For one town, recreation is more than a field of dreams
Natchez Democrat
If you take just a cursory glance at Muscle Shoals, Ala., you’ll see a small town of approximately 12,000 people tucked away in the northwest corner of Alabama on the banks of the Tennessee River. But what you see when you take a closer look might surprise you. Muscle Shoals has turned into a youth sports Mecca thanks to an aggressive mayor, city council and parks and recreation department and quality recreation facilities built in the past 12 years. More

North Texas outdoor sports fields maxed out
WFAA-TV
Across North Texas, many parents are finding park space is at a premium. Demand for outdoor sports fields has grown so much in recent years, many city parks and athletic fields are maxed out. Cities across North Texas are straining to catch up with the boom in population and popularity of sports. More

A top-down program creates more parks
Gotham Gazette
When New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg came into office in 2002, he had a very different view of the role of parks than his predecessor. He had served on the board of the Central Park Conservancy and understood how open space and greenery can improve a city's quality of life and therefore boost its economy and the health and well-being of its citizens. Now, as he runs for a third term, Bloomberg has staked part of his legacy on the creation of new parks, greenways and other open space, much of which he spelled out in his 2006 economic and environmental sustainability blueprint, PlaNYC 2030. More

Texas park that has disabled in mind is a place where kids can be kids
Dallas Morning News
When Brianna Murphey said she wanted to join a girls’ softball league, something in her mother snapped. Becky Murphey had grown tired of telling her daughter, who was about 9 at the time, about all the things she couldn’t do. Brianna Murphey was born with club feet, a dislocated hip and a tethered spinal cord. She has a combination of medical conditions that limit her athletic stamina and have left her legally blind. So Becky Murphey teamed up with Joe Taylor, then the president of the Irving, Texas, Girls Softball League, and started a softball league for children with disabilities. Saturday, the Murpheys and Taylor will celebrate a milestone when Irving opens a new field and playground built specifically for disabled children. More

Study: Park Service averages 11 searches per day
The Associated Press
Whether it's saving a stranded hiker with a broken leg or fishing out a capsized boater, a new study says national parks launch 11 search-and-rescue operations on an average day. Travis Heggie, an assistant professor at the University of North Dakota who headed up the study, analyzed search-and-rescue reports from 1992 to 2007, when there were more than 65,000 operations in national parks with costs exceeding $58 million. More

Halloween theme parks bring spooks -- and jobs
NPR
The economy might be scarier than the Halloween theme parks cropping up this time of year, but people will still pay good money for a harmless fright. The haunted house industry will scare up close to half a billion dollars in ticket sales in October. Some of that retail change will land at Spooky World/Nightmare New England in southern New Hampshire, one of the largest Halloween attractions in the country. More

Sour economy has Vermont state parks seeing green
WCAX-TV
It's hard not to forget all the rain this summer-- it almost meant a washout at Vermont's 52 state parks-- but then August hit and with it the sun came out. "Overall through the course of the entire season camping was very steady," said Jason Gibbs, the commissioner of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. "It was day use that surged in August. It was a combination of aggressive outreach, promotion and pent up demand because people just wanted to get out and take advantage of the good weather." More

Under Cover
Recreation Management
The need for shelters and shade structures anyplace people congregate outdoors is well understood. Increased awareness has given rise to creativity. Seldom is a shade structure merely a source of shade. At the very least, they add a pop of color. In new construction, it's becoming the norm to incorporate shade structures and shelter as essential design elements, whereas they used to be an afterthought. Wise renovators make the addition of these items a priority. And where funds are lacking for a major overhaul, simple retrofits are being devised, often resulting in a "facility facelift" for not a lot of money.More

California lets parks crack down on nude beachgoers
San Francisco Chronicle
The California Supreme Court poured cold water on skinny-dippers Thursday, allowing state parks officers to enforce a ban on nudity at state beaches, including those that have been informally designated as "clothing optional." The court unanimously denied review of a lower-court ruling upholding a May 2008 decision by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's parks director, Ruth Coleman, to allow officers to cite nude sunbathers on a portion of San Onofre State Beach in Orange County where they had previously been undisturbed. More

Fun with friends can be therapeutic in California city
Wave Newspapers
There are many forms of therapy -- music, dance and recreation. The latter does not necessarily mean medication and trained therapists. In the case of Norwalk, Calif.’s Therapeutic Recreation program, aimed at the disabled, all that is needed are friends to have fun with under safe supervision. More

Technology enables Canadian students to make virtual trips to the wilderness in Canada
eGov Monitor
Through video conferencing, five new interactive educational programs will allow students to take online field trips to four provincial parks. Through the 'Next Best Thing to Being There' series of hour-long video conference presentations, students can trek into dinosaur country with paleontologists, learn about rock art and Alberta's First Nations history, uncover mysteries in our forests and discover birds, cougars and wetlands. More

San Jose, Calif., trail usage shows nearly 10 percent increase
City of San Jose
The City of San Jose's Trail Count 2009 shows city trail usage up by 9.6 percent in both bike and pedestrian traffic. The Trail Count, the third annual survey of city trail users, was conducted on Wednesday, Sep. 23, 2009. The Count provides data to support further development of integrated trail network. 531 trails users were tallied representing a 24 percent increase from last year’s Count. The results prove overall usage of the trails at the Count locations was up 9.6 percent from last year’s count. More