Spokane is known for its many parks, trails, green areas, and “near nature, near perfect” tagline. The presence of these areas is beneficial to our wellbeing: they can improve health, provide cleaner air, and help lower temperatures during the summer. In this episode of Let’s Explore Spokane, we ask the questions: Have these parks always existed? How are they made? Once they’ve been built, who takes care of them?
To learn more about the past, present, and future of Spokane’s parks, we traveled around our city to visit the experts with first-hand knowledge about this topic. Dana, a librarian and archivist at the library, showed us the history of Spokane’s parks—including the pivotal Olmstead Plan which first proposed Spokane become a “city of parks,” and is still being implemented today. Nick, a parks planner with the city, who showed us the process of park design from identifying a park need, designing the landscape and features, and then building the final plan. And Mattie, a caretaker at Manito Park, who demonstrated the many types of skilled labor required to keep our parks beautiful and accessible to everyone.
All around our city, people are working hard to create outdoor spaces for us to enjoy. But these parks don’t just appear out of thin air—they’re a product of planning, teamwork, and ongoing maintenance. To learn more about Spokane’s parks, join us for our latest adventure in “Let’s Explore Spokane!” from the Spokane Public Library.
