City of Fort Worth
HR&A developed an organizational roadmap for the City of Fort Worth’s Park and Recreation Department to advance implementation of its 2025 Master Plan and the Mayor’s Good Natured Initiative. Our strategic recommendations helped position PARD for leadership transition and informed a successful budget increase of 3.7%, including salary improvements and expanded open space funding.
Fort Worth’s rapid growth created new demands on the Parks and Recreation Department while the city prepared to significantly enhance greenspace investment through the Mayor’s Good Natured initiative. This moment of opportunity coincided with the retirement of the long-serving PARD Director, requiring strategic direction to navigate leadership transition and capitalize on growing political support. HR&A conducted comprehensive operational and strategic review of PARD, drawing on best practices research and interviews with leading parks systems nationwide to identify opportunities for strengthening operations, improving service delivery, and addressing workforce challenges.
Our roadmap prioritized four Year 1 actions: developing intentional strategies for managing collaborations and community outreach; updating maintenance standards across different assets and facilities; elevating design guidelines for capital projects while encouraging innovation; and achieving pay equity with comparable city roles. PARD successfully hired a new Director and secured budget increases that raised employee wages to the city’s new $18 minimum wage while expanding open space initiatives, positioning the department to deliver on Fort Worth’s growing commitment to quality parks and greenspace.
- Why sprawling Fort Worth is doubling down on green space — Fast Company
- Here's why some planners say creating public parks boosts commercial development — CoStar
- North Texas city’s parks ranked among the best in the nation, report finds — The Dallas Morning News
- Commercial development in downtown Detroit set for another jolt with new riverfront park — CoStar
