Park Stories

Nine13sports’ new bicycle skills and safety park is an investment in Indianapolis

By Macey Shofroth

An old, dilapidated parking lot sat on the corner of 29th Street and the Canal in northwest Indianapolis for many years. It had become a receptacle for illegal trash dumping. It took Tom Hanley, founder and CEO of Nine13sports, a few years to track down who owned the property.

Soon after, Hanley and Nine13sports, a nonprofit providing Indianapolis youth with access to bicycle-based fitness and educational programming, purchased the land and turned it into a bicycle skills and safety park, which opened to the public in late 2026. 

“Once we got ahold of the property owner, we told them what we were looking for and what we wanted, and how we could utilize the grounds to make a true impact on this neighborhood, repurpose this blighted asset, and create an opportunity that wasn’t just focused on Nine13sports programming, but would actually be able to create a destination for the public,” Hanley says. 

Sponsored by BCI Burke

How the Huron-Clinton Metroparks are building systems where everyone belongs

By Huron-Clinton Metroparks

On a summer afternoon at Lower Huron Metropark in Wayne County, Mich., a father in a wheelchair rolls down a paved path to a fishing pier, casts a line, and waits for a bite beside his children. It’s an unremarkable scene, and that’s the point. Getting him there took intentional planning that most visitors will never notice—an accessible parking spot, a smooth route from car to pier, and an accessible restroom.

That intentionality and inclusivity is the work of the Huron-Clinton Metroparks, the largest regional park system in the state. The system spans 14 properties across five counties around Detroit—Livingston, Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw, and Wayne—and boasts nearly 25,000 acres of woods, water, and recreational facilities. Every year, more than 7 million people visit the Metroparks to partake in year-round activities like swimming, hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, boating, sledding, and more. 

For a park system of that scale, meeting the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the floor, not the ceiling. 

Creating accessible recreation and education opportunities doesn't happen by accident. They happen because of thoughtful planning and community engagement that requires looking at every part of the visitor experience and asking the question: how can everyone fully participate?

Janet Briles, Chief of Planning and Development for the Huron-Clinton Metroparks, uses that same fishing pier to explain the philosophy. The pier itself may be accessible, but that is only one part of the experience. Visitors also need accessible parking, a safe and clearly marked route from the parking lot to the pier, accessible restrooms and drinking fountains, and signage that allows them to comfortably and safely spend time in the park.

“We could just be compliant and call it a day. But to us, accessibility is more than that,” says Briles. “When we look at a project, we not only think about the feature itself but how the visitors' whole time at the park would look. If we’re upgrading a fishing pier, we’re also thinking about how someone gets from their vehicle to that pier, whether the route is accessible, if signage is clear and in high contrast, whether restrooms and other amenities are easy to use. The whole experience needs to feel thought-out and from beginning to end.”

That whole-experience mindset shapes both new construction and renovations across the Metroparks system. With a mix of newer facilities and aging infrastructure, each project provides an opportunity to incorporate universal-design principles and address barriers that may prevent visitors from fully experiencing the parks. For park systems, this process can be an important shift. The Metroparks have found accessibility is often most successful when it is considered before construction begins, rather than corrected afterward.

Sponsored by BCI Burke.

How the Northeast Community YMCA puts Birmingham residents’ needs first 

By Elena Smith

It's a Tuesday morning at the Northeast Community YMCA. 

The gym echoes with music and laughter from a SilverSneakers class, 50 members strong. Preschoolers proudly show off artwork to their teachers. Members squeeze in morning workouts before work. Upstairs, walkers make laps around the track while catching up on grandchildren and weekend plans. In a few short hours, the building will belong to children arriving for afterschool care. 

Everything about it feels familiar.

Until you look a little closer.

Next door, a parent arrives for a pediatric appointment. Before the afternoon is over, a family will meet with a counselor only steps away, and a small group of adult learners will take a virtual class in a quiet classroom. Just outside, a family arrives home in the driveway of their new home, recently built among 20 others by Habitat for Humanity.

This isn't simply a YMCA.

It's the Northeast Community YMCA, and it’s redefining what a YMCA can be. 

Sponsored By BCI Burke

PARK STORIES
A podcast from PRB

The Colorado River Is Drying Up
For the Lower Basin, pools are a question of equity and resources
By Karen Fischer

Welcome to Park Stories, a podcast from PRB.

Every park has a story. In Park Stories, we bring you the people, ideas, projects, and places shaping parks and recreation—and the lessons you can take back to your own community.

A quick word from our sponsor.

This episode of Park Stories is brought to you by C&D Pickleball Nets, the official net of the Association of Pickleball Professionals.

From permanent installations to championship-quality movable nets designed for multi-use courts, C&D builds commercial-quality pickleball net systems for parks, recreation facilities, and players who expect their equipment to last.

C&D Pickleball Nets are made in the USA and designed for indoor and outdoor use.

Learn more at BestPickleballNets.com.

And now, today’s Park Story.

In California’s Coachella Valley, water is everywhere—and nowhere.

The Salton Sea dominates the landscape in the eastern half of the region. But its high salt levels make it impossible for fish to live in—and people can’t swim in it.

To the north are Joshua Tree National Park and Palm Springs.

These are destinations that attract millions of tourists, second-home owners, retirees, and significant wealth.

Travel farther south through the Coachella Valley, however, and the landscape changes.

Along the eastern side of the Salton Sea are rural communities surrounded by bone-dry desert and dust.

Rain is scarce.

Summer temperatures routinely climb above 100 degrees.

And despite living beside one of the most recognizable bodies of water in California, residents have almost nowhere to swim.

There are virtually no public pools or aquatic centers around the perimeter of the Salton Sea.

Palm Springs, by comparison, has at least five.

It’s a striking example of a much larger challenge facing parks and recreation professionals throughout the American West.

How do you provide equitable access to pools and aquatic recreation in communities that desperately need them—while the region’s most important water source is itself in crisis?

Our story today is “The Colorado River Is Drying Up: For the Lower Basin, Pools Are a Question of Equity and Resources,” written by Karen Fischer.

Read full story here. 

PARK STORIES
A podcast from PRB

Connecting Hickory Hill Park
The art and science of trail bridges
By Eric Kidd

Welcome to Park Stories, a podcast from PRB.

Every park has a story. In Park Stories, we bring you the people, ideas, projects, and places shaping parks and recreation—and the lessons you can take back to your own community.

A quick word from our sponsor.

This episode of Park Stories is brought to you by C&D Pickleball Nets, the official net of the Association of Pickleball Professionals.

From permanent installations to championship-quality movable nets designed for multi-use courts, C&D builds commercial-quality pickleball net systems for parks, recreation facilities, and players who expect their equipment to last.

C&D Pickleball Nets are made in the USA and designed for indoor and outdoor use.

Learn more at BestPickleballNets.com.

And now, today’s Park Story.

At 185 acres, Hickory Hill Park is the largest park in Iowa City, Iowa.

It’s an urban oasis serving the city’s 76,500 residents—as well as more than 31,000 University of Iowa students.

The park has an extensive trail network.

But it also had a problem.

Several waterways and deep ravines prevented the park from having a primary north-to-south pathway. Walkers, joggers, and cyclists couldn’t easily access the full length of the trail system.

The solution sounds simple:

Build some bridges.

But choosing the right bridges—and making sure they could withstand Iowa weather, flooding, heavy use, and decades of exposure while still looking like they belonged in a natural park—was anything but simple.

Our story today is “Connecting Hickory Hill Park: The Art and Science of Trail Bridges,” written by Eric Kidd.

Read the full story here. 

Growing More Than Food
How Delta Fresh Foods cultivated community through play
By Juliet Ruggiero

Welcome to Park Stories, a podcast from PRB.

Every park has a story. In Park Stories, we bring you the people, ideas, projects, and places shaping parks and recreation—and the lessons you can take back to your own community.

A quick word from our sponsor.

This episode of Park Stories is brought to you by C&D Pickleball Nets, the official net of the Association of Pickleball Professionals.

From permanent installations to championship-quality movable nets designed for multi-use courts, C&D builds commercial-quality pickleball net systems for parks, recreation facilities, and players who expect their equipment to last.

C&D Pickleball Nets are made in the USA and designed for indoor and outdoor use.

Learn more at BestPickleballNets.com.

And now, today’s Park Story.

A gravel path winds past rows of tomatoes, peppers, and squash reaching toward the Mississippi sun.

Children race toward the playground while others pause to follow a butterfly drifting between wildflowers.

Nearby, a horse grazes quietly beyond a fence.

Under an open pavilion, neighbors gather, sharing recipes, stories, and jars of homemade preserves.

The air carries the scent of fresh soil after morning watering.

Laughter rises in one direction, birdsong in another.

Everywhere you look, something is growing.

Standing at the edge of it all, Chris Johnson searches for the right words.

“It’s like a dreamland,” he says. “A holy land. That’s where I get my peace.”

Most people don’t describe a park that way.

But SPROUT Park is not a typical park.

Located beside Delta Fresh Foods Farm in Cleveland, Mississippi, SPROUT Park represents an emerging model for community wellness—one that brings recreation, agriculture, and education together in a single, accessible environment.

By starting with the familiar rhythms of family life—children climbing, caregivers gathering, neighbors connecting, and communities spending time outdoors—the park creates opportunities for agricultural learning in a place people already know, trust, and enjoy.

What emerges is something more powerful than a park.

It’s infrastructure for healthier living.

Read the full story. 

PARK STORIES
A podcast from PRB

How Great Bike Parks Become Community Destinations
Five lessons from MOmentum Bike Park in Joplin, Missouri
By Bianca Montoya

Welcome to Park Stories, a podcast from PRB.

Every park has a story. In Park Stories, we bring you the people, ideas, projects, and places shaping parks and recreation—and the lessons you can take back to your own community.

Today’s story takes us to Joplin, Missouri, where a new bike park is showing how thoughtfully designed recreation can become much more than a place to ride.

It can bring people together, attract visitors, support local businesses, and become part of a community’s identity.

Our story is “How Great Bike Parks Become Community Destinations: Five Lessons from MOmentum Bike Park in Joplin, Missouri,” written by Bianca Montoya.

Every community wants a park that convinces people to return. But the most successful parks become something bigger.

They become places where kids ask for one more lap, families spend entire afternoons outdoors, and visitors discover another reason to explore the community.

Long before they become tourism assets or economic drivers, they become part of everyday life.

Destination parks rarely happen by accident. They’re designed to deliver more than recreation. They strengthen public health, support local businesses, attract visitors, create opportunities for youth, and improve quality of life.

After more than 25 years designing and building wheeled recreation facilities around the world, American Ramp Company has learned that destination parks share a common philosophy.

They’re planned around long-term community outcomes—not just opening day.

MOmentum Bike Park in Joplin demonstrates what those principles look like in practice.

Read the full story here. 

Sport and social clubs look to parks for fitness and community 

By Mary Helen Sprecher

The fastest-growing demographic of athletes in parks isn’t made up of youth athletes, although it does include many people who once were. Adult participants are joining the rapidly proliferating leagues of sport and social clubs.

Inside Moreno Valley’s Adult Flashlight Egg Scramble

By Jeremy Bubnick

Egg hunts are traditionally associated with children, baskets, and daylight—but the City of Moreno Valley, Calif., has proven that play has no age limit. Produced by Moreno Valley’s Parks & Community Services Department, the Adult Flashlight Egg Scramble has become a signature spring event, selling out every year and drawing 1,000 adults eager to relive childhood fun with a competitive, after-dark twist.

A creative Halloween letter-writing program sparks local—and global—connections

By Chris Orr

The Tulare Parks & Recreation's "Letters to Jack Skellington" is a community-engagement program designed to promote literacy, community connection, and a holiday spirit. In 2025, the program went viral as the department received 5,000 letters from all 50 U.S. states (as well as Guam and Puerto Rico), Canada, England, Scotland, Germany, and Australia. This year, the program not only connected local residents but also facilitated a global connection through a shared, themed activity, creating a sense of belonging and community excitement during the Halloween season.