Bruce Robertson of Portland practices his serve at the Washington Park tennis courts last month.A
in the 40 biggest U.S. cities puts Portland in sixth place.
The survey, released Wednesday, ranked Portland behind San Francisco, Sacramento, Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., but ahead of 34 cities including Seattle and Philadelphia.
Researchers from
in California based cities' scores on factors such as park access, park size and per capita park spending.
Portland missed a Top 5 ranking because its median park size of 4.8 acres fell below the national average of 5.8 acres, researchers said. Also, nearly 25 percent of Portlanders don't live within a 10-minute walk to a city park, a shortcoming the city is committed to improving, said Mike Abbaté, director of Portland Parks and Recreation.
Last year, the parks bureau won a gold medal award from the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration and the National Recreation and Park Association for excellence in park management.
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