HomeMy WebLinkAbout1A, Embrace Open Space PresentationMEMORANDUM
DATE: November 9, 2009 Item LA
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Ron Moorse, City Administrator
SUBJECT: Embrace Open Space Presentation
BackLyround
Mark Schiffman and Jenna Fletcher, representing Embrace Open Space, will make a presentation
regarding the value of open space to communities. Embrace Open Space recently commissioned
economic studies in Washington and Hennepin Counties to answer the question "does open
space generate a tangible financial value to communities?" The study results indicate the
answer is yes and the impact is regionally significant. Attached is an article related to an
Embrace Open Space presentation made to the City of Forest Lake.
August 7, 2009
Balancing Open Space Protection and Future Development
by Jenna Fletcher, Embrace Open Space
Good schools boost real estate values and community desirability, as does proximity to amenities such as
shopping, libraries or a lake. Now there is new data to show that parks and open space also increase financial
value to nearby homes.
Balancing regional growth with natural resource protection contributes to our high quality of life in the Twin
Cities. Forest Lake has made great progress with its efforts including a Sustainability Action Plan with provisions
for sustainable land use and healthy eco-systems. Unfortunately, many communities have lapsed in the
protection of critical natural areas as the region has developed. If not careful, future residential development in
fast-growing communities could jeopardize this legacy.
Over the past decade the Twin Cities region has grown in population by more than 10 percent to 3.2 million.
Much of this growth has been absorbed by suburban edge communities including Forest Lake. They will also
accommodate many of the projected 1 million new people expected by 2030.
Alarmingly, open space is under -protected. According to Wilder Foundation's TC Compass, the seven -county
Twin Cities area has 255,000 acres of high quality natural land. Only 32 percent of this ecologically significant
metro land is currently protected and the remaining 68 percent is at risk of being developed, polluted or
degraded.
There is an opportunity for cities to think differently, and to consider conserving open space as a driver for
helping maintain property values. Anecdotal evidence supports the benefits of open space to quality of life,
water quality, recreation, animal habitat and as a valuable asset sought by homebuyers. City comprehensive
land -use plans, completed just as the recession devastated the housing market, will undoubtedly be revisited as
many communities adjust to development realities. In particular, cities that once anticipated rapid growth and a
new tax base now find plans for residential and commercial developments in limbo — either shelved, half -
complete, or awaiting legal resolution such as foreclosure.
Recent research provides tangible evidence of a financial benefit called the "open space premium." Research in
Hennepin County was commissioned by Embrace Open Space, a collaborative backed by the McKnight
Foundation, to calculate the open space premium on single family homes. The results show that homes near
open space realize an increase in property value averaging approximately $16,750 each
(www.embraceopenspace. org). The research used regression analysis in order to isolate open space as a
distinct factor from other factors that impact property value such as house size and lot size, finished floor space,
home age, proximity to downtown and lakes or other water bodies.
This "open space premium" suggests that future residential development and open space conservation can co-
exist and together help boost property values. While not generating the type of tax revenues as developed land,
open space does increase property values and reduces the need for future property taxes to pay for increased
city services. From smaller lot sizes, the clustering of homes with an adjacent park, to dedicated conservation
easements, there are many ways to accomplish the mutually benefiting goals of community development and
open space.
Jenna Fletcher is program coordinator for Embrace Open Space, a collaborative among Twin
Cities organizations serving as a catalyst for conserving and stewarding natural areas and parks,
lakes and rivers in the 11-county Twin Cities area.