Our Mission...

Parks and Recreation Department staff builds healthy communities through parks, programs, and partnerships.
We Value--
Inclusion and diversity Teamwork Commitment to employees and community through excellence and ethical actions Quality work and great customer service A healthy environment; land and resources

Annual Operating Budget/Staffing:

For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2007 $123,776,000 operating budget with 1,751 full-time equivalent positions.

Parks and Recreation Department Facilities

Acres of Deserts Parks/Preserves: 30,029
Acres of Developed City Parks: 4,374
Acres of street landscape/median maintained by Parks staff: 885

Number of:

City Parks: 199
Tennis Courts: 140
Soccer/football fields: 76
Softball fields: 86
Baseball fields: 20
Golf Courses: 8 (five championship, 3 nine-hole)
Pools: 29
Recreation/Teen centers: 21
Community Centers: 12
Museums, arts, cultural facilities: 6
Special use/special interest facilities: 8 (includes Arizona Horse Lovers Park, Telephone Pioneers Park, Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Project, Mountain View and Phoenix tennis centers)

Citywide Map of Parks and Facilities (pdf 218kb need Acrobat)

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History of the Phoenix Park System

In the early 1900s, the City of Phoenix had just three parks, only one more than was set aside in the original town site in 1871. The key to subsequent progress in the development of parks and recreational facilities in Phoenix has been the interest and active support of Phoenix residents.  Phoenicians have approved ten major bond issues to support Parks and Recreation, and in 1999 voters approved the Phoenix Parks and Preserve Initiative tax for the development of parks and recreational facilities. In the early 1900’s the most popular recreation site in Phoenix was Eastlake Park, which featured a lake for boating, a baseball diamond and stadium, a swimming pool, and picnic and game areas.  Located at 16th Street and Jefferson, the park was easily accessible by street car. Though Eastlake was the most popular, it was not the city’s first park.  The Carnegie Library provided a park setting in 1908. Verde Park followed in 1909; Central Park in 1910 and then Eastlake in 1914. In 1934, Encanto Park was proposed for development. Located in what is now the heart of central Phoenix, the proposal was criticized at the time because the location was considered too remote. Critics argued that the money would be better utilized for facilities improvements in more central areas.  In the 1930s, bond funds were used to add other parks sites including Coronado, Grant, University and Pueblo Grande Museum. and South Mountain Park/Preserve. In 1920, city leaders’ moved to preserve what would become one of the city’s signature desert areas – South Mountain Park/Preserve. Proponents of the acquisition saw the area as the last prime recreation site for picnicking, horseback riding and hiking near the city.  This desert mountain region, located just over seven miles south of the city limits, was known at the time as the Salt River Mountains and included the Gila-Guadalupe and Ma Ha Tuak ranges, the highest peak in the range was Mount Suppoa at 2,690 feet.   With the help of Senator Carl Hayden, community leaders encouraged President Coolidge to sell 13,000 acres to the City for $17,000.  In 1925, the first patent for South Mountain Park was secured by presidential decree.  South Mountain Park, now over 16,000 acres, is the largest municipal park in the United States and is considered by policy a part of the Phoenix Mountain Preserve System.  Currently the Phoenix Mountain Preserve spans 37,000 acres and includes North Mountain, Camelback Mountain, Piestewa Peak and the Phoenix Sonoran Preserve.  The Parks and Recreation Department plans to acquire additional acreage in the future. In 1933, the first supervised recreation program was inaugurated on city school playgrounds. Parks and Recreation Board members are appointed by the City Council to five year rotating terms. In 1933, the City Charter was amended to form the Parks, Playground and Recreation Board.  This amendment became effective on February 27, 1934. The board assumed the maintenance of city parks from the Streets Department, and at the same time, the voters approved a $1.5 million bond program.  In 1933, the Parks and Recreation Board was semi autonomous with far reaching powers, until November 1971 when the City Charter was amended to move many of the Parks Board’s administrative functions including the appointment of the Director of Parks and Recreation to the city council.  The City Charter grants the Parks and Recreation Board the duty and power to advise the council on recreational needs and recommend acquisition, location and nature of facilities to meet those needs. The Board also establishes operating policies for recreational facilities and services. In 1957, a $4.8 million park bond issue was approved to purchase land for the Maryvale Golf Course, seven swimming pools, paving of roads in South Mountain Park and the development of Papago Park including the golf course.  In 1961, another bond was issued providing $6.1 million to acquire 400 acres of land for future park sites and complete many park projects throughout the city.  In 1968, and again in 1986, the Parks and Recreation Department was awarded the Gold Medal Award for the best program in the nation among cities with populations over 250,000 by the Sports Foundation Inc., a non profit organization founded to expand interest and participation in all sports and sport activities.

Sara Hensley Director

Assistant Directors
	Jim Burke Assistant Director (602)262-4903 james.burke@phoenix.gov				Inger Erickson Acting Assistant Director (602) 262-4998 inger.erickson@phoenix.gov
Deputy Directors
	Central Division Rene Vera Deputy Director (602) 262-4545 rene.vera@phoenix.gov				Parks Development & Planning Division Ken Vonderscher Deputy Director (602) 534-1870 ken.vonderscher@phoenix.gov
	Natural Resources Division Kathi Reichert Deputy Director (602) 495-5486 kathryn.reichert@phoenix.gov				South Division Esther Avila Deputy Director (602) 534-2137 esther.avila@phoenix.gov
	Northeast Division Sarah Hall Deputy Director (602) 262-1678 sarah.hall@phoenix.gov				Specialized Maintenance and Aquatics Division Ted Koester Acting Deputy Director (602) 256-3369 ted.koester@phoenix.gov
	Northwest Division Joe Sena Deputy Director (602) 262-5051 joe.sena@phoenix.gov				Sports & Turf Management Division Rob Harman Deputy Director (602) 534-6582 rob.harman@phoenix.gov
					Management Services Division Amelia Hughes Deputy Director (602) 262-4987 amelia.hughes@phoenix.gov

The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Board

The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Board holds public meetings once a month, on the fourth Thursday, 5 p.m. at various locations city wide. Meeting agendas are posted online seven days prior to each month's meeting. The following are the remaining meeting dates for 2006 and 2007. Call 602 495-5215 for more information.

2008
Thurs., Jan. 24 @ 5 p.m.	Thurs., July 24 @ 5p.m.
Thurs., Feb. 28 @ 5 p.m.	August (break)
Thurs., March 27 @ 5 p.m.	Thurs., Sept. 25 @ 5p.m.
Thurs., April 24 @ 5 p.m.	Thurs., Oct. 23 @ 5 p.m.
Thurs., May 22 @ 5 p.m.	Thurs., Nov. 27 @ 5 p.m.
Thurs., June 26 @ 5 p.m.	Dec. (if needed)

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The Parks and Recreation Board consist of eight members, including the Parks and Recreation Director who serves as a non-voting, ex-officio member. The remaining members are appointed by the City Council for 5-year terms. A Youth Advisor also serves on the Board as a non-voting member.

Parks & Recreation Board Members

Laura Bell, Board Member

Jan Hancock, Board Member

Jim Holway, Board Member

Delia Ortega-Nowakowski, Board Member

Phil Richards, Chair

Diana Brooks, Board Member

Don Tarkington, Board Member

Sara Hensley, Parks & Recreation Director

Raven Brown, Youth Advisor

The Parks Board's duties and powers include:
Establishing operating policies for recreational facilities and services within and with outside the City as the developing public recreation needs may require.

Entering into contracts to grant concessions, licenses and permits for the use of City recreational facilities and to contract with others for the use of recreational facilities needed by the City.
Establishing schedules of charges for miscellaneous recreational facilities and to advise the City Council on fees to be set by Council on golf courses, tennis centers and swimming pools.
Advising the Council concerning recreational needs and recommended acquisition, location, and nature of facilities to meet said needs.
Designating areas in each park and the mountain preserves as open or closed to public use. All designations shall be based on the protection of the natural, cultural, historical and other resources of the parks and mountain preserves.

Created by authority of Resolution Ord. G-1165, 03-28-1972
Amendedby Resolution Ord. G-1574, 07-01-1975.For complete details on the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Board, go to the Phoenix City Code online and enter Parks Board into the search window. *figure does not include department-owned land not yet developed for public use. Including land purchased for the future Sonoran Preserve, the total preserve/desert park acreage is 31,276.

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