Uploaded October 2020 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Our local public parks and civic spaces are now more than ever under increased pressure to host new and vital duties as part of the urban landscape. During these unprecedented times, outdoor, free, democratic spaces are serving as Covid-19 testing sites, polling places, food distribution hubs, safe harbor for the homeless, platforms for prolonged civic uprising and protest, and perhaps most importantly, spaces for self-care during a time of mass public anxiety. This coupled with an increased use of these spaces of up to 70% during quarantine has put more pressure than ever on our limited public space.
Despite this increased pressure, budgets for public parks will undoubtedly be cut as a result of the economic downturn. During the Great Recession of 2008, public park budgets were cut by an average of 21% and while budgets had improved, they had yet to return to pre-recession spending prior to this latest downturn.
This resurgence was long delayed: After increasing 15% between 2003 and 2007, city spending on parks plummeted 22% as the Great Recession arrived in 2008, according to the NRPA. Spending was slow to recover. By 2013, parks represented just 1.9% of local government spending, down from 2.2% in 2000 with parks near black and brown communities suffering the steepest cuts.
Los Angeles is one of the most park-impoverished major cities in America, devoting only 4 percent of its land to public greenery. By contrast, green spaces comprise 17 percent of New York City and 9 percent of Boston (where 97 percent of the city’s children have immediate access to a park — as opposed to one-third of kids in Los Angeles).
For these reasons, we at MOCA thought it was time to host a discussion. In the coming weeks, MOCA will focus its programming on outdoor art in public, and in doing so also call attention to the spaces that host these artworks and how they make work in tandem to create civic discourse. On October 15, we assembled a panel of individuals who are committed to the civic ideals represented by democratic public space and we invited them here to discuss how they are working to achieve their vision.
Our local public parks and civic spaces are now more than ever under increased pressure to host new and vital duties as part of the urban landscape. During these unprecedented times, outdoor, free, democratic spaces are serving as Covid-19 testing sites, polling places, food distribution hubs, safe harbor for the homeless, platforms for prolonged civic uprising and protest, and perhaps most importantly, spaces for self-care during a time of mass public anxiety. This coupled with an increased use of these spaces of up to 70% during quarantine has put more pressure than ever on our limited public space.
Despite this increased pressure, budgets for public parks will undoubtedly be cut as a result of the economic downturn. During the Great Recession of 2008, public park budgets were cut by an average of 21% and while budgets had improved, they had yet to return to pre-recession spending prior to this latest downturn.
This resurgence was long delayed: After increasing 15% between 2003 and 2007, city spending on parks plummeted 22% as the Great Recession arrived in 2008, according to the NRPA. Spending was slow to recover. By 2013, parks represented just 1.9% of local government spending, down from 2.2% in 2000 with parks near black and brown communities suffering the steepest cuts.
Los Angeles is one of the most park-impoverished major cities in America, devoting only 4 percent of its land to public greenery. By contrast, green spaces comprise 17 percent of New York City and 9 percent of Boston (where 97 percent of the city’s children have immediate access to a park — as opposed to one-third of kids in Los Angeles).
For these reasons, we at MOCA thought it was time to host a discussion. In the coming weeks, MOCA will focus its programming on outdoor art in public, and in doing so also call attention to the spaces that host these artworks and how they make work in tandem to create civic discourse. On October 15, we assembled a panel of individuals who are committed to the civic ideals represented by democratic public space and we invited them here to discuss how they are working to achieve their vision.
