Time to Do Your Homework!
Back to school season is here, and apparently the kids aren't the only ones with homework! This is your reminder to take a look at the newly released 2026 NRPA Agency Performance Review.
Ever wondered how your agency stacks up? NRPA's annual report gives parks and recreation professionals nationwide benchmarks for parks, facilities, programming, staffing, budgets, funding and more. Even better, the interactive data lets you dig deeper and compare results based on factors like population, budget and region.
A few numbers from this year's class:
- 🌳 1 park for every 2,437 residents
- 🛝 1 playground for every 3,710 residents
- 📋 300 programs offered annually
- 👥 9.2 FTEs per 10,000 residents
- 💰 $111.73 in operating expenditures per capita
- 🔧 $1 million in estimated deferred maintenance for the typical agency
✏️ Your Homework:
Don't just look at the national averages, compare them to your agency.
NRPA specifically notes that these benchmarks are a snapshot of what agencies are doing, not a prescription for what every agency should be doing. Park Metrics lets you create more meaningful peer comparisons, which can help support funding requests, identify operational opportunities and make better-informed decisions.
Check out the 2026 NRPA Agency Performance Review HERE
