How do Pennsylvanians Value & Use the
Great Outdoors? Survey Says…
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Session Highlights
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Introductions – what would you like to know?
Why a state outdoor recreation plan?
Planning process – lessons learned
2014-2018 themes
Demographic trends
Survey says…
You tell us…
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Why a State Plan?
• Elevate the importance of statewide outdoor recreation
planning
Is this America’s fastest
growing sport?
• DCNR program priorities
• Capture trends
• Governor Office approval
• Interagency initiatives
– “get out of your silos!”
• NPS requirement
“If anything is certain, it is that
change is certain. The world
www.dcnr.state.pa.us we are planning for today will
not exist in this form tomorrow.”
Pennsylvania State Outdoor
Recreation Plan
National Award
Winning
The Keystone for
Healthy Living
2009-2013
www.paoutdoorrecplan.com
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Our Approach
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Get it done in 18 months
Build on 2009-2013 plan
PSU research
Guided by a STRONG
interagency team
• An inclusive atmosphere
• Action oriented – FOCUS
• Feature Promising Practices
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Score Card
2009-2013 plan
Ambitious Plan
• 4 goals
– 28 recommendations
– 99 action items
– Implementation happening on about 50% of
action items
• Keep track, celebrate and tell ALL
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
MANY Opportunities
for Public Input
• Resident Survey
• 50- member Technical
Advisory Committee
• Webinars
• Public meetings?
• Three online surveys
– Park/Rec Directors
– Managers/elected officials
– Anyone – April 1
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Plan Website
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Pennsylvania State Outdoor
Recreation Plan
2014-2018
National
Award-Winning?
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
2014-2018 Plan
Purpose
• Continue to elevate the importance of
statewide outdoor recreation planning
• Review current plan/retain top actions
• Identify high priority issues, needs,
policies, investments
• Develop collaborative relationships
• Satisfy NPS priorities
• Connect PEOPLE to NATURE
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Trends and Technology
Sub themes:
• Technology
• Changing Face of Recreation
• Advances in/
improvements to
equipment
• New types of parks
• Engage the FAMILY
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Recreation Infrastructure
Sub themes:
 Fix it first
 Improving hunting/ fishing
access/involvement
 Expanding ADA accessibility
 Multiple use of trails and
bike-ped lanes
 Promoting recreational use of
brownfield sites
 Green infrastructure
 Safe access and safe facilities
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
and
Tourism/Economic
Development
Sub themes
 Trail/river towns and local business development
 Harnessing economic power of hunting, fishing and
watchable wildlife
 Broader range of rec facilities
 Better interagency
coordination
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Health/Wellness
Sub themes:
 Alternative transportation
improvements
 Adult/Childhood obesity reduction
 School-based recreation
 Senior center-based recreation
 Creating walkable/bikeable
communities
 The healthy choice is the easy choice
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Local Parks
Sub themes
 Availability – 35% of communities
have < 10 acres
 Funding – 54% of agencies had
budgets reduced (2010)
 Building Partnerships
 Building political support – nice to
have vs “must have”
 Changing parks – encouraging
techy kids to “get outside.”
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Research to Inform the Plan
1. Demographic Analysis (PA)
2. Synthesis of Existing Data
3. Pennsylvania Resident Survey
4. Survey of Recreation Providers
5. Economic Value of Local Parks: A Literature Review
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
PA Demographic Trends
• Overall population is growing, but slowly (3.4%)
– Faster pop. growth in east and south-central regions
(urbanization/land conversion here will continue to grow)
– Population decline in a number of western counties
• High growth rate in Non African-American minority
population (60%), particularly among youth
• From 2000 to 2030, PA is projected to experience a
substantial increase in the age groups 19 and under
and 65 and over
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Statewide Resident Survey
• Purpose: To better understand
outdoor recreation patterns and
opinions regarding future recreation
land conservation, facility
development and management
• Provides a snapshot of where
Pennsylvanians “are at” with
respect to outdoor recreation
• A long history of using surveys to
inform Pennsylvania’s Outdoor
Recreation Plan
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Questionnaire Sections/Topics
– Outdoor Recreation Participation
• Strategies to Promote Health and Physical Activity
– Recreation Area and Facility Needs
– Physical Activity in the Outdoors
– Opinions About Outdoor Recreation & Conservation
• Funding Priorities & Sources of information
• Factors Influencing Where to Recreate in Outdoors
• Benefits of Outdoor Recreation Services
• 21 attitudinal ?s – agree/disagree
– Demographic Characteristics
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Survey Methods
• Mail/internet survey of Pennsylvania Residents
• Sample of 1,500 from each of the six DCNR
planning regions
• Also… 1,500 each from Philadelphia and Pittsburgh
• Total sample = 12,000 residents
• Currently on-going; expect close to 20% response
– Today’s preliminary data: N=1,500 (un-weighted)
– Data has been weighted according to regional estimates
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Pennsylvania Resident
Survey Results
The results presented at the PRPS
conference were preliminary. Final results
will be available in May 2014. Results will
be posted on:
http://paoutdoorrecplan.com/
If you have questions, contact Diane Kripas
at 717-772-1282 or dkripas@pa.gov.
Thanks!
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
Your Turn
Is there anything we should consider as we
develop the next five year outdoor recreation
plan for Pennsylvania?
www.dcnr.state.pa.us
“To accomplish great things, we must not act, but
also dream; not only plan, but also believe.”
www.dcnr.state.pa.us