This study was an effort to identify the reasons for use or under use of neighborhood parks in Fort Wayne, IN and to suggest the solutions for the problems found. Two heavily used parks and two underutilized parks were chosen after an interview with the Director of Parks and Recreation Departments of Fort Wayne. Questionnaires and direct observation were the two major tools used to understand user preferences and tendencies. Each data were analyzed to find out the differences between the heavily and underutilized parks in the categories of age, sex, income and race. The significant differences between under and heavily used parks were found by the quantity and quality of each park's facilities and by the racial characteristic of residents around the each park. Environmental and social factors, and user satisfaction with their neighborhood park are suggested to be the solutions. The solutions may be used as a general recommendation to improve the conditions of neighborhood parks. / Department of Landscape Architecture