $11,353,000.00 

TX

Teague Park

City of Longview

 $1,318,000.00 

TX

John Trevino Jr. Metropolitan Park

City of Austin

 $4,000,000.00 

VA

Patton Park

City of Petersburg

 $3,407,000.00 

WA

Uplands Park

City of Kent 

 $3,150,000.00 

TOTAL $254,685,000.00


 

www.nps.gov

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 430+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

A previous version of this press release referenced the City of Houston as the awardee for Burnett Bayland Park. It has been corrected to reflect the correct awardee/applicant, Harris County Precinct 4.



Last updated: September 26, 2024