New Haven Kicks Off Parks' New Five-Year Strategic Plan: Mayor, Parks Director

NEW HAVEN, CT — New Haven Park’s five-year strategic plan and planning process, themed, “All Hands for New Haven Parks," is underway according to Mayor Justin Elicker.

The strategic plan will provide a clear course and focus for the department’s maintenance, operations, and programming and will be used to guide efforts towards improving standards and meeting the targets for accreditation for park systems set by the Commission for the Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies.

"New Haven is blessed with an amazing amount of parkland that enriches our lives and enlivens our neighborhoods. The All Hands theme of our strategic plan highlights the fact that parks thrive when the community, local partners, and the city all work together to steward and care for them," Elicker said.

"We want our plan and strategy to not just set ambitious goals for our Parks Department," the Mayor noted. "But to also find ways to use our parks to better meet the needs of New Haveners and to tap into the creativity, energy, and ideas that our residents have to shape our parks for the future.

The strategic plan builds on recent efforts by the city to improve its more than 2,200 acres of parks and open space across 100 park sites. These initiatives include activating eight youth and community centers across the Elm City, setting a goal to plant 5,000 new trees in 5 years, establishing a new greenways plan that will see five completed greenways by 2030, and creating a bold vision for a new Mill River Park and a revitalized Long Wharf Waterfront, among other efforts.

Approximately 96 percent of New Haven residents live within a ten-minute walk to a park, which include playgrounds, splash pads, athletic fields and courts, forests, paths and trails, along with other recreational facilities and assets. The Parks Department also offers and facilities a variety of free and low-cost outdoor recreational activities and programs for residents and works in partnership with the city’s Youth and Recreation Department, local organizations, sports leagues, and parks friends’ group to support children, youth, adult, and community-based activities and programming.

Recent processes like the Trust for Public Land’s ParkScore report, the Reenvisioning Parks Public Engagement Process, and New Haven’s Vision 2034 Comprehensive Plan, have already identified a few key priority areas for improvement in the parks. The new five-year strategic plan will focus on those core issues areas that the public and researchers identified as the highest issues of concern.

Those include: litter control, trail access, mowing and basic maintenance, natural areas improvements, and access to water. Other key issues identified by Parks Department staff that will be areas of focus include: programming for all ages, sports and athletics, and overall safety within the parks.

"Our vision is to use the All Hands for New Haven Parks Strategic Plan to foster a culture of public stewardship and collaboration to create a vibrant park system that is open and accessible to all," said Parks Director Max Webster.

"The Parks Department must lead the way in maintenance, activation, and innovation but we need the help of all of our residents and partners," Webster said. "Even small everyday actions have a big impact on the health and quality of our green spaces."

Public engagement for the strategic plan will be supported by the Urban Resources Initiative (URI), which previously led engagement efforts through the Reenvisioning Parks Process in 2023-2024.

"We urge everyone to participate in the process," said Colleen Murphy-Dunning, Director of URI. "Residents can complete one or all of our online surveys, join us at a community workshop, or come to one of our other outreach events."

From this engagement, the Parks Department plans to use the strategic plan to:

• Increase Awareness and Transparency: Provide greater clarity on park operations, maintenance schedules, and resource allocation.
• Expand Partnerships: Expand resources through collaboration with local organizations.
• Improve Access: Improve accessibility features and programs for all ages, including early childhood and teenagers.
• Advance Sustainability: Initiate the transition to climate-smart management practices to protect the environment and improve the health and resilience of the park system.

How to get involved

Residents are encouraged to participate in the planning process by attending public workshops and taking any or all of the eight public feedback surveys, which are available in English and Spanish.
The initial public workshop is scheduled for December 3rd from 5:30 - 7:00pm at the Yale School of the Environment’s Sage Hall, located at 205 Prospect Street.

An additional public workshop will be scheduled with the City of New Haven’s Commission on Parks, Programs, and Recreational Facilities during its March 18th meeting.

A draft report is then planned to be submitted for review at the May 20th meeting of the Commission on Parks, Programs, and Recreational Facilities and to considered and voted on for adoption in June. This effort will be complimented by a process to develop an Urban Forest Master Plan which will also get underway in early 2026.

Public feedback surveys and a list of additional community events when park staff and partners will be available can be found at newhavenct.gov/allhandsforparks.