About Us
On July 15th, 1910 the City Recreation Department was established to enrich Columbus by finding ways to make streets, alleys, boulevards, parks and public grounds more beautiful. On January 2nd, 1972 the City Recreation Department merged with the Division of Forestry and Parks to become the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department. We have grown from six to nearly 400 parks on 13,500+ acres, have established 29 community centers, five athletic complexes, six golf courses, 230 miles of regional trails, six splash pads and interactive fountains, eight outdoor pools and an indoor aquatic center, nineteen nature preserves, three reservoirs, five dog parks, a skate park and a range of programs for toddlers to seniors.
Commission
The Commission, appointed and organized under the Charter of the City of Columbus, empowered to equip, operate, direct and maintain all the existing recreational and park facilities.
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Administration
Learn more about the department's leaders and their roles.
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Contact Information
The Columbus Recreation and Parks would enjoy taking your phone call! If you are not sure which section phone number you need, the "learn more" link below is a good place to start.
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Our Annual Guide
Want to learn more about our recent projects? Check out our yearly overview to learn more.
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Departmental Master Plan
This plan was designed as a tool to guide future decisions and actions by the City of Columbus and our department. With the help of the community, we began gathering input in 2013 for this Master Plan version.
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Our History
Are you interested in seeing how your Columbus Recreation and Parks Department came to be? See an exciting timeline of events, and view many photos from the past.
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Leisure Cards
The Columbus Recreation and Parks Leisure Card program. For a low cost, community members can obtain a Leisure Card in order to gain entrance into department pools and such.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have questions about our department that you need answered? Perhaps your questions has been asked in the past. Click the "learn more" link to find possible answers to these questions.
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