“We made a conscious effort to pitch our quality of life, including all we’ve done to revitalize downtown, create parks and green space, clean up our air, and generally be good stewards of the environment.”
—Trevor Hamilton, Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce
overlook. “The project just got people excited,” Askonas says. “One donor took in the view, turned, and said simply, ‘Count me in for twenty-five thousand dollars.’” It was not an easy time to raise the $2.4 million
Darcy Kiefel
Cyclists atop Stringer’s Ridge, protected with TPL’s help. One recent plan had called for six-story condos lining the ridgecrest.
IT PAYS TO SAVE!
One of the first questions community members ask about a park or conservation project is: can we afford it? But as Chattanooga’s experience shows— and research over many years has proved—strategic conservation is not really a cost but an investment that can pay handsome dividends. Here are six reasons why funding parks and land conservation makes good economic sense:
1. Parks and open space often increase the value of nearby properties, along with property tax revenue.
2. Parks and open space attract businesses and trained employees in search of a high quality of life.
3. Parks and open space attract tourists and boost recreation spending.
4. Parks and open space reduce obesity rates and health care costs by supporting exercise and recreation.
5. Working lands, such as farms and forests, usually contribute more money to a community than the outlay they require for services.
6. Conserved open space helps safeguard drinking water, clean the air, and prevent flooding—services provided much more expensively by other means.
For more information on the economic benefits of parks and open space, go to tpl.org/benefits. There you will find Trust for Public Land reports, including The Economic Benefits of Land Conservation, Conservation: An Investment That Pays, and The Health Benefits of Parks.
20 LAND&PEOPLE Spring/Summer 2012
needed to protect the ridge. The economy had just tanked, and the stock market with it. But the com- munity stepped up. The Lyndhurst Foundation, a local philanthropy, committed nearly $850,000, much of it in matching funds. The city found money, as did other foundations and more than 20 companies and non- profits. Today, with Stringer’s Ridge a solid dark green on Rick Wood’s map, attention has turned to building trails in the new park and connecting it to Chattanooga’s growing network of greenways and open space. Gone are the (literally) dark days, when Chatta-
noogans drove with their headlights on in daylight and contemplated an uncertain future. By investing in riverfront parks, greenways, and trails, and pro- tecting its iconic battlefield green spaces, the city has positioned itself for success. The lookout on Stringer’s Ridge is a good place to put that success into perspective. The river wrapping around Moccasin Bend, downtown at our feet, and Volkswagen over the far horizon—all joined in a mosaic that balances open space and economic growth. America’s one-time “dirtiest city” is now showing
other cities how to thrive: by reconnecting people with the land.
Richard M. Stapleton writes on the environment, land conservation, and historic preservation. He is working on a remembrance of the New York State dairy farm where he grew up, now preserved as part of the Appalachian Trail.
To see an image gallery of The Trust for Public Land’s work in Chattanooga, go to tpl.org/chattanooga.