Mecklenburg County's recent ranking at 90 out of 100 cities in the 2025 Trust for Public Land ParkScore has turned a few heads, and now the county's Park and Recreation Department is pushing back against the methodology and findings of the study. The ParkScore Index looks at several park and recreation metrics across the 100 most populous U.S. cities, such as acreage, access, equity, investment, and amenities. Mecklenburg County, which includes Charlotte, did not fare so well on this year's list, according to a report released by the Trust for Public Land and covered by Mecklenburg County's website.
Mecklenburg County's Park and Recreation Department stresses that while the TPL's efforts to create a baseline for measuring parks nationwide is reputable, there are significant limitations and biases one should consider. Specifically, the study doesn't control for varying population densities or service area sizes, thus, cities like Charlotte-Mecklenburg, with larger service areas and low population densities, find themselves penalized in several categories such as Access and Equity. Despite the low ranking, customer satisfaction in the county remains high, with the department receiving feedback scores of "93% and higher" on surveys.
Another concern is the measure of amenities that the TPL study considers which doesn't reflect the county residents' preferred amenities. In a nod to local preference, recent community surveys show demand for amenities that are not considered in the TPL's analysis, leaving only "two of the top 10 requested park amenities" included in their scores. Moreover, Mecklenburg contends that the “10-minute walk” access metric is unfairly counted twice, once under Access and once under Equity—further disadvantaging the county because of its road network which hinders pedestrian park access, as per Mecklenburg County's release.
In terms of comparative scores, Charlotte-Mecklenburg's ParkScore has seen a decline from 97 in 2018 to its current score of 90. Despite scoring full points for median park size, the county lags behind in other measures such as the percentage of parkland area, and investment, with just $111 per capita spent on parks—a figure below the national average. Equity remains an area of concern, too, where distribution of park space is uneven across neighborhoods defined by race and income, although, it is notable that lower-income neighborhoods enjoy "6% more park space" than their higher-income counterparts.
Looking forward, the Meck Playbook—endorsed by the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners—charts a 10-year comprehensive master plan for strategic growth in the park system. This year, a mid-cycle refresh is aimed at engaging the community to assess progress and determine focus areas for the next five years. The County also touts its NRPA Gold Medal and CAPRA accreditation and maintains that they "will continue to strive to provide the residents of Mecklenburg County with the best it has to offer," as detailed by Mecklenburg County.
