Griffith Park is Number .... 22?

The Trust for Public Land just released a current list of the largest parks that lie within city boundaries in the United States. Griffith Park is only number 22! If you look at just the municipal parks, Griffith is only number 10!  Wow! Where were we when the rest of the country was buying park land? (Developing the hell out of our vacant land, that's where.)

 #22 eh? Bet Tom LaBonge is totally pissed!

On the plus side, Los Angeles does have three in the top 100. And on the minus side, Los Angeles only has three in the top 100. Here's the list...

Key:

(M): Municipally Owned Park      (R): Regional Park       (S): State Park     
(NP): National Park     (C): County Park    (NWR): National Wildlife Refuge

    Rank ... Park Name ... Type ... Acres ... City

1. Chugach State Park S 490,125 Anchorage, Alaska
2. Franklin Mountains State Park S 23,909 El Paso, Tex.
3. Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge NWR 22,770 New Orleans, La.
4. South Mountain Preserve M 16,094 Phoenix, Ariz.
5. Carvins Cove Natural Reserve M 12,700 Roanoke, Va.
6. McDowell Sonoran Preserve M 11,250 Scottsdale, Ariz.
7. Cullen Park M 9,270 Houston, Tex.
8. Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve NP 7,870 Jacksonville, Fla.
9. George Bush Park C 7,800 Houston, Tex.
10. North Mountain Preserve M 7,500 Phoenix, Ariz.
11. Gateway National Recreation Area (part) NP 7,138 New York, N.Y.
12. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge (part) NWR 6,800 San Jose, Calif.
13. Jefferson Memorial Forest M 6,011 Louisville, Ky.
14. Eufaula National Wildlife Refuge (part) NWR 6,000 Eufaula, Ala.
15. Mission Trail M 5,840 San Diego, Calif.
16. William B. Umstead State Park S 5,579 Raleigh, N.C.
17. Ahupua'a O Kahana State Park S 5,229 Honolulu, Hawaii
18. Forest Park M 5,157 Portland, Ore. 
19. Longview Lake Park C 4,852 Kansas City, Mo.
20. Far North Bicentennial Park M 4,500 Anchorage, Alaska
21. Eagle Creek Park M 4,279 Indianapolis, Ind.
22. Griffith Park M 4,217 Los Angeles, Calif.
23. Fairmount Park - Wissahickon Valley M 4,167 Philadelphia, Pa.
24. Pumpkin Hill Creek Preserve S 3,896 Jacksonville, Fla.
25. Walter E. Long Park M 3,715 Austin, Tex.
26. Bidwell Park M 3,670 Chico, Calif.
27. Fort Worth Nature Center/Wildlife Refuge S 3,662 Fort Worth, Tex.
28. Mountain Creek Lake Park M 3,643 Dallas, Tex.
29. Bays Mountain Park M 3,585 Kingsport, Tenn.
30. False Cape State Park and Natural Area Preserve S 3,572 Virginia Beach, Va.
31. Bonita Lakes Park M 3,462 Meridian, Miss.
32. North Landing River State Natural Area Preserve S 3,440 Virginia Beach, Va.
33. First Landing State Park S 3,410 Virginia Beach, Va.
34. Shelby Farms Park C 3,200 Memphis, Tenn.
35. Trinity River Park M 3,173 Dallas, Tex.
36. Mohawk Park and Golf Course M 3,100 Tulsa, Okla.
37. Brecksville Reservation (part) R 3,026 Brecksville, Ohio
38. Cecil Field Greenway M 2,866 Jacksonville, Fla.
39. Pelham Bay Park M 2,765 New York, N.Y.
40. Newport News Park (part) M 2,688 Newport News, Va.
41. Otter Creek Park M 2,600 Louisville, Ky.
42. Los Penasquitos Canyon M 2,405 San Diego, Calif.
43. Mill Stream Run Reservation (part) R 2,238 Strongsville, Ohio.
44. Steele Creek Park M 2,224 Bristol, Tenn.
45. Bear Creek Pioneers Park C 2,168 Houston, Tex.
46. Tilden Park M 2,077 Berkeley, Calif.
47. Percy Warner Park M 2,058 Nashville, Tenn.
48. Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area M 2,031 Los Angeles, Calif.
49. Galveston Island State Park S 2,013 Galveston, Tex.
50. Smith and Bybee Wetlands Natural Area R 1,973 Portland, Ore.
51. White Rock Lake Park M 1,952 Dallas, Tex.
52. Swope Park M 1,805 Kansas City, Mo.
53. Torrey Pines State Reserve S 1,800 San Diego, Calif.
54. Calero County Park C 1,782 San Jose, Calif.
55. Greenbelt Park M 1,778 New York, N.Y.
56. Barton Creek Greenway M 1,771 Austin, Tex.
57. Little Talbot Island State Park S 1,768 Jacksonville, Fla.
58. Mission Bay Park M 1,756 San Diego, Calif.
59. Rock Creek Park (part) NP 1,754 Washington, D.C.
60. Tijuana River Valley Regional Park C 1,710 San Diego, Calif.
61. Big Talbot Island State Park S 1,708 Jacksonville, Fla.
62. Fort Harrison State Park S 1,640 Lawrence, Ind.
63. Lake Leatherwood Park M 1,620 Eureka Springs, Ark.
64. Pennypack Park M 1,618 Philadelphia, Pa.
65. Claremont Hills Wilderness Park M 1,589 Claremont, Calif.
66. Burns Park M 1,575 North Little Rock, Ark.
67. Adobe Dam Recreation Area C 1,526 Phoenix, Ariz.
68. Hidden Valley Wildlife Area R 1,510 Riverside, Calif.
69. Beaman Park M 1,493 Nashville, Tenn.
70. The Presidio NP 1,491 San Francisco, Calif.
71. Wilderness Park M 1,472 Lincoln, Neb.
72. Mt. Airy Forest M 1,471 Cincinnati, Ohio
73. Memorial Park M 1,466 Houston, Tex.
74. Glenn Cunningham Lake M 1,439 Omaha, Neb.
75. Hansen Dam Recreation Center M 1,437 Los Angeles, Calif.
76. Stumpy Lake Park M 1,435 Virginia Beach, Va.
77. Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Park M 1,424 Riverside, Calif.
78. Kincaid Park M 1,411 Anchorage, Alaska
79. Rancho Diana M 1,392 San Antonio, Tex.
80. Sacred Falls State Park S 1,374 Honolulu, Hawaii
81. Latta Plantation Nature Preserve C 1,343 Huntersville, N.C.
82. Garden of the Gods Park M 1,319 Colorado Springs, Colo.
83. City Park M 1,300 New Orleans, La.
84. Forest Park M 1,293 St. Louis, Mo.
85. Black Mountain Park M 1,284 San Diego, Calif.
86. North Cheyenne Canyon Park M 1,260 Colorado Springs, Colo.
87. Flushing Meadows/Corona Park M 1,255 New York, N.Y.
88. Martin Luther King, Jr. Shoreline Park R 1,220 Oakland, Calif.
89. Lincoln Park M 1,216 Chicago, Ill.
90. Anacostia Park NP 1,215 Washington, D.C.
91. Cave Buttes Recreation Area I & II M 1,200 Phoenix, Ariz.
92. Gwynns Falls/Leakin Park M 1,200 Baltimore, Md.
93. Liberty State Park S 1,188 Jersey City, N.J.
94. Thunderbird Conservation Park M 1,185 Glendale, Ariz.
95. McClay Gardens State Park S 1,179 Tallahassee, Fla.
96. Three Creeks Parks M 1,156 Columbus, Ohio.
97. Van Cortlandt Park M 1,146 New York, N.Y.
98. Red Mountain Park M 1,144 Mesa, Ariz.
99. Pioneers Park M 1,139 Lincoln, Neb.
100. T.O. Fuller State Park S 1,138 Memphis, Tenn.