The Management of Parks in Providence

The responsibility for city-owned open and recreational space in Providence
is divided up among three city agencies:

Parks Department - The Providence Parks Department manages the
majority of the open space in the city including parks, public cemeteries,
public golf courses, and general public areas like squares and plazas.
Until recently, the Parks Department oversaw many of the school grounds, yet the jurisdiction for all school facilities has now been transferred to the Public Schools Department. In other changes, the Parks Department is now responsible for all the city's river-walks (including Waterplace Park in Downtown Providence) and is breaking ground for a new park at Riverside Mills in April (this park will become part of the Woonasquatucket River Greenway). So although the number of Parks Department supervised sites has dropped from 149 to 111, the diversity of the sites poses a greater challenge, especially in terms of maintenance.

Recreation Department - The Recreation Department administers the city's recreation centers and pools. It is also largely responsible for park programming, ranging from overseeing sports programs and park events, to running the summer lunch program (a federally funded project that gives out hundreds of lunches at park sites all over the city).

Public Schools Department - The Public Schools Department handles all the grounds and facilities associated with the public school system.