The Economic Value of Open Space Conservation (Land Lines Article)

Publication Date: March 1998

Inventory ID LLA980303; English

Article

Around the country, communities are recognizing that conservation of open space can benefit their economic health. At the edge of rapidly growing cities, protected farmland and wildlife areas are stemming suburban sprawl and encouraging more compact development, thus decreasing the public costs of road and sewer construction. In inner cities, park renovations are sparking redevelopment and enhancing the value of adjacent neighborhoods. Conservation easements on farmland are helping to preserve the economic backbones of many traditional local economies. And wilderness areas are attracting hikers and other nature tourists who spend money in local communities.

While the benefits of protected open spaces are increasingly evident, many communities still face great difficulty funding their land acquisition plans. In recent years, federal grants for land purchases have decreased sharply, while an economic boom has pushed land prices through the roof in rapidly growing areas. As a result, the escalating costs of acquiring properties can be far beyond the capacity of many town budgets. Nevertheless, many communities acknowledge that they must take greater initiative to protect their valuable green spaces for future generations.

The Lincoln Institute's latest policy focus report, Open Space Conservation: Investing in Your Community's Economic Health, by John Tibbetts, addresses these issues. It explores how American communities have historically protected and maintained open space through a combination of planning strategies, regulatory measures, public investments and private initiatives. Since the fiscal and economic implications of open space conservation are crucial to policymaking, the report describes several methods of estimating the economic value of open space to communities. Finally, the report analyzes the effectiveness, practicality and fairness of tools now used by communities to finance open space acquisitions. With this information, interested parties can think strategically about local conservation opportunities.

Communities can protect open space in three basic ways, which are often used in combination. First, land can be preserved through regulatory measures, such as agricultural zoning, conservation zoning, impact fees, and dedications of land. Growth management policies have proven useful in numerous communities experiencing rapid development. But despite the effectiveness of these measures in some areas, land use regulations can be challenged or rendered unenforceable by new political leadership.

Secondly, localities and states can acquire land outright or provide funding to maintain open spaces through bond issues, sales taxes, real estate transfer taxes, special districts, special assessment areas, and business improvement districts. This option is expensive and often politically complex. Many communities with limited financial resources have difficulty competing with developers to acquire valuable land. Still, citizens in many localities have voted to pay higher taxes to acquire green space and protect ecologically sensitive areas such as watersheds. A variety of public/private partnerships also offer hope for new financing alternatives, especially in more urbanized areas.

A third approach is the use of conservation easements to protect land while keeping it in the hands of private owners, a popular and practical method of preserving open space, championed by both landowners and environmental groups. Easements are increasingly being used in rural and suburban areas, where they can help protect productive agricultural lands and stem the pace of rapid development.

Protection of environmentally sensitive lands, such as watersheds and floodplains, presents special challenges that usually require a combination of regulatory approaches with public and private financial support. In fact, all communities should consider the pros and cons of various techniques and collaborations to devise an open space conservation plan based on a shared vision of the community's long-term land use needs and local economic conditions.

Open Space Conservation is a 36-page, illustrated paperbound report, available from the Lincoln Institute at $14 per copy, plus shipping and handling. A 25 percent discount is available on orders of 10 or more copies. Please call 800/LAND-USE (800/526-3873) to place your order.