Our Parks, Our Future: Long Range Plan 2020-2030

Información en español - el Plan Final en español (PDF, 20 MB)

Final Long Range Plan (PDF, 28 MB)

Our Parks, Our Future Story Map

The Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) has finalized its long-range planning effort to guide the development and growth of Austin’s park system. PARD’s Long Range Plan for Land, Facilities and Programs, Our Parks, Our Future, was adopted unanimously by the Austin City Council on November 14, 2019. PARD's Long Range Plan is developed every 10 years and provides a blueprint to guide land acquisition, capital improvements and the development of programs and new amenities. Our Parks, Our Future is funded in part through contributions from the Austin Parks Foundation.

The future of Austin’s park and recreation system is impacted by a multitude of forces, trends and shifts, including unprecedented population growth, increasing reliance on private and philanthropic funding, and the emergence of best practices in sustainable park development and management. The planning effort begins with inventory, evaluation of park and facilities, an analysis of demographic data, and trends and industry standards for parks. Public outreach plays a critical role throughout the process with in-depth engagement of citizens, park supporters, conservancies, neighborhood associations, nonprofit organizations, and public partners. The result is a blueprint to guide the growth and development of Austin’s park and recreation system for the next 10 years. 

You can review the final plan below:

Background Reports (PDF documents):

City Council Action on Long Range Plan

City Council adopted an ordinance amending the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan by adopting the Parks and Recreation Long Range Plan for Land, Facilities and Programs on November 14, 2019.

Community Engagement

For a review of all community engagement meetings and activities please view the Community Engagement Summary (PDF). Below is a brief overview of the engagement process.

Our Parks, Our Future Community Meeting Series #1
Surveys

Community Survey - Open from November 28, 2018 to January 28, 2019. We received responses from 4,505 respondents. View the Survey Report here (PDF, 16 MB). Full data set can be viewed on the Open Data Portal here.

Statistically Valid Survey - Conducted by ETC from January 2019 to March 2019. We received responses from 925 respondents. View the Survey Report here (PDF).

Our Parks, Our Future Community Meeting Series #2

Series #2 Meeting Boards (PDF)

Our Parks, Our Future Community Meeting Series #3 and Boards and Commissions

The Planning Team

  • PARD Park Planning Division
  • WRT
  • PROS Consulting
  • Studio Balcones
  • Adisa Communications
  • GO Collaborative
  • ETC Institute
  • The Trust for Public Land’s Center for City Park Excellence

Previous Long Range Plan (Adopted November 2010)

Related Links

Nuestros Parques Futuros