May 21, 1997

Main Findings of IBO Analysis of Parks Spending Trends

Public Spending

• Public spending on parks has dropped significantly over the last ten years. When considered in inflation-adjusted terms (1996 dollars), actual spending on operations at the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) was reduced from $218.5 million in 1987 to $150.5 million in 1996, a 31 percent reduction.

Private Spending

• Private spending has been increasing steadily for the past decade, partly offsetting public spending reductions. In inflation-adjusted 1996 dollars, total private operating support to City parks has grown from $5.0 million in 1987 to $17.7 million in 1996.

• Private support has, however, not made up for the reduction in private support and has been concentrated in only a handful of parks across the City. The Central Park Conservancy alone, for example, accounted for 57 percent of private funding for operations in the 1987-96 period.

Total Spending

• Total spending on parks operations - public and private spending combined - has been reduced from $223.5 million in 1987 to $168.2 million in 1996 (in inflation-adjusted 1996 dollars). Most of this reduction can be attributed to a more than 25 percent drop in public funding from 1991 to 1992.

• The reduction in total parks operating spending has been greater in some areas than others. IBO's analysis shows that, in the last ten years, total public and private spending in inflation-adjusted 1996 dollars has fallen by 46 percent in the Bronx and 44 percent in Queens, while it has fallen only 21 percent in Manhattan. In Brooklyn, the reduction has been 32 percent, and in Staten Island it has been 34 percent. This is due to both a greater percentage of the reduction in City spending being applied to the Bronx and Queens as well as a larger share of private funding going to Manhattan.

• With regard to spending by activity, City spending on recreational services has been reduced more than other areas. In inflation-adjusted terms, recreation has been reduced 65 percent from $20 million in 1987 to $7 million in 1996. Over the same ten-year period, City spending for the general maintenance and upkeep of parks and for centrally managed programs have been reduced 24 percent and 43 percent, respectively. Adding in private support for recreational services, which reached $5 million in 1996 and was essentially zero in 1987, the reduction in spending is still 39 percent.

• The City's workfare program (now called Work Experience Program or WEP) has grown substantially over the last couple years and is now a major resource to DPR. IBO estimates that the more than 5,500 WEP workers deployed by DPR in 1996, providing an average of 18 hours of labor per worker each week, is equivalent to over 2,900 full-time employees by standard productivity measures. However, for the most part, WEP workers only clean parks, and may not perform duties previously performed by paid employees. For example, they cannot perform skilled labor tasks, such as repairing park property, operating machinery, or supervising recreational activities.

Capital Spending

• Although not as much detail is available on the capital budget, capital spending has not compensated for the reduction in spending on operations. Until the last two fiscal years, 1995 and 1996, capital spending had been trending downward, especially in inflation-adjusted terms.

Current 1997 Budget and Proposed 1998 Budget

• The operating budget was reduced in 1997 and is proposed to remain at about the same level in 1998. Correspondingly, full-time headcount was reduced in 1987 and is proposed to be reduced further in 1998. The number of WEP workers is planned to reach almost 3,200 FTE's of labor in 1997 and hold steady at this level for 1998. Capital spending is planned to be higher in 1997 and 1998.