Community Survey: What LA Residents Say About Their Parks
Community Survey: What 3,700+ LA Residents Said About Their Parks
A cornerstone of the Los Angeles parks report card was the voices of park users themselves. City Controller Ron Galperin's evaluation team surveyed more than 3,700 Los Angeles residents who regularly use community parks — gathering firsthand perspectives on safety, cleanliness, facilities, and restroom conditions. The survey results, combined with independent professional reviews, shaped the grades published on ParkGrade.LA.
Why Community Input Was Essential
Professional site visits can capture physical conditions, but they cannot fully represent the experience of people who use parks day after day. The survey ensured that the report card reflected not just what inspectors observed during scheduled visits, but what residents actually encounter — from early morning joggers to families spending afternoons at the playground.
The evaluation team from KH Consulting Group, USC faculty, and the RAND Corporation incorporated survey findings alongside their direct observations. Where survey responses and site visit data diverged, evaluators returned for additional visits to confirm conditions on the ground.
Top Concerns Raised by Park Users
Across the 3,700+ responses, several themes emerged consistently as the most pressing concerns among LA park users:
1. Restroom Conditions
Restrooms were the single most frequently cited issue across the survey. Residents reported finding park bathrooms dirty, poorly lit, inadequately stocked, and sometimes completely non-functional. Many respondents said they avoided using park restrooms entirely — a serious accessibility issue for families with young children, elderly visitors, and people with medical needs.
The survey responses aligned closely with professional findings: restrooms received a C grade overall citywide, and sixteen parks earned D or F grades specifically for bathroom conditions. Underlying plumbing problems — including failing pipes, poor drainage, and deferred maintenance — were identified as contributing factors. Learn more about LA park bathroom plumbing challenges.
2. Safety and Homelessness
Safety was the second most prominent concern in survey responses. The rise of homelessness in Los Angeles had directly affected many parks — particularly MacArthur Park, North Hollywood Park, and parks in downtown and Eastside neighborhoods. Respondents reported feeling unsafe in certain areas of parks, particularly near restrooms and during evening hours.
Controller Galperin's report acknowledged this reality, noting that the surge in homelessness created maintenance and safety challenges that the parks department — with its reduced budget and staffing — was struggling to address.
3. Cleanliness and Maintenance Frequency
Many survey respondents noted that their local parks were only cleaned once per day — but given the heavy use many parks receive, once-daily cleaning was insufficient. Parks and Recreation Department General Manager Michael Shull confirmed this assessment, stating that many parks actually need to be cleaned "multiple times a day" to meet user expectations.
4. Staffing and Responsiveness
Residents noticed the effects of staffing reductions. Over the nine years leading up to the report, the parks department's workforce was cut from 2,117 to 1,421 employees — a 33% reduction. Survey respondents frequently mentioned difficulty finding park staff, delays in having reported problems addressed, and the sense that parks were operating with skeleton crews.
What Residents Appreciated
Not all survey feedback was negative. Residents had strong praise for several aspects of LA's community parks:
- Customer service — Park staff who were present received generally positive reviews for friendliness and helpfulness
- Children's play areas — Playgrounds were widely appreciated, particularly recently updated equipment
- Athletic fields — Sports facilities received high marks from users who used them regularly
- Indoor gyms — Gym facilities scored well, with users appreciating accessibility and equipment quality
- Drinking fountains — Functioning water fountains received positive feedback at parks where they were well-maintained
How Survey Data Shaped the Grades
Survey responses were weighted alongside professional site visit data to produce the final park report card grades. This hybrid methodology — combining community voice with expert assessment — produced a more complete and accurate picture of park conditions than either approach alone could have achieved.
Parks where professional reviewers and community surveys strongly agreed tended to receive clear grades — either clearly high or clearly low. Where there was divergence, evaluators conducted additional visits to resolve discrepancies.
Explore the Full Results
The community survey findings are part of a broader evaluation available across ParkGrade.LA. For the complete picture: