This is a list of the city parks and playgrounds of Erie, Pennsylvania. Those annotated with a ward affiliation are "officially named, designated, established, and located as public parks, public parks and playgrounds, and public playgrounds of the city." Also included here are selected parks operated by the Erie City School District and nearby Millcreek and Harborcreek townships. Erie County no longer operates parks, having passed all of its holdings to local governments.
Statistics and rankings The Erie Times-News discussed the city parks in their entirety in "City Boasts Dozens of Parks" on 4 June 2000. The city has 56 city parks, which includes: 3 golf courses 10 undeveloped parks (Roma Park, Woodlawn Park) 12 passive parks, manicured but lacking recreational equipment (Perry Square, Gridley Park) 28 active parks, with playgrounds and/or sports facilities 12 ballfields (3 at 21st and Bauer Sts) 19½ basketball courts (4 at Burton Park) 14 tennis courts (6 at Frontier Park) 1 skate park (Columbus Park) The same article ranked the parks for various characteristics: Largest: Glenwood Smallest: 19th and Wayne, and Euclid Park, each only 1/3 acre Most popular: Glenwood Park, Frontier Park, Walczak Park, and Rodger Young Park Hidden jewel: E 41st and Brewer has unique playground equipment Underappreciated: Hillside, McKinley, Columbus, Lighthouse, and Barbara Nitkiewicz Parks Best playgrounds: Glenwood, Burton, Rodger Young, and Liberty Parks Prettiest views: Chautauqua and Branch Parks have nice views of Lake Erie; Walczak Park has a panoramic view of city and lake; and Frontier Park has the arboretum.
Public partnerships The City of Erie coordinates management of a number of city parks with commercial and public stakeholders interested in green space and what it means for quality of life and the economy. Major parks like Frontier Park and Perry Square have advocacy groups with formal relationships linking the city, the public, and corporate sponsors. Other parks, like McClelland Park, Washington Park, and Woodland Avenue Park are supported by neighborhood groups that seek development funds and advocate for their local community parkland. The mayor is planning a formal adopt-a-park program to recognize all non-governmental efforts to maintain city parks. The city also integrates city park improvements into city development projects, such as the major renovation underway involving Griswold Park near Union Station.Miller, George. "Park Partners." Erie Times-News, 16 April 2008, 4A
List of parks Attorney Richard D. Agresti Baseball Field at Victory Playground is located at West 13th Street and Lincoln, nestled near the Interstate 79 interchange. It was developed by the city in 2003. It has a small playground, covered picnic area, and parking for about forty vehicles.(Ward 3) (See Victory Park)
Ainsworth Field is a baseball stadium located between West 22nd Street on the north, West 24th Street on the south, Cranberry Street on the east, and Washington Place on the west. It is on the grounds of Roosevelt Middle School. It is the former home of Erie minor league baseball, having been replaced by UPMC Park in 1995.
The Ainsworth Athletic Field was dedicated on 25 August 1947 in honor of J. C. Ainsworth "in appreciation of his outstanding accomplishments as civic leader, physical director, friend, and counselor of the youth of this community." It was rededicated in 1980 by the Erie City School District, which continues to provide funding for the stadium. Hallgren, Restifo, and Loop were the architects for the 1980 renovations, while Eriez Construction was the general contractor.
Allen-Hetico Memorial Field. (see Bayview Park) Ted Amendola Memorial Field is located just south of the Bayfront Parkway at Front Street and Wallace. The field is located in Wallace Playground. (Ward 1) Asbury Farm Community Park is a recreational park located on the west side of Asbury Road, just south of West 38th Street in the Asbury section of southwestern Millcreek Township. It contains four tennis courts, a baseball field, sand volleyball, a playground, and a large covered picnic area. It is operated by Millcreek Township.
Asbury Woods Nature Center, once known as the Asbury Park Nature Center, is of parkland located on the east side of Asbury Road, just south of West 38th Street in the Asbury section of southwestern Millcreek Township. The center is a large facility, with educational interpretation areas, a pavilion, gardens and fountains, and a large parking area. On the west side of Asbury Road is the associated greenway, with several miles of hiking trails through young deciduous forest and pine woods, as well as trails and raised wooden walkways through bogs and marshes along Walnut Creek. Despite its proximity to Erie International Airport only a mile away, it is quiet and secluded. The nature center and greenway are operated by the Millcreek Township School District.Millcreek Township listing for the park Public to Have Say in Park Plans: Shelter, Trails Eyed Near Walnut Creek, by John Guerriero, Erie Times-News, 8 September 2007, 1B, 4B Avalon Park is a small wooded park just outside the city limits in Millcreek Township. Established in 1926 and adopted by the neighborhood in 1992, the park is situated on the north side of West 6th Street between California Drive and Pittsburgh Avenue. Gregory Stuart Baldwin Park is a park located on West 26th Street between Berst Avenue and Geist Road in the Dock Junction section of the city. (Ward 6)
Bayview Park is a park with a large open field, a basketball court, and a small playground with swings. It contains Pontiac Field, which was a softball field developed by the city in 1983 and renovated in 2020. The park borders the Bayfront Promenade has a wide view of Liberty Park and nearby marinas along West 2nd Street between Chestnut Street and Cherry Street, far above the Bayfront Parkway and Lake Erie. Since 2017, renovations have been promoted by Our West Bayfront, including a splash pad, upgrades to the softball field, and an 'Erie' wordmark sign. (Ward 4) Belle Valley Park is located in Millcreek Township. Millcreek Township park listing Roman Blaszczyk Field is a baseball field developed by the city in 1983. It is located south of East 12th Street between Wayne Street and the Bayfront Connector. The field is located within Kosciuszko Park in honor of Tadeusz Kościuszko. (Ward 2) George "Pat" Brabender Memorial Park is a baseball field developed by the city in 1983. It is located south of West 21st Street, north of West 23rd Street, east of Baur Avenue, and west of Emerson Avenue in the Dock Junction section of the city. (Ward 6) Jim Brutcher Field. (see Pulaski Park) Burton Park is an unmarked park and playground located to the south of East 38th Street and north of Pine Avenue in the Pleasant Heights neighborhood of Erie. It contains tennis courts, basketball courts, and a large lawn. (Ward 5) Woodlawn Avenue Park is a small park located on Woodlawn Avenue and Cameron Road, located in the Burton neighborhood just northeast of the Bayfront Connector and west of the Erie Industrial Park. (Ward 5) Cassidy Park is a passive recreation park with a nature trail, it is located right on Walnut Creek off of Zimmerly Road. The township purchased the land, which was once known as the Cassidy Campground, in December 2006 for $316,500. The same company that developed Asbury Woods Nature Center, which is also along Walnut Creek, has been selected to develop Cassidy Park. Chautauqua Park is a small park located in the quiet Lakeside neighborhood of Erie on an elevated shoreline along Lake Erie. The park, which was developed in 1993, is located at the eastern end of Lakeside Drive. It has a covered picnic area and grill, as well as several benches from which one might enjoy the lake view. A utility road at the eastern edge of the park leads down to a stretch of beach, but a no-swimming sign is posted due to the city pumping station situated nearby. A root-stepped path down a sharp ravine on the western side of the park also leads to the waterfront. (Ward 1) Chestnut Street Park is located at Bayfront Parkway and Chestnut Street. The park has two boat launch ramps. Columbus Park is a small park off Cherry Street between West 15th Street and West 16th Street in the Little Italy neighborhood of the city. The park is named for Christopher Columbus. (Ward 3)
Cranch Park is a small, unmarked park located on Lakeside Drive near Cranch Avenue in the Lakeside Neighborhood of Erie. It has a grassy knoll, a rock outcropping down by the lake shore, and two park benches from which to enjoy the wonderful view. The park (and avenue) are likely named in memory of Edward Cranch, MD (16 October 1851 - 20 May 1920), a prominent Erie homeopath.King, William Harvey, History of Homeopathy and its Institutions in America (Ward 1) Elk Creek Access is a small park along the west bank of Elk Creek in northwestern Girard Township. Popular for its steelhead fishing, the park is situated between Pennsylvania Route 5 on the south and Lake Erie on the north. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources proposed to buy the parcel in 2007 from Girard for $400,000 in order to join it to contiguous Erie Bluffs State Park, which has been the park's western neighbor since June 2004.State Wants Elk Creek Area, Erie Times-News, 9 January 2008, 1B, 2B Erie Bluffs State Park is a Pennsylvania state park with one mile (1.6 km) of undeveloped Lake Erie shoreline in Girard Township and Springfield Township. It has bluffs with deep forest, wetlands, archaeologic sites, and picturesque views of the lake. It is located on Pennsylvania Route 5, just west of Elk Creek Access in western Girard, about west of Erie. The park, established by the governor on 4 June 2004, was acquired in December 2003 from Reliant Energy and is being managed by officials stationed at Presque Isle State Park. Erie Bluffs is popular with local hikers and bird watchers but after nearly five years is as yet relatively unknown to the general public due to public access limitations. Parking for 24 vehicles and an informational kiosk have been provided through grants from the state, and a new sign may finally be installed in 2009.Guerriero, John, Sign Will Point Out Erie Bluffs: State Park Also to Have 24 Porous Spaces for Parking, Erie Times-News, 24 June 2007, pp 1B, 5BHarris, Rebecca, Don't Overlook the Bluffs, Erie Times-News, 21 March 2009, 1A, 8A More elaborate plans for the park, including additional parking, a fishing pier, and a Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources proposal to buy the neighboring Elk Creek Access from Girard Township for $400,000, could take years to come to fruition.Harris, "Don't Overlook the Bluffs" Euclid Park is a small park located along the eastern shoreline of Lake Erie. (Ward 1) Larry Fabrizi Park was dedicated in 2005. It was formerly called Cloverdale Park. It is a small grassy park located just south of West 26th Street at Harvard Boulevard. Mr. Fabrizi was an elected District Justice in the city of Erie for 31 years, serving up until his death in 1992.(Ward 6)Erie City Council Booklet, 1969, Rootsweb Franklin Park is an unmarked playground off East 10th Street at Marne Road in northeastern Erie. This treed park includes a baseball field. (Ward 1)