Leading the nation with a Safe Route to Parks
by Robyn Ireland [email protected] · February 20th, 2020


Marion is again leading the nation by working on a Safe Routes to Parks policy. The program received full support of the council following a presentation by Sara Mentzer, director of development at the YMCA of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Area and a representative of Be Well Marion, at the city council's work session Tuesday, Feb. 4. At the following regular meeting on Thursday, Feb. 6, the council voted to direct staff to draft a policy for the city.

"This isn't so much an action plan, as it is a new way of thinking about getting the community more active and in thinking about how we use green spaces and parks," Mentzer explained. "We're not asking for funding. It's more about permission to explore a potential policy with interested members of the community that we can then bring back to city staff and the council for consideration."

Mentzer went on to reveal that in late May/early June of last year, Linn County Public Health was invited by the Center on Disease Control (CDC) and the National Association of City Organizations (NACO) to be part of a workshop focusing on active living and active living plans. Linn County was selected because it already has a national reputation for how well activity is practiced in its communities. Held in Atlanta, Ga, at CDC Headquarters, NACO and the CDC paid for Mentzer and a handful of other area representatives to be at the event.

Participants were given options to consider, centering on the the theme of active living. One choice was Complete Streets, defined by the Smart Growth for America organization, as "[streets] designed and operated to enable safe access for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Complete Streets make it easy to cross the street, walk to shops, and bicycle to work. They allow buses to run on time and make it safe for people to walk to and from train stations."

A second option was Safe Routes to Schools, "an approach that promotes walking and bicycling to school through infrastructure improvements, enforcement, tools, safety education, and incentives to encourage walking and bicycling to school," as described by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

However, since most of Linn County is already implementing those and because it can be done in either large or small communities, the local group decided to go with Safer Routes to Parks.

"It's something new to Iowa, little known around the nation, and evidence-based activities on how to get people moving," Mentzer said. "That's how we can track the metrics. It's a less comprehensive plan than streets, and more targeted or focused on a particular area."

It asks questions: how do people get to parks or green spaces? Do they walk? Do they bike? Are there sidewalks that connect in? Are there trails that get people there? Are people with different abilities able to get there and utilize the area? The policy, once developed, can then be applied to both existing green spaces and parks, as well as being used to plan future ones coming into the city.

I'd really be interested to see this applied to connectivity from the south side to the new Marion YMCA as there's been some concern about that facility being built so far north," said council member Rene Gadelha.

"And what about safe routes to trails for areas that don't have parks," added Will Brandt. "How do those trails get people to parks and green space?"

Both parks & recreations director Mike Carolan and community development director Tom Treharne stated they support the development of this policy.