In 2025, the City of Alamosa, in partnership with SLV GO! and community organizations, released a comprehensive report examining how residents access, use, and experience local parks and trails. The Parks and Trails Access, Safety, and Use Survey was designed with a simple but critical goal: understand community needs directly from the people who live here, and use that insight to guide future decisions.
The survey was conducted between November 2022 and February 2023 and combined traditional survey tools with intentional, face-to-face community engagement. Outreach included bilingual canvassing, tabling at public events, focus groups, and collaboration with trusted local partners. This approach helped reach residents who are often underrepresented in planning processes, including Spanish-speaking households, lower-income families, seniors, and people living near parks and trail corridors.
What emerged is a clear picture of how important outdoor spaces are to Alamosa residents, and where the gaps remain.
Access Matters, But Barriers Persist
Most respondents reported using Alamosa’s parks and trails and recognized their value for physical health, mental wellbeing, and community connection. However, access is uneven. While many residents said they do not face barriers to recreation, others identified challenges that limit participation. These include lack of information about where to go or what activities are available, transportation issues, and concerns about feeling unsafe walking or biking to parks.
Information access stood out as a recurring issue. Many residents said they would use parks and trails more often if they had clearer, more accessible information about locations, amenities, and activities, particularly information available in Spanish.
Safety Is a Top Concern
Safety concerns were among the most consistent themes in the survey results. Respondents cited traffic near parks and trails, poor lighting, drug use, and the presence of unleashed dogs as barriers to feeling comfortable recreating outdoors. These concerns do not necessarily stop all use, but they shape how, when, and where residents choose to recreate.
Importantly, the report highlights that safety perceptions matter as much as safety infrastructure. Feeling unsafe, even if incidents are rare, reduces use and undermines the community benefits parks are meant to provide.
Strong Support for Investment, With Conditions
Residents overwhelmingly see parks and trails as important city services, though opinions differ on funding priorities compared to other needs like housing or street repair. When asked about funding safety improvements, respondents showed the strongest support for small, broadly shared funding mechanisms, such as minor sales tax increases, rather than higher user fees.
There was also strong interest in future investments that expand trail connectivity, replace aging playgrounds, improve river and water-based recreation access, and develop outdoor education opportunities.
Clear Direction for the Future
The report concludes with actionable recommendations: improve communication and outreach (especially bilingual), invest in lighting and infrastructure that enhance safety, design programming that reflects how residents already use parks, and continue community-driven engagement rather than one-time surveys.
The message from Alamosa residents is direct: parks and trails matter, people want to use them more, and thoughtful, inclusive investment will pay dividends in health, equity, and quality of life for years to come.
