When a Prairieville dog park initiative wrapped up with money to spare, two residents saw an opportunity. Tia Starr and Monika Arnold turned the surplus into something bigger — a nonprofit dedicated to transforming park access across Ascension Parish.
Founded in 2022, the Ascension Parks Foundation has grown from a modest fund redistribution effort into a connector between parish government, private industry, and community groups — helping finance and execute improvements ranging from benches and pavilions to full-scale park developments.
The foundation’s roots trace to 2021, when Starr and Arnold helped develop the Prairieville Dog Park. After the project was completed, surplus funds remained, prompting the pair to establish a nonprofit to direct the money toward Ascension Parish parks, according to foundation board president Nick Schexnayder.
The need, Starr says, is real. Unlike larger systems such as BREC in East Baton Rouge Parish, Ascension lacks a dedicated millage for parks, relying instead on a half-cent sales tax that leaves amenities underfunded.
“A lot of people in Ascension leave and go to Baton Rouge in order to enjoy the dog park, or any of the splash pads and things like that,” Starr says. “We really set out trying to bring that into Ascension, so that there was better access to parks for all the kids and even dogs.”
The foundation’s primary role is to raise funds and build community awareness around Ascension’s parks, with efforts that include volunteer cleanups, tree plantings, and partnerships with local sports organizations. It relies on sponsorships and fundraising, drawing support from companies such as CF Industries, Hancock Whitney, REV, and Ochsner. Over the past few years, the group has raised at least $160,000 for park-related projects, according to Schexnayder.
Among its most significant ongoing efforts is the redevelopment of Sorrento Park, backed in part by a six-figure contribution from Air Products. The foundation expects to break ground on the project this summer, Starr says.
The organization has also pursued smaller, high-impact initiatives — tree plantings in Donaldsonville and bench installations at Duplessis Park among them — aimed at making existing green spaces more functional and welcoming.
Looking ahead, Starr and Schexnayder say Ascension’s continued population and business growth will only increase demand for expanded park access and amenities.
“I think the big hope is that the companies that are coming in and building in the parish will eventually want to also invest in the community, whether it be the school system or all the different foundations we have,” Starr says.
Long term, the foundation envisions a network of high-quality parks accessible to all residents.
