Wall-mounted bike racks and freestanding bike racks are more popular than ever as an option to provide secure bike rooms for residents of apartment buildings.

The Grande at Metro Park in Iselin, NJ recently created some very efficient indoor parking for its residents.

But first, let's talk about this luxury apartment building and its many amenities.

This is one very appealing place to live.

The building provides spacious 1, 2, and 2 bedroom plus apartments with an array of features. They include quartz kitchen countertops, private patios, Juliet balconies or full balconies, full-size gas washers and dryers, hotel-style card access, exterior vented kitchen exhaust, pantry closets, nine-foot ceiling and the top floor lofts with vaulted ceilings and skylights.

The Grande goes even further for its residents.

For example, the amenities are incredible. They include a resort-style outdoor swimming pool, state of the art fitness center, yoga and spin rooms, coffee lounges and conference rooms,

Because of a massive tree-planting effort and other "green" activities, London was declared the World's First National Park City

As urban areas continue to attract more people and expand, there will be more pressure on them to develop spaces for office, commercial and residential needs.

However, there is also a movement pushing in the other direction to make a city more like a park.

For example, London has been designated as the world's first National Park City.

That announcement was made by the National Park City Foundation which is led by environmentalist Daniel Raven-Ellison. The charity works in conjunction with World Urban Parks, a high-profile organization that promotes parks and green space in cities.

What is National Park City?

First of all, according to National Park City's website, the designation is not actually considered an award.

The National Park City considers this designation as a part of a vision, community mindset and a "journey."

"We want cities to have more bird song,

A low-profile bike rack is just one of the many different types of Commercial Bike Racks offered by The Park and Facilities Catalog

Commercial Bike Racks are not all the same and different products are best suited for different situations.

Take the low-profile grid rack at a vacation property in Hilton Head, SC.

This commercial bike rack was installed near one of the pools at the community.

They chose this smaller type of commercial bike rack for a reason - to be unobtrusive.

"We wanted a low-profile rack so it does not distract from the natural beauty of the property," said Lisa Newton of Island Management. "We really like the bike rack. It keeps the bikes neat and organized."

These bike racks are made with galvanized metal for years of protection against the weather and sun. The pre-assembled hoops are half-inch diameter steel. The assembly fasteners point toward the ground so the nuts and bolts are hidden from the inside base angle to deter theft.

The single-sided model holds six bikes.

The benefits of "Forest Bathing" on a park bench

Want to boost your mood? Lower your blood pressure? Relax? Reenergize?

Take a "Forest Bath" in your local park or wooded area.

Forest bathing is a practice that began in Japan in the 1980s and is catching on worldwide.

During that time in Japan, health practitioners began to notice the toll that the increased industrialization of the country was having on workers. Those long hours created more stress, irritability and health issues.

Americans would be smart to pay attention to this practice as well. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average US resident spends 93% of their time indoors.

To find a simple and inexpensive remedy for this ailment, the experts in Japan suggested citizens get out of the house and into the woods.

In essence, immerse themselves in a forest setting.

Forest bathing, known as Shinrin Yoku, combines beliefs from Shintoism and Buddhism and their tradition of connecting with nature.

Forest bathing techniques

Sleeping Dunes National Lakeshore staff has added a motorized chair so the disabled can now access trails to the lake. (NPS Photo)

As the big bubble of Baby Boomers gets older but still want to remain active in national and state parks, there will be a need for more wheelchair access.

That includes ADA Picnic Tables. These are picnic tables with extended tabletops that allow a wheelchair to fit underneath so a disabled person can join the family for a meal. (There are also ADA picnic tables with center access).

The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan is extending this wheelchair access idea to trails as well.

They have added a heavy-duty wheelchair with big treaded tires for their disabled visitors.

The device is called a Track Chair. And this might be the first park where they are being used.

These tank-like wheelchairs are incredible. They have the ability to traverse up steep hills and crawl over sandy surfaces.

The wheelchair was purchased by Friends of Sleeping Bear

Wooden picnic tables at the Chesapeake Therapeutic Riding center in Abingdon, MD. (Photo courtesy of CTR)

The Park and Facilities Catalog is proud to be the supplier of Wooden Picnic Tables for an organization with a very worthy purpose.

That organization is the Chesapeake Therapeutic Riding center in Maryland.

The CTR has a unique approach to help people with differing abilities.

They incorporate the use of horses.

Their mission statement is "to deliver healing and learning to individuals and groups whose minds, bodies and spirits will benefit from the transformative connection between people and horses."

If you watch the videos on their website, you can see the results are amazing.

When people interact with horses, something wonderful happens. According to staff members, "people feel good about themselves."

There are mothers who appear in the videos who are happy to see the positive results taking place within their children. People with physical, mental, and/or cognitive challenges report

Commercial umbrellas made with marine-grade, anti-fade fabric at a tech park in Kingston, Jamaica

Commercial Umbrellas are an absolute necessity for any outdoor dining area these days.

With record high temperatures, today more than ever people need a place where they can take a break from the sun's unrelenting rays.

That's where commercial umbrellas come in.

Even in places like Kingston, Jamaica.

Just ask the folks at the 58HWT Project managed by the Stanley Motta company.

The complex is the largest business process outsourcing and technology park in the English-speaking Caribbean islands.

According to Property Manager Tina Smart, the company needed some umbrellas to keep workers cool at their outdoor picnic tables.

They chose the 7.5 Diameter Steel Umbrellas with the 8-Panel Sunbrella Cover from The Park and Facilities Catalog.

"The users of the site love the seating and umbrellas as they provide much-needed shade from the sun," she said. "We at Stanley Motta are very pleased with the

Aluminum bleachers at the Boy Scout Camp La-No-Che in central Florida

Aluminum Bleachers in 3, 4 or 5-row configurations are the simple solution for spectator seating, no matter how unique the event.

Safe and organized seating is not just something to offer for high school football games.

People attending events of nearly all types are better served with a set or sets of aluminum bleachers as opposed to them bringing their own lawn chairs.

Take the Boy Scouts of America Central Florida Council.

They regularly hold camps and events at Camp La-No-Che in central Florida.

This splendid location covers 1,480 acres of primitive land in the center of the state just south of the beautiful Ocala National Forest.

The huge campground is heavily used by Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Cub Scouts, JROTC units and other groups.

There the youngsters participate in district and special events such as the Liger Growl and Superhero Weekend.

The place is perfect for scouts. It has two waterfront areas with docks,

Unique custom-made, commercial bike racks promote the Queen Bee Cafe in the Seattle area

Commercial Bike Racks with a logo is an inexpensive yet highly visible way to reinforce the brand identity of a company.

And for one business, a fantastic way to generate some buzz!

Just look at the Queen Bee Cafes and their unique custom bike racks for example.

The Queen Bee cafes are non-profit restaurants located in the Seattle area and managed by Aegis Senior Communities LLC.

They serve an interesting and fun menu of crumpets, sandwiches, paninis, muffins, and salads.

For drinks, they have a wide variety of coffees, teas, lattes and in some locations, beer, wine, and even mimosas.

Their signature sandwich is actually not a sandwich, but a "crumpwich," a delectable combination of the traditional British bread made with locally sourced (and very fresh) products.

The interior design of the store itself features octagonal shaped tiles. Those tiles create a cool "bee-hive-like" appearance that makes

Outdoor ashtrays can keep the harmful plastic from cigarette filters out of rivers, lakes, and oceans

Outdoor Ashtrays are becoming a necessity to combat the No. 1 source of litter and to prevent it from getting in our waterways.

How many times have you seen a Hollywood movie or TV show where the main actor tries to look cool as he takes a drag on a cigarette?  Then he flicks it off to the side.

Little do the directors of these movies realize they are promoting the No. 1 cause of litter in America - discarded cigarettes.

According to Keep America Beautiful, cigarette butts make up 38% of all litter on roads and 30% of all litter at transitions points.

More Americans, including smokers, are making a conscious effort to put litter in proper trash receptacles.

However, 65% of smokers still flick their used cigarettes to the ground.

This not only causes an unsightly mess on streets and in parks.

But cigarettes are one of the leading items found in storm drains. As everyone knows, water from

Concrete picnic tables offer welcome seating at the new Lafitte Drive-In Park in Abbeville, LA

The City of Abbeville in Louisiana just spruced up their newly opened Lafitte Drive-In Park with five brand-new Concrete Picnic Tables.

The project is reportedly under the direction of Councilman at Large Francis Plaisance and creates an appealing new attraction for picnic-goers.

The rectangular tables are located in an open grassy area, placed nicely under some sizable shade trees next to a large pond.

They call it the "drive-in" park. That's certainly, an interesting name.

The real story behind the unique name is because the park is located on the site of a bit of Americana that has virtually disappeared from the landscape - a drive-in movie theater.

The tie-in between the opening of this park and the theater is significant. Many Abbeville residents said they have fond memories of spending their nights in their cars there and watching a favorite movie.

The drive-in-theater might be gone, but

Assorted dog park equipment - tunnel, table and hurdles at The Gates of Cedar Hill Apartments

Dog Park Equipment is now becoming a hot amenity with multi-family communities as a strategy to keep both their residents and canine-friends happy.

Take The Gates of Cedar Hill Apartments near Dallas in northeast Texas.

This is a beautiful gated community in Cedar Hill that goes beyond what many communities offer by providing their residents with more than just a place to live.

The appealing community also provides a clubhouse, swimming pool, volleyball court, fitness center, business center, on-site laundry facility, controlled access security and carports.

There's more. Nearly half of the US population owns a dog. And that number is growing. According to Statista, in 2000 there were 68 million dogs in the US. In 2017, that number of household hounds grew to 89.7 million.

This is one reason why The Gates also promotes itself as a pet-friendly residence. They make sure to provide amenities for

Vintage photograph of the "Lunch Counter for Bears" once a nightly event featured at Yellowstone National Park. (Photo from National Park Service)

July is National Picnic Month and before you visit your favorite picnic tables in the park you might be interested in one of the strangest picnic rituals ever held in the US - the "Lunch Counter for Bears."

Back in the 1900s, before trash removal was a regular service, many campgrounds would dispose of their trash by feeding it to their hirsute neighbors - bears.

Bears are you may know, are omnivores. That means they can eat pretty much everything. And there was always plenty to eat in the garbage dumps.

These are very smart creatures. Once they find a source of food, they'll store it away in their memory and return for more. That's why the bear dumps were such a popular place for them to hang out.

In fact, at our nation's first national park, Yellowstone National Park, chowing down at the dump grew into quite a nightly event.

A crowd would gather

Adding more Commercial Trash Cans in strategic locations can help make a dent in the litter that floats down into our storm drains.

More and more photographs of trash, especially plastic debris, floating in rivers, bays, and oceans are becoming more prevalent.

All that litter starts somewhere. One key to stopping it is to capture these discarded items in proper trash receptacles, ash urns or recycling bins.

Here are some interesting findings from a study by Keep America Beautiful about the litter in storm drains.

More Commercial Trash Cans means less trash in storm drains Pedestrians create most of the storm drain litter. One might think that people tossing garbage from their cars is the leading source of litter that ends up in storm drains, but according to KAB it's actually pedestrians. They are responsible for an estimated 60% of that litter. This creates a big window for prevention. Provide enough commercial trash cans at key transition points where pedestrians are walking and give

There is a new friendly park bench movement taking place that encourages people to meet and chat

Park Benches have many purposes.

One might be to relax and take in the greenery, fresh air and sunshine.

Another is to socialize with friends or relatives.

The challenge today is that many people don't have someone to talk to. This is especially true for the elderly, handicapped, people with learning disabilities or mental illness.

While we live in an electronic society where people from different parts of their county can meet and converse on a computer, there is a giant void out there in the real world for people to meet in person.

Some people want to change that. There is a new movement popping up to provide "chat" or "friendly" park benches in local towns.

The concept is modeled after the "Buddy Bench" which has soared in popularity at schools over the past few years. That concept basically tells students if they feel lonely or bullied, to walk over and sit on the "Buddy Bench."

The other