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Report: DC is the best big city for public parks, Arlington ranked no. 3

100 of America's largest cities were scored and ranked by Trust for Public Land's ParkScore index.

WASHINGTON — Washington, D.C. has landed in first place for best public parks out of the nation's 100 largest cities, according to an index created by Trust for Public Land.

Arlington was also recognized and scored the no. 3 spot. St. Paul, Minnesota, was sandwiched between the two.

The nonprofit measured park systems across five categories: access, investment, amenities, acreage and equity. 

The following parks ranked in the top 12, starting with fourth place: Cincinnati, Minneapolis, Chicago, San Francisco, Irvine, Seattle, New York, Portland and Boston.

Beyond the ranking of 100 cities, the data behind the ParkScore index also reveals park access levels for nearly every city and town in the United States, the nonprofit said. 

"Parks are essential for public health, climate resilience, and strong connected communities. And yet, 100 million people in the U.S.—including 28 million kids—don't have a park within a 10-minute walk of home," they specified on their website.

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