The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) recognizes that parks affect everyone’s quality of life. As such, MPRB is committed to advancing racial equity in the park system and its workforce. At MPRB, racial equity is when race is no longer a predictor of access to parks and recreation, health, well-being, and quality of life. Similarly, the City of Minneapolis defines racial equity as “the development of policies, practices, and strategic investments to reverse racial disparity trends, eliminate institutional racism, and ensure that outcomes and opportunities for all people are no longer predictable by race.

Contact Information:
RacialEquity@minneapolisparks.org

Capital Improvement Program

The MPRB is the first parks agency in the nation to incorporate racial and economic measures into ordinances that guide its Capital Improvement Program (CIP), a list of infrastructure improvements that guide long-term investment and rehabilitation throughout the park system. The ordinances were approved in 2016 and 2017, specifying relevant, data-driven criteria to address racial and economic equity through allocating capital funds for more than 165 neighborhood parks and 20 regional parks and trails.

Capital Improvement Plan

20-Year Neighborhood Park Plan

In 2016, the MPRB and the City of Minneapolis approved ordinances to reverse years of underfunding in neighborhood parks. The 20-Year Neighborhood Park Plan (NPP20) is a long-term initiative that will transform the neighborhood park system with a first-of-its-kind, criteria-based funding system in the U.S. It uses seven criteria that focus on racial and economic equity to ensure that capital investments are targeted first in the parks and communities where they are needed the most. The criteria are reviewed annually to address any unintended consequences of the NPP20-related ordinances and to adapt to changing neighborhood demographics and economic measures. Neighborhood parks are also ranked annually based on these criteria, which include:

Community characteristics

  • Areas of concentrated poverty and/or communities with 50% or more people of color
  • Population density
  • Youth population
  • Crime statistics

Park characteristics for each neighborhood park

  • Condition of park assets
  • Lifespan of park assets
  • Comparison of capital investment over the previous 15 years with the total cost to replace all park assets.

20-Year Neighborhood Park Plan (NPP20)

Ordinances

Since 2011, the MPRB has initiated a range of measures to assess, address and build racial equity within our workforce while improving diversity, cultural awareness and inclusion. Because change on a system-wide scale takes time, we continue to proactively examine how we assess and measure our improvements.  

For instance, among our certified full-time and appointed workforce, the percentage of non-white and multiracial staff is slightly more than 24% in 2024, compared to 20.49% in January 2011. The percentage of City of Minneapolis residents of color and of working ages 18-64 is an estimated 27 percent, based on 2022 American Community Survey data.

With respect to inclusion, diversity and equity in MPRB’s workforce, as well as succession planning, training and implementation, key efforts in recent years have included:

  • Organization-wide use of a racial equity tool in MPRB’s policy, planning, program and budget decisions
  • Racial Equity 101 training for all full-time, certified and appointed employees
  • Ongoing work to ensure that MPRB’s workforce and hiring practices reflect the diversity of the community across the breadth and depth of the organization
  • Implicit bias training for all staff involved in the hiring process
  • Bias training for all Minneapolis Park Police officers, offered by the League of MN Cities
  • Racial Equity Internal Influencers: Cohorts were formed in 2017 and 2019, each bringing together about 70 employees from across the organization. Internal Influencers explore racism and develop mutual support networks to help advance racial equity within MPRB and the communities it serves.

The Racial Equity Action Plan (REAP) is an internal document facilitating racial equity work at the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB). The REAP was established in 2016 and guides the organization’s racial equity work by establishing priority actions, timelines, and status reporting. Covering the four years from 2023 to 2026, this edition of the REAP aligns with Parks for All, The MPRB Comprehensive Plan 2021-2036, and the 2023-2026 Strategic Directions the Board of Commissioners set. The REAP can be updated annually with new actions as needed and is tracked in the Implementation Plan Dashboard. This may include:

  • Board of Commissioners directives set by resolutions.
  • 2023-2026 Budget Actions that require an equity lens.
  • Actions that emerge from community engagement.
  • Actions identified by Internal Influencer workgroups.
  • Actions tied to the MPRB Comprehensive Plan 2021-2036

2016 Racial Equity Action Plan – Board Presentation [PDF]
2017-2018 Racial Equity Action Plan [PDF]
2019-2020 Racial Equity Action Plan [PDF]
2021 Racial Equity Action Plan [PDF]
2022 Racial Equity Action Plan [PDF]
2023-2026 Racial Equity Action Plan [PDF}

Since 2011, the MPRB has initiated various efforts to improve and integrate racial equity into our work. We recognize that system-wide change takes time, so our efforts are ongoing, and we take proactive steps to assess and evaluate them. The timeline below shows actions, initiatives, and milestones regarding our efforts to advance racial equity.

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