Why Protect Open Space?


“When it is not clear whether anything is protected, citizens tend to oppose development everywhere. When natural resources are identified and open spaces preserved, it becomes more apparent where development should occur.”     NYS Open Space Planning Guide

Quality of Life
    Open spaces reduce the levels of congestion, traffic, and noise that overdeveloped areas are subjected to.  The foliage absorbs summer heat, rather than reflecting it back like pavement does, reducing summer temperatures in the area.  Open spaces provide recreational opportunities, and improve the aesthetic quality of the area. 
   
Sense of Community
    The process of saving land brings people together, united in the goal of improving their community.  It also provides neighborhood stability, attracting and keeping the residents as they know that they will not be subjected to the noise and pollution that new construction causes. 

Environmental
    Forests filter air and water, continuing the natural cycles that have provided the earth with clean air and water for millions of years.  Open space provides areas that buffer flooding before it affects residential areas, and it also preserves the ecosystems and habitats of the area, in turn preserving the species that live there.

Economic
    High-quality open space nearby improves property values, attracts and retains economic investment in the form of residents and new companies who move to the area, and it reduces the cost of utilities and maintenance that the local municipalities would be burdened with if the area was developed.

“Studies have shown that undeveloped open space generates more in real property tax revenue than it requires in municipal services - representing a net economic benefit to local governments. New residential development usually results in a net loss to municipal finances. In other words, the costs for local services (schools, police and fire, roads, solid waste, sewage treatment, etc.) outweigh the increased tax revenue produced by residential development. Open space also enhances the property value of nearby residences.”
 NYS Open Space Planning Guide