Charlotteans love their parks — but many are failing, and the price to fix them is huge

Nearly 50 parks across Mecklenburg County are in poor condition — plus 21 recreation facilities and three greenways.

The starkest problems and costliest improvements are concentrated in lower-income neighborhoods, historically under-served, says Peter Engels, chair of Mecklenburg’s Park and Recreation Commission.

Thirteen parks had failing marks and 36 had “D” ratings, based on inspections spanning November 2019 to February 2020. A handful of those places are under construction now, including Pearl Street Park.

The grades were assigned based on inspections of every park’s equipment, recreation options and accessibility to residents, among other criteria. In one example, at the failing Albemarle Road Park, picnic tables strewn with litter and graffiti had fallen apart.

Mecklenburg would need to invest somewhere between $80-115 million as a starting remedy, with a focus on equitable access, Engels told county commissioners recently. That strategy is aspirational for the county, due to the price tag.

But in a more feasible recommendation, Engels said, $5.4 million should be allocated to support the first round of just five projects.

The exact dollar figure will be ironed out in the coming weeks, as Mecklenburg’s fiscal year 2022 budget is released and fine-tuned. County commissioners will also need to consider separate land acquisition and preservation investments, as well as environmental goals to bolster local air and water quality.

It all comes as popularity and need for parks and recreational outdoor areas have surged amid the coronavirus pandemic and widespread closures. On certain trails, Engels said, visits have increased by nearly 80%.

Here’s the latest on park improvements and ratings — including a list of parks that got an “F” or “D” grade.

Low national rankings

Charlotte-Mecklenburg ranks almost last, at No. 95, on the Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore index, which analyzes access and quality across the 100 largest U.S. cities. That compares to Raleigh at No. 31, Greensboro at No. 66, Durham at No. 72, and Winston-Salem at No. 82.

Among the contributing factors are:

• Only 37% of Charlotte-Mecklenburg residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park. The national average, by contrast, is 55%. This equity issue was exacerbated early in the pandemic, when local parks were closed to car traffic in order to minimize crowds.

• Just 6% of land is used for parks and recreation locally. Nationally, the median is 15%.

• There are just 0.5 recreation and senior centers for every 20,000 people. That puts Charlotte-Mecklenburg in the 23rd percentile. And with only 2.1 playgrounds for 10,000 people, Charlotte-Mecklenburg is in the 30th percentile.

Minneapolis ranks No. 1 on the Trust for Public Land’s index, followed by Washington, D.C., and St. Paul, Minn.

While Mecklenburg has historically ranked low on the ParkScore, many local recreation areas stand out for both quality and size. Those include the popular Freedom Park, which sits on close to 100 acres in Charlotte’s affluent Dilworth and Myers Park neighborhoods; Romare Bearden Park in uptown; McAlpine Creek Park in east Charlotte; and many more.

Still, the county’s parks reflect broader inequities across neighborhoods.

List of Mecklenburg’s park ratings

Parks with “F” grade

• Big Rock Nature Preserve

• Rozelle’s Ferry Nature Preserve

• Albemarle Road Park

• Derita Creek Park

• Flat Branch Park

• Martin Luther King Park

• Devonshire Park

• Julian Underwood Park

• Methodist Home Park

• Springfield Park

• Tryon Hills Park

• Viewmont Park

• Yorkmont Park

Parks with “D” grade

• Amay James Park
• Camp Greene Park
• Campbell Creek Park
• Coulwood Park
• David B. Waymer Aeromodeller Flying Field
• Firestone Park
• Kirk Farm Fields
• McKee Road Park
• Allen Hills Park
• Archdale Park
• Baxter Street Park
• Biddleville Park
• Bryant Park
• Carmel Road Park
• Enderly Park
• Eva B. Barber Park
• Fred Alexander Park
• Grayson Park
• Grier Heights Park
• Harrisburg Road Park
• Howie Acres Park
• LC Coleman Park
• Marshall Park
• North Charlotte Park
• Oakhurst Park
• Pearl Street Park
• Pressley Road Park
• Shamrock Park
• Sixteenth Street Park
• Thereasea Clark Elder Park
• Tuckaseegee Park
• Westerly Hills Park
• Wilmore Park
• Wingate Park
• Winterfield Park
• Cadillac Street Driving Range

Greenway with “F” grade

• McDowell Creek Dirtway

Greenways with “D” grade”

• McMullen Creek Greenway
• Taggart Creek Greenway

Timeline for Mecklenburg

Park revamps could be a slow-moving process, as the county strikes a balance between maintaining existing facilities and improving those in the most need.

In another time constraint, funding through Mecklenburg’s capital improvement plan is doled out in five-year increments.

“We won’t have a new round of funding for the bulk of the poorly rated parks until our next CIP session is approved, which would be our Fiscal Year 2024 (July 2023),” Bert Lynn, capital planning division director for the county’s Park and Recreation Department, told the Observer. “We plan to prioritize significant investments in the poorly rated parks as part of our next CIP cycle.”

But Brian Cox, a parks commissioner, said the county is being urged to take a “more accelerated funding approach.” Low interest rates, plus a renewed focused on infrastructure at the state and local level, could also pave the way for loftier parks projects here, Cox said.

Equity improvements underway

Last year, county commissioners set aside $2 million in equity funding for parks. That’s earmarked for improvements at Enderly Park, Tryon Hills Park, and LC Coleman Park, Lynn said.

At Enderly Park, neighbors say existing amenities need some improvements, including the trail, tennis and basketball courts, and shelter.

On their wish-list for new amenities is a community garden, outdoor fitness station and more seating options, Lynn said. Community meetings are underway to finalize renovation ideas for the 8.4-acre space.

The county’s Eastway Regional Recreation Center, 95,000 square-foot space, also opened earlier this month, with fitness and aquatic amenities, as well as programs for seniors citizens and youth.

‘Go bigger here’

Each park will cost about $1 to $1.5 million to fix, Engels said. That translates into $49 million to 73.5 million for all 49 parks in poor condition.

County Commissioner Elaine Powell, who chairs the board’s Environmental Stewardship Committee, said Mecklenburg cannot “do what we need to do” without a funding influx. Commissioner Leigh Altman echoed that urgent plea: “I really hope that we can go bigger here — bigger than what we’ve done before.”

Still, Commissioner Pat Cotham cautioned the board has other funding priorities that have been exacerbated by the pandemic, including affordable housing.

”We have a lot of people who are struggling…” Cotham said. “I’m more worried about the people that are falling through the cracks.”