Here's How Washington, D.C. Ranks For Park Systems In 2021

WASHINGTON, DC — Washington, D.C. is home to the best park system out of the 100 largest cities in the United States, according to a new ranking released Thursday by The Trust for Public Land.

The nonprofit organization released the rankings as state and federal leaders continue to reopen parks and green spaces across the country in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

Here's what the authors found for our city, which has 636 parks:

• Percent of D.C. residents who live within a 10-minute walk of a park: 98 (national average is 55 percent)
• Percent of D.C.'s land that is used for parks and recreation: 21 (national median is 15 percent)
• D.C. has 7.5 basketball hoops per 10,000 people: 89th percentile
• D.C. has 2.3 dog parks per 100,000 people: 85th percentile
• D.C. has 1.9 playgrounds per 10,000 people: 25th percentile

Additionally, here's how our city ranked in the four characteristics of an "effective park system":

• Access: 98 out of 100
• Acreage: 55 out of 100
• Investment: 100 out of 100
• Amenities: 82 out of 100
• Equity: 88 out of 100

The Trust for Public Land reported overall progress for parks in its 2021 rankings. During a year of lockdowns and other restrictions due to the pandemic, communities relied even more on nearby parks and trails for exercise and relief.

“Parks are always essential to our communities, and they are even more valuable in times of crisis," said Diane Regas, president and CEO of The Trust for Public Land, in a release. "During this extraordinary pandemic year, people relied on close-to-home parks, trails, and open spaces to exercise and connect with nature more than ever. Parks also served as makeshift community centers for emergency services like food distribution, COVID testing, and vaccine super-sites.”

In the 2021 rankings, Washington, D.C. reclaimed the honor of the nation's best park system from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The full methodology for the 2021 report is available on the nonprofit's website.

Here are the top 10 U.S. cities for park systems and their scores:

1. Washington, D.C.: 84.4
2. Saint Paul, Minnesota: 80
3. Minneapolis, Minnesota: 79.7
4. Arlington, Virginia: 79.6
5. Chicago, Illinois: 77.2
6. San Francisco, California: 76.3
7. Irvine, California: 76
8. Cincinnati, Ohio: 75.9
9. Seattle, Washington: 75.4
10. Portland, Oregon: 75.4