January 2015 - Parks & Recreation - 43

ver the past decade, communities across the country have experienced
a roller coaster of financial circumstances, and public services of all
types have been hit with budget cuts, hiring freezes and a range of
other challenges as a result of the recent economic recession. If funding for parks and recreation was inadequate prior to 2008, park and recreation
agencies in many communities have found it to be downright painful since then.
With the crash of the housing
market and skyrocketing unemployment, all manner of funding streams
for public services - from schools
to emergency services to parks and
recreation - were chopped. Local
governments shifted the dollars that
remained to basic services like police
and fire, while parks and recreation
took an even bigger hit.
However, as the economy rebounds,
communities across the country are
beginning to recognize the role their
parks play in economic development.
A new or revitalized park can boost
the local economy by attracting new
businesses, drawing families to purchase or rent a home nearby, and driving tourism to the area.

Local Parks Support
Local Economies
A 2010 Trust for Public Land
(TPL) analysis of the economic
benefits of parks in Mecklenburg
County, North Carolina, found that
homes adjacent to parks saw an increased sales price of more than
$8,000. A similar 2014 study of the
Chicago Park District, coordinated
by the Civic Consulting Alliance,
Global Economics Group and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants,
found that homes near parks experience a 1.5 percent increase in value,
a total of $900 million in increased
home values in the city due to parks.
In Mecklenburg County, the economic impact of tourism attributed

to parks totals $53 million, and for
Chicago it tops $1.4 billion.
Parks also support financially strained communities in many
less-obvious ways. They offer inexpensive opportunities for residents
to improve their wellness, potentially reducing healthcare costs.
TPL found that for Mecklenburg
County, annual healthcare cost savings due to parks is more than $80
million. Green space in parks can
reduce pressure on stormwater infrastructure by providing opportunities for water to filter into the
ground, reducing expenses related
to upgrading sewer systems over the
long term. Such green infrastructure
saves Mecklenburg County almost
$19 million each year. And parks can
help build community and a sense
of place, keeping people - particularly young, well-educated people
- from leaving to seek job opportunities elsewhere during times of economic stress and uncertainty.

Capital stemming from a local one-cent sales tax in Williston, North Dakota, helped pay
for this $70 million recreation facility after an oil boom brought thousands of workers
and millions of dollars to what was once a sleepy farming community.

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Parks & Recreation

January 2015 - Parks & Recreation

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