Today, the City of Memphis Parks & Neighborhoods Division has introduced its new brand identity of “Memphis Parks” in conjunction with an inaugural “Memphis Parks Appreciation Weekend” on October 8-10, 2021.
“Today we celebrate not just the advancements but the tremendous assets that exist for Memphians to enjoy every single day,” said Mayor Jim Strickland. “These are your parks. I’m proud to officially proclaim the second weekend of October—which coincides with fall break—as a recurring annual Memphis Parks Appreciation Weekend to celebrate and cherish our shared spaces and assets.”
Memphis Parks’ mission—to create positive and safe places to provide community-centered experiences that connect all Memphians, celebrate life, and strengthen mind and body—speaks through the brand’s tagline, “Meet on Common Ground.”
“When I began my role as Director one year ago, it quickly became clear to me that the evolution and advancement of our parks system did not parallel our communications and community engagement efforts,” said Nick Walker, Director of Memphis Parks. “There is a general lack of awareness regarding the vast amount of resources available to our community through our parks and public spaces, and we needed to be more proactive. Our parks are not just available — they are an active invitation. Our new communications strategy is driven to do exactly that.”
To that end, a new Memphis Parks website — memphisparks.com — now houses amenities, programs, imagery and wayfinding for the City’s 5,600 acres and over 150 sites in its footprint. The user experience-focused platform allows visitors to navigate and filter their desired destination by neighborhood, amenity, and activity.
“Whether you’re looking for your nearest community center, newest tennis court, or weekend destination with the family in a new neighborhood, let us be your guide,” said Walker. “We’re excited for a site that represents such a wide range and scope of greenspaces and community centers while allowing you to drill down to a specific amenity you want to experience. It’s all at your fingertips.”
Continued investment in Memphis Parks, particularly through Mayor Jim Strickland’s Accelerate Memphis $75 million capital commitment, has catalyzed a physical revitalization of Memphis Parks to coincide with the new brand effort. Memphis Parks Appreciation Weekend is an open invitation for Memphians to explore, share and reflect upon their favorite park(s) in town—whether the park that hosts their routine weekly workouts or welcomes a first-time hangout—during the weekend of October 8-10. Citizens are encouraged to experience, capture, and post their park activities with tags of Memphis Parks’ social media channels. Merchandise giveaways, special programming, and more activations during Memphis Parks Appreciation Weekend will be revealed in the coming days. Citizens are encouraged to sign up for email newsletters via memphisparks.com as well as social media channels to receive timely updates.
“Consider this event an exercise to reintroduce yourself to our city’s largest footprint of natural assets,” said Walker. “Join us.”
Learn more at memphisparks.com and follow Memphis Parks on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for daily spotlights on the people, programs, and parks of the City of Memphis.
ABOUT MEMPHIS PARKS: Memphis Parks, a division of the City of Memphis, oversees the maintenance and activation of 150 sites and over 30 indoor facilities across 5,600 acres in the Memphis footprint. Its mission is to create positive and safe places to provide community-centered experiences that connect all Memphians, celebrate life, and strengthen mind and body. Learn more at memphisparks.com.