The
Safe Routes to Parks Action Framework is intended to provide local governments (park and recreation, planning, transportation and public health) with critical evidence- and practice-based guidance on Safe Routes to Parks best practices that are backed by research and supported by national organizations. The framework is intended to be used as a guide that will engage leaders and community members in an ongoing process to ensure that community policies and practices support safe and equitable access to parks.
Through this call for pilot sites, NRPA is seeking to select ten park and recreation agencies along with their partners, to receive free technical assistance and test the effectiveness of the Safe Routes to Parks Action Framework in implementing sustainable and effective changes that ensure people are safe and feel safe walking to and using their local park.Benefits of being a Pilot Site
- Free technical assistance from NRPA and Safe Routes to School National Partnership
- Peer to peer support and networking opportunities
- National visibility through:
- Articles in Parks and Recreation magazine, Success Story Database, and partner publications
- Opportunities for presenting at national conferences, including NRPA Annual Conference
- Stories and examples featured in best practice guide
Expectations of Volunteers
- Over a one year period, implement the Action Framework for at least one park in your city or county (park must be identified in this application), with the following deliverables:
- Develop a partner coalition and community collaboration and communication plan
- Conduct, document, and share an assessment with the partner coalition and community
- Develop an action plan that the partner coalition and community have approved
- Choose implementation strategies and implement if time
- Appoint a lead project manager
- Join and participate in monthly group technical assistance calls
- Submit a mid-term and final progress report to NRPA
- Participate in overall framework evaluation efforts. This will include submitting documents on your process and answering a short survey. Documents will include items such as: Meeting minutes, marketing materials, documentation of action plans, data collection, policy changes, and strategies used.
Application Details
Applications are due by
Friday, February 17, 2017. Applicants will be notified of award selection by Wednesday, March 15, 2017. The application is available in Word and PDF format to assist in preparation of responses, but the application
must be submitted through this online form. A Word copy is available
here and a PDF copy is available
here.
Please ensure responses are recorded accurately. You can save your progress and continue at a later time by clicking the "Save and continue later" link at the top of the page.
Note: Only completed pages are saved -
please enter a draft answer for each question on the page if you plan to save and return to your work later. Timeline and Important Dates:
January 17
th Application Open
January 25
th Safe Routes to Parks Webinar
February 17
th Application Closes
March 15
th Pilot Sites Selected
April 17
th Kick-off Call for selected pilot sites
Every month thereafter – Technical assistance calls for pilot sites
For additional assistance, please contact Rachel Banner at
rbanner@nrpa.org.