Norfolk lays out a new welcome mat 

Waterside park invites residents, cruise ship passengers to linger...

America's Crown Communities 2009 

The 11 winners of American City & County's 2009 annual excellence awards exhibit the creativity, cooperation and communication that is even more essential to efficient local government operations in challenging economic climates....

Casselberry, Fla., Erosion Control 

The erosion control project on Gee Creek in Casselberry, Fla., was one of 11 winners of the 2009 America's Crown Communities excellence awards....

Alexandria, Va., Recreation Center Modernization 

The Charles Houston Recreation Center in Alexandria, Va., was one of 11 winners of the 2009 America's Crown Communities excellence awards....

Polk County, Fla., Wetlands and Uplands Restoration 

The Charles Houston Recreation Center in Alexandria, Va., was one of 11 winners of the 2009 America's Crown Communities excellence awards....

South San Francisco, Calif., Transit Corridor Park and Bikeway 

Centennial Way, a transit corridor park and bikeway, in South San Francisco, Calif., was one of 11 winners of the 2009 America's Crown Communities excellence awards....

KaBOOM! announces top 12 play programs 

Washington-based non-profit KaBOOM! has named 12 local initiatives that exhibit best practices in increasing the quantity of available play space...

Cities work with schools to remedy park shortages 

By Peter Barnes

With little land available for new parks in established neighborhoods, Houston created a program in 1983 to open schoolyards to the public...

Reconnecting to the waterfront 

City turns unused riverside land into a popular community destination....

Playgrounds as parks 

By Peter Barnes

Short on land, cities work with schools to expand public access to school playgrounds....

Wildfire assessment course now available 

The course explains how to educate residents of fire-prone areas about preventing conflagrations before they start....

American City & County names Public Works Leader of the Year 

The magazine has selected Fort Wayne, Ind., Public Works Director Bob Kennedy as its 2009 "Public Works Leader of the Year."...

Public Works Leader of the Year: Master of disaster 

By Jennifer Grzeskowiak

Floods have met their match in this year's Public Works Leader of the Year, Fort Wayne, Ind.'s Bob Kennedy....

Put it in parks 

The National Recreation & Park Association benchmarked 3,100 agencies to show local leaders the importance of parks and recreation to a community's health and well being....

Who wants to be a public works director? 

By Robert Barkin

Filling top-level vacancies is harder than ever....

Group names the year's most playful communities 

KaBOOM! has recognized 93 communities for taking innovative approaches to providing playgrounds and recreation opportunities to youths....

Rain Bird seeks nominations for Intelligent Use of Water Awards 

Rain Bird is seeking nominations for its 2009 Intelligent Use of Water Awards, which recognizes water conservation programs....

Pittsburgh puts down roots 

Tree-planting program expands city's canopy....

Grand Plans for the Great Park 

By Larry Agran

The largest metropolitan park developed in the last 100 years is taking shape in southern California....

Clean Water Restoration Act reemerges in Congress 

The controversial Clean Water Restoration Act has been reintroduced to Congress, leading NACo to restart its opposition to the act....

New York state agency launches 'green cleaning' Web site 

New York State Office of General Services has launched a new Web site for its Green Cleaning Program, which encourages state agencies and schools to use environmentally friendly cleaning products....

You got a permit for those wood chips? 

Atlanta resident Joshua Pechter thought he was doing his share to keep his neighborhood park well maintained....

Entries now being accepted for Intelligent Use of Water film competition 

The Intelligent Use of Water film competition is a competition that picks the short film that best explores water conservation methods and ideas....

Keep America Beautiful increases graffiti prevention grant amount 

Local governments that are fighting graffiti in their communities will get a little extra help from Keep America Beautiful....

In our century 

Cities embrace playgrounds as valuable public assets for children's safety, health and social development....