Dealing with THE DARK SIDE of Parks - RRS · Dealing with THE DARK SIDE of Parks Lincoln Larson,...

NC Parks & Recreation Directors Conference ‐2020

2/6/2020

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Dealing with THE DARK SIDE of Parks

Lincoln Larson, Jerry Lee, & Mickey FearnDept. of Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management

Parks transform communities.

But are impacts always positive?

NRPA’s3 Pillars


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Recipe for Trouble in Parks?

“Free time is a Petrie dish filled with Good bacteria and Bad bacteria.”

“An idle mind is the Devil’s workshop.”

“It's dangerous to have a large group of people around who have a lot of free time, nothing to do, and nothing to lose.”

Without ways to combat this, a shift to the “dark side” looms…

Dissecting the “Dark Side”1. Crime & “undesirable” activities2. Social inequity3. Other issues?

If you have questions or comments as we talk,text us at:


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PARKS Facilitate Crime?

Parks may attract crime to certain areas, providing refuge for criminals and access to victims Shafer et al. 2000, Shinew et al. 2013

When parks are poorly maintained, they propagate social and economic tensions Solecki & Welch 1995, Stodolska et al. 2011

“Broken Windows” Theory:

urban decay crime


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PARKS Facilitate Crime? Media portrayal of park‐based crime exacerbates the problem, increasing perceived threats

PARKS Facilitate Crime. Across four major US cities, park proximity linked to higher crime (Ogletree et al. 2019)

Violent Crime Property Crime


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PARKS Deter Crime? Contact with nature reduces stress and agression Frumkin et al. 2017

Parks and greenspace attract diverse people and foster positive social interactions Holtan et al. 2014, Jennings & Bamkole 2019

“Eyes on the Street” Theory:

informal surveillance safety

PARKS Deter Crime? More green in neighborhoods = reduction in crime and incivilities Kuo & Sullivan 2001 (Chicago)

Inverse relationships between canopy cover & crime Donovan & Prestemon 2012 (Portland), Troy et al. 2012 (Baltimore)

Greening vacant lots leads to crime reduction Snelgrove et al. 2013 (Austin), Branas et al. 2018 (Philadelphia)


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PARKS Deter Crime. In all but three of 301 cities, negative link between green space and crime (Ogletree et al. 2019)

Vio

len

t C

rim

eP

rop

erty Crim

e

606 Trail in Chicago

Mean Changes from 2011 to 2015:Low SES Census Block Groups

No 606(n = 44)

Near 606(n = 43)

Diff. Test(Cohen’s d)

Violent crimes/100 ‐.31 ‐.86 .83***

Property crimes/100 ‐.57 ‐.92 .46*

Disorderly crimes/100 ‐.58 ‐1.02 .49*

Disadvantage Index ‐.81 ‐1.08 .26

Diversity Index +0.03 +0.10 .84***

*, **, *** denote significance of t‐test at α = 0.05, 0.01, and 0.002, respectively

(Harris et al. 2018)


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Parks & Crime: Conclusions Some attributes of parks (e.g., maintenance/enforcement issues) invite crime, others (e.g., green space) diffuse it

Neighborhood context (e.g., cultural factors, inequalities/disparities) matters

Fear increases as threat of perceived victimization increases

Parks with amenities and activity generators (e.g., facilities, fields, courts) attract legitimate users, fostering territorial reinforcement

Community involvement and investment in public space is key

Crime in Parks: Potential Solutions

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED)

“Parks After Dark” initiatives

NaturalSurveillance

TerritorialReinforcement

Access Control

TerritorialReinforcement

Maintenance

CPTED


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Opioid Abuse & Parks Addiction to opioids is a

national public health crisis that directly impacts parks In many communities, first

responders more likely to administer Naloxone than CPR (US Surgeon General, 2019)

Need to recognize substance abuse as a disease, not a stigma

Develop direct (overdose-reversing drugs) & indirect solutions (treatment services) that serve communities and improve quality of life (NRPA, 2019)

Homelessness & Parks Parks have a complicated

relationship with the homeless community (Neild & Rose 2019, NRPA 2017)

About 50% of directors view homeless population as a “nuisance” that upsets other park users

17% of agencies are working to provide services and programming to the homeless community

Other NGO & governmental partners lead efforts to mitigate homelessness, but parks have important role to play (NRPA, 2017)

Public education, training, access to services, etc.


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Benefits of Parks

Physical & Mental Health

Social Cohesion

Conservation

Democratic Space


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Parks & Equity Issues

1. Inequitable Park Quantity & Quality

• Across 99 cities in the US, low income and racial/ethnic minority groups have access to fewer acres of parks and parks with lower quality than more privileged groups (Rigolon et al., 2018)

• Environmental Injustice: Park benefits are not enjoyed by people who need them the most.


2. Green Gentrification

• Construction of new parks… • does not address environmental justice or reduce

park disparities• displaces local residents due to increased

property values and changes in local atmosphere and culture

• Result: benefits remain inequitably distributed


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3. Criminalization of People of Color

• Central Park 5 in 1989• Urban greenway in

Chicago: White users called police because of the mere presence of Puerto Rican youth

• BBQ Becky in Oakland, CA in 2018

How can we address these Issues?

Disparities in park quantity and quality Green gentrification Criminalization of people of color


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Historical Roots of Park Injustice

Public Parks were conceptualized, built, and managed by affluent White males

• Central Park: first American public park

• Rich White businessmen & politicians

• Real-estate investment• Demarcating racial and

class boundaries


White elites imposed and legitimized certain park behaviors

• Olmsted created “fundamentally instructional” park regulations in order to educate middle-class White values to the working-class

• Prohibited drinking, picnicking, dancing, gambling, sports, and other forms of entertainment


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The construction of Central Park evicted Black residents in Seneca Village


People of color could not freely visit parks

A survey of southern state parks conducted in 1952 and 1953:

• 180 parks for Whites vs. 18 parks for African Americans

• 986,184 acres of park land for Whites vs. 8,879 acres for African Americans - (0.9% of White total)


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Can we escape from the past?

Today’s park problems (disparities in park quantity and quality, green gentrification, and criminalization of people of color) are not new issues!

A consistent pattern: individuals in power continue to control park allocation and funding at the expense of well-being of the powerless

Addressing historical oppression…

Examine institutional discrimination

Recognize that people of color might not like park designs and regulations rooted in White elitism and racism

Carefully plan and execute new park development with all segments of the community

Work with researchers to identify and address park equity issues


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Perspectives from the Field

Mickey Fearn’s lessons learned from decades of experience in the park and recreation field…

(Rethinking park and rec service delivery)


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A Problem with American Culture…

We live in a society in which our economy is based on

making us feel inadequate, ugly, and afraid.

Perceived Happiness

Frustration Power over/Crimes of power Drugs/Chemical Dep.

Anxiety Envy Suicide Self harm Bitterness

Fear Helplessness Depression Deterioration of relationships

Entitlement Resentment Guilt Misplaced blame and anger

Sensory deprivation Crime Abuse Addiction Cravings

Inability to live in the moment Temptation Kinetic dissatisfaction

Impotency: the inability to give Resignation Cynicism Resources evaporation

Real Happiness

Real vs. Perceived Happiness


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Agency/Independence: The ability to function alone

Kinship: The ability to live and work in concert with others

Mastery: To be good at something. To find our gift

Individuation: To feel unique and special

Power: The ability to make something happen, or not happen, as a direct result of what we do.

Regardless of age, ethnicity, physical ability, gender, or orientation, we all need…

NORMAL

What is normal?


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NORMAL

NORMALNORMAL

NORMAL

There’s no such thing as normal!!

From Transactional toTransformative Leadership

Transactional: Programs and services provided during discretionary time; occupies users’ time but may not have benefits other than the immediate enjoyment of users. Secondary benefits, if any, are not planned intentionally.

Transformative: Programs and services are intentionally designed to contribute to creating great citizens, communities and cities. Programs and services result in civility, lifelong health and fitness, lifelong creativity, lifelong learning, environmental sustainability and stewardship, equity, and citizen engagement.


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Combatting the Dark Side

The Power of Parks +

Proactive Thought & Actions =

Hope & Opportunity

Q&A: The Dark Side of Parks

If you have questions or comments,text us at:

Lincoln Larson, Jerry Lee, & Mickey FearnDept. of Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management

Dealing with THE DARK SIDE of Parks - RRS · Dealing with THE DARK SIDE of Parks Lincoln Larson,...

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