News Release: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New Name and Brand Identity Create Relevance and Unity for Park System

(Cincinnati, Ohio)May 31, 2013 – Hamilton County Park District is proud to announce its new name and brand identity – Great Parks of Hamilton County. Encompassing over 16,560 acres of green space including 21 parks and nature preserves, the park system in Hamilton County is indeed great.

“The new name, Great Parks of Hamilton County, and new identity are distinctive and easily recognizable, helping to unify our family of parks and wide-range of outdoor offerings,” said Jack Sutton, Executive Director of Great Parks of Hamilton County. “A marketing campaign promoting our name and park amenities is getting underway; it will drive broadened awareness of and engagement in the numerous opportunities afforded by the Parks, its services and resources.”

Great Parks of Hamilton County reflects the great amount of green space protected by the park system, its conservation efforts, nature programming and outstanding recreational opportunities offered throughout the 21 parks and nature preserves, all on a scale like no other park system in our region. 

The Great Parks bird serves as a visual reminder of what Great Parks stands for, the preservation of natural resources including land, water and wildlife. This summer, the new name will be incorporated throughout all of the parks, a new, redesigned, user-friendly website will launch and social media platforms will be enhanced.

“Our goal is to help Hamilton County residents connect and engage with each of our parks,” said Sutton. “Through this new identification initiative, you will know that the great experience you have at one of our parks will be just as great as at any of our other parks.”

The name and brand identity change did not come quickly. Over the years, park district personnel noticed many residents were not fully aware of the scope of the Hamilton County Park District.

In-depth qualitative and quantitative research, including user surveys and focus groups with park users and non-users, was conducted in 2012. The research demonstrated that many park guests were unaware of all the parks and nature preserves within the Hamilton County Park District network. In addition, many guests were requesting programming and events that are already provided.

“We also found that there was confusion as to the identification of Park District-owned facilities and properties, as distinguished from those owned and operated by other entities of local government,” added Sutton.  “Finally, we took a careful look at how we identify and represent our parks and facilities, and we found that some of our park offerings seemed disconnected from one another in many ways. “

The name, Great Parks of Hamilton County, and new identity system were developed in collaboration with Topic Design Group. “Great Parks will broaden awareness of and engagement in the numerous opportunities afforded by the Park District, its services and resources,” said Chris Witham, partner and managing director of Topic.

About Great Parks of Hamilton County

Great Parks of Hamilton County (Hamilton County Park District) is a separate political subdivision of the State of Ohio. It is governed by an independent Board of Park Commissioners who are appointed by the Judge of Hamilton County Probate Court, the Honorable James Cissell.

Great Parks of Hamilton County operates under two general sources of revenue including a 1 mill levy passed by the voters of Hamilton County in 2002 and self-generated earned income. Non-tax, or earned income, represents approximately 45% of the Great Parks’ total budget.

Great Parks of Hamilton County preserves over 16,560 acres of green space of which 80% is managed as undeveloped natural areas. Visit www.greatparks.org for more information.