From facility construction and operations to staffing, programming and more, we asked professionals in the recreation, sports and fitness industry to tell us about their experience. Here, we gather hundreds of responses to report the latest trends in park, recreation, sports, fitness and aquatic facilities.

Last year at this time, we were taking a hopeful look forward, and imagining a return to business as usual within weeks, or maybe months. And then there was a Delta wave and an Omicron wave, and we pushed the gateway to "normal" back a little bit. This year, it seems like we're in a similar place: still waiting for normal to return.

The long-term trend in aquatics over the past several decades has been to take the concept of a simple pool and expand it to so much more than a body of water to swim and splash in.

In early March, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a disturbing finding. After just one year of battling the COVID-19 pandemic, the global prevalence of anxiety and depression increased by a whopping 25%.

A year ago, the National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA) found itself with just three weeks to transition its national conference to a virtual event, one of the first national conferences for the aquatics industry to make that transition and on a very tight timeline.

Looking to attract more people to this bedroom community, trail champions took their project beyond expectations, adding a glow-in-the-dark elements.

After the association's recent rebrand from Sports Turf Managers Association to Sports Field Management Association, we asked newly elected president of the board, James Bergdoll, CSFM, CPRP, director of park maintenance for the City of Chattanooga, Tenn., some questions about the rebranding, as well as other ongoing initiatives.

We've just had our first run of warmer-than-60-degree days, and I am filled with the hope that is spring. These past few years, it feels as though just when I can't take it anymore, the sun suddenly starts to feel warm again (even when it's still winter in the shade), and the winter aconite force their sunny faces through the snow.

The coronavirus pandemic drove people outdoors to parks, trails and other sites for recreation, fitness and socializing in record numbers. All of that increased wear and tear might have you thinking about your parks and sites, with an eye toward making some improvements.

Parks provide myriad benefits—social, economic, environmental, educational and more—to the communities in which they sit. Some of the most innovative park designs seek to hit all these targets at once.