Urban Equity of Park Use in Peri-Urban Areas during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Wu, Y., Wei, Y. D., Liu, M., & García, I.

Landscape and Urban Planning · 2025

Publisher Google Scholar

Contribution

Objective accessibility and quality measures alone cannot fully describe park equity. Comparing urban and peri-urban communities, the study connects resource assessments, residents' perceptions, improvement needs and pandemic-era changes in use. It shows why measured provision can diverge from experienced services, leaving peri-urban vulnerabilities insufficiently understood.

Findings and approach

  • In Salt Lake City, southern peri-urban residents perceive accessibility more positively than conventional spatial measures suggest.
  • Urban-center and western peri-urban communities have similar objective accessibility but different perceptions; park quality also shows a marked east-west divide.
  • Western communities report greater needs for basic infrastructure improvements, and their pandemic-era park use is more vulnerable to perceived quality problems.
Urban center versus western peri-urban communities: average park distance 322 versus 350 meters; respondents requesting litter cleanup 33.64% versus 50.38%. Similar access can coexist with different resident needs.
Urban-center and western peri-urban average park distances are approximately 322 m and 350 m; 33.64% and 50.38% of respondents, respectively, request litter cleanup. Source: Tables 3 and 6; distances rounded to whole meters. This selected comparison connects access assessment with resident needs, not measured litter or causality. Route symbols are schematic.