# NRPA's 2026 Annual Report: 5 Takeaways for Small Cities > What NRPA's FY2026 annual report says about park use, youth programs and funding, and what small-city parks departments can act on now. - URL: https://varidx.io/blog/nrpa-2026-annual-report-takeaways-for-small-cities/ - Published: 2026-10-20 - Author: Varidx - Tags: parks-and-recreation, park-utilization, data-dashboard, smart-city-platform - Publisher: Varidx The National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) has published its [FY2026 Annual Report](https://www.nrpa.org/contentassets/b9d0d82d2f9843b6ab2ff9cdeeeed5a8/2026-nrpa-annual-report.pdf), covering July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. It is a short document, but its message is direct: in the words of NRPA President and CEO Kristine Stratton's opening letter, parks are "essential infrastructure for thriving communities," not a luxury. For a parks director in a town of 15,000 or a city of 60,000, a national association's annual report can feel far away. This one is worth a closer look, because the priorities it sets out (connecting the profession, using data and storytelling to show impact, and building sustained investment) are the same pressures small departments face every budget season. Here are five takeaways and what to do with them. ## The year in numbers The report puts national numbers on how many people parks serve: - **More than 227 million U.S. adults** visited a local park or recreation facility. This figure comes from NRPA's [2025 Engagement With Parks Report](https://www.nrpa.org/contentassets/257fe28053c6420786927fcffc2f9996/2025engagementreport_final.pdf), a survey of 1,000 adults in which 86% said they had visited at least once in the past year. - **More than 50 million U.S. youth** took part in park and recreation activities, and **more than 30 million** played organized or drop-in sports through parks and recreation. - NRPA's own programs reached **3.34 million people across 534 communities**, with **$3.9 million** invested. - NRPA has **68,000 members representing 4,000 agencies**, and its 2025 Annual Conference in Orlando drew nearly 9,000 attendees, exhibitors and virtual participants. ## Takeaway 1: Parks are being framed as infrastructure Calling parks "essential infrastructure" is more than a slogan. Infrastructure gets inventoried, condition-rated and planned for. Roads and water systems have asset registers, inspection schedules and capital plans; many park systems still rely on spreadsheets and staff memory. NRPA's own [2026 Agency Performance Review](https://www.nrpa.org/globalassets/research/research-reports/2026-agency-performance-review.pdf) shows the gap. The typical agency estimates about $1 million in deferred maintenance, yet the report notes that tracking deferred maintenance "is not a universal practice." If parks are to compete with other infrastructure for capital dollars, they need the same basics: a current asset inventory, condition data and a record of how each site is used. **What to do:** Start a simple asset register for your highest-use sites (playgrounds, courts, restrooms, irrigation, lighting) with condition, age and last service date. ## Takeaway 2: Data and storytelling are now a named priority One of NRPA's three stated priorities is to "amplify our impact through data and storytelling." That matters for small departments, which rarely have a research analyst but are still asked by councils to justify budgets. Good stories in this report are built on simple counts: species documented, pounds of trash collected, coaches trained, young people served. None of these needs a large system. They need someone to decide in advance what to count, and a consistent way to count it. **What to do:** Pick three numbers your council cares about (for example, weekend visits at your busiest park, program registrations and work orders closed) and report them the same way every quarter. ## Takeaway 3: Small programs produce measurable results The report highlights local programs that any size of community could adapt: - **Burlington, North Carolina** used NRPA's [Youth Mentoring Framework](https://www.nrpa.org/our-work/partnerships/initiatives/mentoring-in-parks-and-rec/nrpas-youth-mentoring-framework/) to build relationships, confidence and life skills for young people. - **Chula Vista, California** used NRPA's Healthy Aging Framework to pair older adults and students around digital literacy and intergenerational connection. - **Howard County, Maryland** launched a girls' flag football league in 2025 and trained 67 coaches through the Million Coaches Challenge, a partnership between NRPA and the Susan Crown Exchange. - **Taos, New Mexico**: the Taos Land Trust uses the Youth Mentoring Framework to help young people build relationships, develop workforce skills and foster environmental stewardship. The report says that through FY26, NRPA grants have helped train more than 27,000 youth sports coaches, improving the experience of more than 270,000 young people. **What to do:** Look at NRPA's published frameworks before designing a program from scratch. They come with structure you can measure against. ## Takeaway 4: Residents can help collect the data Two of the report's headline numbers came from residents, not staff. The Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz documented more than 6,000 species, and the first Recycling Race collected nearly 50,000 pounds of recycling and trash. NRPA's [write-up of the 2025 BioBlitz](https://www.nrpa.org/link/47420125b16141098b9a247b2b5f3e62.aspx) gives the detail: 120 participating organizations in more than 35 states, nearly 5,000 participants and 63,325 observations recorded through iNaturalist, almost 20,000 more than the year before. Deer Park, Texas, and Howard County, Maryland, are among the agencies the annual report names as participants. **What to do:** Community science events are a low-cost way to build a baseline for a park and to involve residents. Pair them with the operational data your department already collects. ## Takeaway 5: Grants change practice, not just budgets The report says nearly half of NRPA grantees changed their practices, nearly a quarter changed policies and 70% formed new partnerships. It also reports a 23% rise in inclusive community engagement practices among agencies. For a small department, a grant is often the only way to try something new. The outcome NRPA highlights is not the money itself but the lasting change in how agencies work. **What to do:** When you apply for a grant, write down which practice or policy you expect it to change, and how you will show that change a year later. ## Where small departments can start NRPA's look-ahead lists five priorities: expanding resources for local agencies, strengthening the workforce, advancing youth development, building resilient parks and public spaces, and securing sustained investment. For a small city, the practical first steps are modest: 1. **Know what you have.** An up-to-date inventory of parks, facilities and their condition. 2. **Know how it is used.** Visit counts, program registrations and field or shelter bookings, collected the same way over time. 3. **Compare yourself fairly.** Use NRPA's benchmarks for communities of your size, not national averages (we cover this in a companion post). 4. **Tell the story regularly.** A one-page quarterly summary for council and residents. At Varidx, we work with small and mid-sized cities on the second step, using connected sensors and a shared dashboard to show how parks, trails and facilities are used. But every step above can start with the records you already have. ## Sources - NRPA, [FY2026 Annual Report](https://www.nrpa.org/contentassets/b9d0d82d2f9843b6ab2ff9cdeeeed5a8/2026-nrpa-annual-report.pdf) - NRPA, [2026 Agency Performance Review](https://www.nrpa.org/globalassets/research/research-reports/2026-agency-performance-review.pdf) - NRPA, [2025 Engagement With Parks Report](https://www.nrpa.org/contentassets/257fe28053c6420786927fcffc2f9996/2025engagementreport_final.pdf) - NRPA, [Record Year for Seventh Annual Parks for Pollinators BioBlitz](https://www.nrpa.org/link/47420125b16141098b9a247b2b5f3e62.aspx) - NRPA, [Youth Mentoring Framework](https://www.nrpa.org/our-work/partnerships/initiatives/mentoring-in-parks-and-rec/nrpas-youth-mentoring-framework/)