There is just under one month left to participate in the City of San Diego’s first-ever Community Recreation Needs Assessment (CRNA), which provides residents the opportunity to help shape the future of recreation programming in San Diego. All community members are encouraged to participate by taking an online survey or attending a virtual focus group meeting. 

Launched in August 2025 in collaboration with Keen Independent Research, Inc., the CRNA is gathering data to better understand and meet the recreational, communication, and financial needs of San Diego’s diverse communities. Throughout the course of the assessment, residents have had the opportunity to participate in surveys, interviews, focus groups, virtual workshops, and in-person public meetings and collaboration with local organizations to ensure broad engagement.  

The online community survey will remain open through Saturday, Feb. 28, and the final focus group will be held virtually on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 4 p.m. Both opportunities are open to San Diego residents of all City Council districts. The survey can be completed in less than five minutes, and the focus group is scheduled as a 45-minute session. 

“As we move toward the conclusion of the Community Recreation Needs Assessment input period, we encourage all San Diegans who have not yet participated to take these opportunities to share their feedback with us,” said Andy Field, director of the City’s Parks and Recreation Department. “The information gathered will help us identify gaps, remove barriers, and ensure that all San Diegans in every neighborhood have access to high-quality parks and recreational programming that meets the needs of their community.” 

The CRNA is one part of the Parks and Recreation Department’s Equity in Parks and Recreation initiative which seeks to ensure that all community members – regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, or income – have fair and full access to safe, welcoming, and inclusive parks, programs, and recreational spaces. Data gathered from the CRNA will help form clearly defined goals, objectives, action steps, resources, timeline and performance measures to achieve strategic priorities that will address inequities and better serve residents Citywide.  

Community members who wish to share feedback in the online survey, which will be open through Feb. 28, or join the virtual focus group on Feb. 11, can participate and register on the CRNA webpage. For more information, contact Keen Independent Research, Inc. at sdparksneeds@keenindependent.com.