Boathouse Row at Night (R. Kennedy/GPTMC )

You’d never know it, but Philadelphia is teeming with green spaces. Compared to other metropolitan municipalities, Philadelphia boasts the largest city park system in the world. Drive, jog, stroll, or roller skate through Fairmount Park any sunny day and take your pick among 63 neighborhood parks totaling nearly 12 percent of Philadelphia’s land acreage.

My favorite stretch runs along the Schuylkill from the Chestnut Street Bridge, past the iconic Rocky statue in front of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, past the old Waterworks building , past Boathouse Row all the way towards Manayunk. Pleasant detours up the rock face offer expansive views of the city and grassy knolls dotted with colonial mansions. The entire park system yields numerous picnicking areas and more than 215 miles of trails.

Given the spaciousness of Philadelphia’s urban park system, however, City Hall still under-allocates funding to Fairmount Park. Park spending amounts to roughly $50 for each citizen, whereas other cities with less park acreage dedicate a larger chunk of their municipal funds. Chicago gives $130, DC $155, and Minneapolis doles out a whopping $164 per resident.

The chronic need for fiscal support has yet to be fully addressed by the city council. The park’s 2006 advisory report recommends a $14 million increase to its operating budget–more than doubling its current budget, which has been frozen at $13 million for three decades.

One mayoral candidate, Michael Nutter, has thrown in his support for Fairmount Park. Nutter says that the park’s total budget could be boosted to $30 million by drawing on existing sources. First, City Hall could start tying park revenues directly to park purse strings. Park funds would go into a “lock box” safe from the budgetary clutches of Mayor Street and City Hall. Second, the park could draw from lucrative environmental and conservation grants. New recreation resources like skate rentals could also be introduced to supplement funding and create an independent source of revenue.

This stream of funding can be mobilized to spruce up Fairmont Park. Invest in a sorely-lacking Fairmount Park visitor’s center, for example. Or maintain the impressive collection of public sculpture along the Schuylkill banks. And, at the same time, we’re boosting city coffers by preserving a local tourist attraction. Only an infusion of new funding will continue to protect one of Philadelphia largest public assets.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 21st, 2007 at 1:39 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.