Inventory of nature-based resources in four Houston super neighborhoods

This dataset an inventory of the park and green spaces in the four Houston communities (i.e., Second Ward, Magnolia Park, Harrisburg/Manchester, and Near Northside). Municipal datasets provide an incomplete picture of the availability of resources and lack information on quality and cultural relevance of such destinations. We will develop a geospatial inventory of parks, public open space (vegetated), SPARK school park grounds, and accessible easement areas in the four neighborhoods, including size, entrance fee, activity areas, sports facilities, child play facilities, accessibility from surrounding subdivisions, and programs/events offered. In addition, we will conduct an audit integrating Google Street View imagery and ground truthing in the field. Four categories of qualities were determined for each park based on an adapted park audit tool: accessibility (pricing, hours, public transportation, walkability, bikeability, signage), activity areas (e.g., playground, sport field, trail, fitness equipment, dog park, lake, pool), maintenance conditions (e.g., paths/trails, vegetation, sports facilities, furniture/benches, drinking fountains, restrooms, lights), and aesthetics/safety.