How long will people walk to a park? It varies, but studies show that at a quarter mile some people will start driving rather than walking. Therefor it is considered good planning practice to have a small “neighborhood park” within a quarter mile of residential areas.

map showing walking distance to parks in mountain view
Distance to nearest park, excluding trails, community gardens, and private open spaces

Mountain View is doing well by this metric. More than 80% of the city is within a quarter mile of a park.

There are two large areas that are more than 3/4 of a mile to the nearest park. These areas are in North Bayshore and East Whisman. Both these areas are historically office/industrial. The city has plans to turn both these areas into mixed use developments with more residential and more parks.

map showing plans for the North Bayshore area, including green spaces and parks
North Bayshore Precise Plan overview map
map showing planned parks in the East Whisman area
East Whisman Precise Plan park and green spaces map

These projects are both on hold for the moment, but when the housing does come it will come with many new parks.