The City of Pittsburgh has launched a new and more centralized website for its parks, amenities and recreational and service programs.
The site, called Citiparks, went live Monday. As opposed to the old website, which had distinct pages for different parks-department functions, the new site is a one-stop for information on everything from reserving event shelters and playing fields to finding special events like summer movies and operating hours for city pools and the Schenley Ice Rink. There is also information on children’s and senior programming, food programs, and the Roving Art Cart.
A brand-new feature is an interactive guide to some 160 miles of trails in city parks, from small neighborhood parks to regional ones like Frick, Schenley, Emerald View, Riverview, and Highland, along with greenways and riverfronts.
The trails are superimposed as lines on an interactive aerial photo of the city. Users click on individual trail sections to learn their lengths, see elevation maps, and note difficulty ratings, from "park pathway” to “advanced” (for especially steep or rugged trails).
“This critical information had been missing for far too long,” said Mayor Bill Peduto in a statement. “We have always known the social, health and economic impacts of having access to park and recreation space, but during the pandemic we all saw firsthand how much we relied on our parks. Now, we’re able to provide the people of Pittsburgh with a place to learn about their parks like never before.”
The trails were mapped by the city’s Department of Innovation & Performance using a GPS unit. The data will also be used internally for planning, maintenance, and public-safety purposes, according to the statement.
