The Urban Public Park of 21st Century: Challenges and Prospectives

The negligence of adequate planning and development of urban public parks in Nigeria is a huge setback to cities achieving maximum utilization in their social, economic, physical, and environmental sectors. This is coupled with many other managerial problems in maintaining the few available ones; and as such it has led to the gradual decay of the nation’s public parks in urban centres and, hence reduced their benefit to the built environment. The garden has become a part of our daily lives. It has become increasingly important since the 18th and 19th centuries. Parks in the city have begun to be abandoned and city dwellers are more comfortable spending their time in the countryside away from the hustle and bustle of the city. However, since the end of the 20th century, urban residents have begun to realize the importance of urban parks in their daily lives. They have begun to realize the importance of a quality environment and life. To meet these changing needs and wants, it is important to re-evaluate the construction of our city's public parks by looking at their true function in meeting the needs of life, environment, and socio-culture of the users. An open-ended questionnaire administered with twenty-one participants (regular users of public urban parks), reviews the literature on the general need for developing urban parks in Nigeria and critically examines the planning, development designs, and the important facilities and management procedures for urban parks. The result of this study will ensure dignity and remove the intrigues attracted to implementing urban renewal and regional planning programs and it will ensure the sustainability of every urban park project in Nigeria. These benefits include general beauty, healthy lifestyles, increased leisure activities, communal interaction and preservation of natural systems, and maximizing abandoned land spaces.