SALT LAKE CITY — Did you know there are more than 500 Parks, in Salt Lake County?
From the well-known outdoor areas like Liberty, Sugar House and Pioneer Parks.
To smaller, lesser-known “pocket parks.”
We spoke with a woman who has been to all 511 county parks.
Her name is Ali Vallarta, and over nearly 2 years of touring all those parks, she says she’s learned what people need, what they want, and what they like in their outdoor recreation spaces.
Fox 13 News spoke with Tyler Call and his daughter Skylar during their visit on Wednesday to the new Glendale Park in Salt Lake City.
Tyler Call said he loves it.
“But it’s our first time here and we came to check out the open space and the playground first off. I’m excited to see, as it expands in the next phases as to what they’re going to do. It’s real close to us and it looks like a lot of people are enjoying it already, and that makes us happy," said Tyler.
His daughter, Skylar, said it was awesome.
“It was really fun, I was excited because whenever I come to parks I always love those spinny things that you can climb on.”
Valerie Iloa was also at Glendale Park on Wednesday with several of her children.
Iloa said her family and friends are perfect examples of how far some people will go to find a good, safe park.
“I know for the past couple years to go find a park that has a splash pad or just like a variety of things we would drive far, like to Herriman or Bluffdale.”
Fortunately, for Iloa and other Glendale residents, the new park is within walking distance.
But now, if you need to find a park that isn’t close by, Ali Vallarta is here to help.
She said she personally visited all 511 parks in the Salt Lake Valley.
“As a result, I have all this data from a census of every park in our county, whether it’s managed by a city, the county itself or an HOA and I have turned that into a map that anyone in Utah can use.”
Vallarta said you can now find the outdoor space that fits you and your needs.
“You can actually say, OK, what I’m looking for is a park that has an off-leash dog area, a toddler-friendly playground, an open bathroom and it will show you all the options available to you.”
According to Vallarta, a park can be the perfect place for a social gathering, graduation, even a wedding.
She said we all pay for them and hopes her map, available here.
