Perception and Use of Urban Green Spaces during Covid-19

About the Study

Current Covid-19 policies in urban centers across the U.S. have induced a radical shift in mobility and in some cases have placed restrictions on access to public spaces, urban parks, and open spaces. Although residential mobility has increased in many areas, change in mobility has varied from city to city, raising questions about residents’ experience and perception of urban parks and open space during Covid-19, and how this may impact their mental and physical health among other factors. To better understand these concerns, the New School’s Urban Systems Lab launched a social survey to assess the perception and use of urban green spaces during the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic. Two similar surveys were designed to sample general populations in New York City (NYC) and urban centers throughout the U.S. to examine how often participants were using urban green space; their perceptions about the importance of UGS for mental and physical health; important features of and concerns about urban green space; how participants’ involvement in nature-related activities have changed since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic; and how visits to parks and open space may influence participants’ mood and stress levels. The NYC survey included additional questions on the use of New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) open spaces, the importance and availability of park and open space features, and additional safety concerns. In total we received 2,863 responses.

The results of the NYC survey show respondents continued to use urban green spaces during the pandemic and consider them to be more important for mental and physical health than before the pandemic began. However, the study revealed a pattern of concerns residents have about green space accessibility and safety, and found key differences between the concerns and needs of different populations, suggesting a crucial role for inclusive decision-making, support for additional management strategies, and urban ecosystem governance that reflect the differential values, needs and concerns of communities across the City. As urban centers face looming budget cuts and reduced capacity, this study provides some empirical evidence to illustrate the value of urban green spaces as critical urban infrastructure, and may have implications for funding, policy, and management, of urban green spaces in NYC, with potential applications to other cities, particularly during times of crisis.

Research Study Citations:

Lopez, B., Kennedy, C., Field, C., & Mcphearson, T. (2021). Who benefits from urban green spaces during times of crisis? Perception and use of urban green spaces in New York City during the COVID-19 pandemic. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 127354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2021.127354 (PDF)

Lopez, B., Kennedy, C., McPhearson, T. Parks are Critical Urban Infrastructure: Perception and Use of Urban Parks and Open Spaces in NYC During COVID-19. Preprints 2020, 2020080620 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202008.0620.v1).

Project Partners: Building Healthy Communities NYC, The New York State Health Foundation, and The Nature Conservancy.

Key Findings: Use and Perception of Urban Parks and Open Spaces in NYC During COVID-19

Urban parks and open spaces are critical for mental and physical health during COVID-19

The results of the survey show the large majority of survey participants considered urban parks and open spaces to be very or extremely important for their mental and physical health, and that this held true for all groups analyzed in this study. Respondents generally considered urban parks and open spaces to be more important for mental health overall. This finding highlights the many different roles that urban parks and open spaces provide for communities, especially as a documented case of ongoing "Covid depression" spreads nationwide and social isolation creates additional barriers to the kinds of cohesion and community-building needed for overall well-being. Supporting continued use and improving perceived access to these spaces during times of crisis is thus necessary to prevent further inequities in public health.

Key Findings

• Eighty-eight percent of respondents reported that they currently consider parks and open space to be either “extremely important” or “very important” for their mental health. Eighty percent of respondents reported that parks and open space were either “extremely important” or “very important” for their physical health.

• On average, respondents reported that they consider parks and open space slightly more important for their physical and mental health now than they did before the start of the COVID-19 crisis.

• Mental health was also identified as more important than physical health, highlighting the value of urban parks and open spaces for alleviating stress, anxiety and other mental health conditions

Perceived access to urban parks and open spaces is not equal during COVID-19

The results of our survey show perceived access to parks is unequally distributed across the 5 boroughs, and that many people may not use the park or open space closest to them if it does not have their desired amenities, or if they feel it is too small and likely more crowded. While the majority of respondents said they had some access to an urban park or open space, the “perceived access”, or ease with which people feel they can reach desired urban parks or open space sites, differed based on location. We found that residents in Queens and Brooklyn overall have lower perceived park and open space access, as well as receive less of their desired features from these spaces. This is particularly concerning as studies point to neighborhoods in Queens as disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, which are also at higher risk and incidence to conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, exposure to extreme heat, poor air quality, and heart failure. These have been identified as comorbidities that significantly increase the likelihood of patients requiring hospitalization, contribute to COVID-19 fatality, and this may interact with a lack of perceived urban parks space access and amenities to produce further inequities. Ensuring safe and easy access to urban parks and open spaces requires a crucial consideration of not only proximity to urban parks and open spaces, but also socio-personal factors, such as personal preferences or information, financial or cultural barriers that may impact visitation and use.

Key Findings

• 75% of respondents reported that they had “safe and easy access” to a public park or open space, however these rates vary based on location and sociodemographic group

• White respondents had higher park access and Asian respondents had less access to beaches. Access to a public park was highest among respondents from Staten Island (93%) and Manhattan (83%) and significantly lower among respondents from Brooklyn (76%) and Queens (63%).

• Access to “natural areas” was highest for respondents from the Bronx and Staten Island (both 53% of respondents) and significantly lower in Brooklyn (20%) and Manhattan (22%).

Parks and open space use has shifted during COVID-19, however new concerns impact perceived access

 In our study, even though visitation to urban park and open spaces increased for some during the pandemic, we found that new concerns about safety, or inability to socially distance can also shift perceptions of accessibility and rates of visitation. Although many respondents continued or even increased their use of these spaces during the pandemic, we found that concerns about safety or a lack of perceived access to parks of quality can result in a decrease of park and open space visits. This is attributed in part to additional safety concerns related to social distancing and overcrowding that may result in anxiety or fear in using urban parks and open spaces. More than half of users surveyed were concerned about these issues. Additional concerns related to a lack of public restrooms, closed playgrounds, and maintenance/trash were also reflected in the responses.

Concerns from respondents' also varied across locations and social groups. For example, nonbinary respondents were more concerned about police presence in parks, while Latinx respondents more frequently selected “lack of park staff.” One survey respondent explained concerns about racial profiling: “Feels like parks for white people these days and law enforcement continue to target people of color.”

Key Findings

• Over 20% of survey respondents reported that they had visited a park or open space 3-4 times during the preceding week and another 20% had gone about once per day for approximately 1 - 2 hours in duration.

• 15% of respondents increased their participation in park or open space visits

• The most common concerns about visiting urban parks and open spaces selected by respondents were that “People are not practicing social distancing” (59%) and that parks were “Too crowded” (57%). Additionally, 12% percent of respondents selected that they were concerned about “Too much police presence”, 11% were concerned about “Not enough park staff”, and 8% selected “I do not have easy access” to an urban park space.

Emerging and divergent needs of New Yorkers compromise use and perceived access to urban parks and open spaces

Our findings indicate that people may not use the park or open space closest to them if it does not have their desired amenities or if it is too small and likely more crowded. While the majority of respondents indicated landscaping and trees, places to sit and walk, and water features as a high priority, other communities placed different values on park or open space features such as wildlife habitat, educational opportunities, or places to socialize and cook food within parks. When these desired features are not perceived as accessible or available to users, use and visitation may decline.  Additional write-in comments also suggest that other features were necessary, such as public restrooms and open playgrounds. These results suggest residents’ beliefs and attitudes are not necessarily uniform, and highlight a need to increase the capacity of NYC Parks and other agencies to better understand these emerging preferences and include communities authentically in decision making processes. We also recommend looking closely at underutilized open spaces (eg. NYCHA open spaces, natural areas, plazas, school yards and playgrounds) as sites to leverage for accommodating different communities.

Key Findings

• Over 85% of respondents selected “Places to walk / trails” and “Trees, shade” as important features of parks and open space, and over half of respondents selected “Places to sit” (73%), “Landscaping / maintained gardens” (63%), and/or “Water feature (e.g. river, lake, pond, ocean, fountain, sprinkler, pool)” (58%)

Provide clear and consistent guidelines, and increase funding and staffing to ensure capacity for responding to future extreme events

Although the severity of the COVID-19 crisis this Spring was unprecedented, many of our partners point out that there are still no clear guidelines for how to translate the New York State Department of Health or recommendations from medical experts into practical measures for park and open space managers. A lack of consistent messaging and guidance meant that in some cases playgrounds were required to close with reports of others remaining open, certain natural areas were closed while others remained accessible, and open spaces not maintained by NYC Parks had to determine policies in an ad hoc fashion. The absence of responsive, clear, and inclusive policies, especially in times of crisis, tend to disadvantage low income communities, while reduced funding compromises the capacity of NYC Parks, park conservancies and other City agencies to adequately respond and adapt.

This disinvestment in NYC parks and organizations that support green and open spaces is especially crucial in considering the interdependent and cascading risks of extreme events such as heat waves and coastal storms, and how they may interact with COVID-19. A reduction in staffing at NYC Parks for instance is already having impacts on City services in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Isaias which caused more than 800,000 people to lose power in New York State in August 2020. Due in part to staffing shortfalls within NYC Parks, the cleanup and recovery was delayed, placing those with pre-existing vulnerabilities at greater risk. Given the likelihood of these events reoccurring with increased intensity quite high, planning for and building resilience is key.

Reframe urban parks and open spaces as critical urban infrastructure

In light of this initial and ongoing analysis, we advocate for reframing urban parks and open spaces as a form of critical urban infrastructure to leverage the multiple health, social, economic and environmental benefits they provide. Rather than looking at parks as isolated amenities for particular communities, planners may need to think critically about the City’s collection of urban parks, open spaces, and natural areas as an interconnected urban ecological and public health network. As many respondents noted, urban parks spaces are often fragmented and the spaces with desired amenities can be difficult to access with many traveling greater distances, adjusting their typical routines, or actually reducing or stopping their park use. Linking smaller parks with larger parks, community gardens, waterfront hubs, open/cool streets, and natural areas for instance can promote ecological and social connectivity, and address some of the inequitable distribution of parks and open spaces that have the features residents need in order to cope with the impacts of COVID-19.