The park survey conducted by RPD in April 2007 was intended to: measure the park user experience on site, characterize San Francisco City park users, provide data on typical park usage patterns, and assess the park maintenance standards against the public’s perception. The survey was administered in 29 City parks and completed by more than 1,300 park users, a cooperation rate of 53 percent. To read the full survey, click here, or read highlights below.
Specific pages of interest:
- Page 16 shows that residents of some supervisorial districts are much more likely than others to visit parks in their own district. The opposite is also true – for example, residents of Districts 3, 6, and 11 are significantly less likely than other survey respondents to visit parks located in their own districts.
- To see a map of park restrooms that need improvement, go to page 28.
- Page 32 maps the percentage of park users that believe safety should be improved in their parks.
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
Demographic profile of park survey respondents
• Eighty-four percent of survey respondents were San Francisco residents. Among them, 54 percent have lived in the City for ten years or longer, compared to an estimated one-third of the San Francisco population.
• Almost half (48 percent) were between age 30 and 44.
• Of survey respondents who described themselves as one race or ethnicity, 57 percent said they were white, 18 percent said they were Asian or Pacific Islander, 15 percent said they were Hispanic or Latino, and 4 percent said they were African American.
• Sixty-two percent had incomes of $50,000 or more, and two-thirds had four years of college, an undergraduate degree, or graduate or professional education, compared to 53 percent of San Franciscans.
Park usage patterns
• Sixty percent of park users visit the park at which they were surveyed once a week or more during the dry season (April-October). During the rainy season, 50 percent of visitors visit that frequently.
• Sixty-three percent of surveyed users report visiting other City parks at least once a month.
• The most common reason park users give for visiting a park is to relax (32 percent), followed by using a children’s playground (26 percent) and to walk or jog (22 percent).
• A large majority (65 percent) of users said they choose a park because of the convenience of its location and most users either drive (44 percent) or walk (46 percent) to the park. Only 6 percent said they use Muni to get to the park while 3 percent take their bike.
• Thirty-seven percent of users report spending between one and two hours on site when they visit a park.
• Thirty percent of survey respondents were visiting with family members, 27 percent were accompanied by friends and 15 percent were walking a pet.
Park experience ratings
• Most respondents rated parks as excellent (43 percent) or good (44 percent), while 14 percent gave their park a “fair” rating (12 percent) or a poor/very poor rating (2 percent).
• Sixty-seven percent of respondents said they felt very safe during their park visit while only 6 percent felt unsafe or very unsafe.
• Among park features that need improvements, availability of restrooms (30 percent) and condition of restrooms (23 percent) were the most frequently cited, followed by general cleanliness (18 percent).
