Val Vista Community Park 

7350 Johnson Dr, Pleasanton, CA 94566, United States

Neighborhood parks, which are generally up to 30 acres (120,000 m2) in size, serve as social and recreation focal points for neighborhoods and are the basic units of the park system. Many of them include a playground. Neighborhood parks provide residents with relief from the built environment. They may offer a variety of facilities and passive or active (programmed or unprogrammed) recreation in response to the demographic and cultural characteristics of surrounding neighborhoods, with opportunities for interaction with nature. Neighborhood parks are largely accessible by foot, bicycle or public transit within a quarter-mile radius of the residences, providing easy access for children and seniors in particular.

Types of neighborhood parks include mini-parks or pocket parks, and their predominant recreation offering may be further described. They can provide greenery, recreation centers, sports fields or playgrounds. The greenscape is a landscaped park, often with a large unprogrammed lawn, primarily for passive recreation. A recreation center is a facility that supports a myriad of park activities, including sports and other recreational activities appropriate to the population or community that uses the park. Pocket parks are the smallest in size, designed to serve the immediate surroundings. Generally, size limits the ability to perform multiple recreational functions. Many park systems are underfunded and rely on grassroots neighborhood groups and associations. Many of these groups have joined forces in broad coalitions to advocate for better park maintenance and government accountability.

• Well, it’s good for the environment.

Especially if you can skip the car and walk to the parks in your area. You save the emissions of gas and carbon and stay local. You can also make the trip a learning experience for the kids by packing some garbage bags and cleaning up any garbage you can find in the park for a few minutes. Teach your kids that it’s their neighborhood and their park, so they’re supposed to help take care of it.

•  It’s good for you.

This is especially true when your children reach the age when they don’t need to be completely shaded anymore. Take advantage of the opportunity to relax. Bring a blanket and lie down on the grass or on your lawn chair and your favorite book. There’s little chance of a mom just chilling, and the park’s a great chance to do that. Or ask a friend you haven’t hung out with in a while and catch up while the kids play.

• It could be an adventure.

Make a little scrapbook for your kids. Every time you visit a new park, let them take a picture and write about the park. They can even glue the photos you took while you were there. This is a great way to make summer trips to the park a real adventure and a way to help keep your school-aged child writing and using their thinking skills while on vacation.