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LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS |
Growing, Growing, Gone!
Keeping Idaho's Growth Positive
- Providing kids and families a place to play
- Allowing new residents a chance to connect with neighbors
- Reducing the view of sprawl through green space
- Protecting important environmental areas
- Preserving Idaho's quality of life
Preserving Idaho's Quality of Life
As cities and population begin to grow and open space is replaced with development, places for the public to play are vanishing and becoming a challenge to provide. It is imperative to preserve open spaces where people can recreate, relax and stay active.
An urban park can create a sense of place, a landmark, and a community focal point, which may in turn increase property values and create incentive for nearby development. (Urban Parks and Open Space, Urban Land Institute/Trust for Public Land, 1997)
Americans in the late 19th and 20th centuries devoted so much energy and money to creating a vast array of public parks. They understood that judicious public spending on park development stimulates widespread and sustained private investment, alters settlement patters, encourages social interaction, and reshapes the very character of daily life. (Urban Parks and Open Space, Urban Land Institute/Trust for Public Land, 1997)
The information below supports and re-affirms that park and recreation programs provide for a positive community.
- Parks enhance mixed development and redevelopment strategies, offsetting higher density concerns with accessibility to green space. (Smart Growth, 2005)
- Parks can both strengthen the urban core and protect the fringe from overdevelopment. (Smart Growth, 2005)
- Parks have voter support to direct public funds toward growth management strategies. (Smart Growth, 2005)
- . . . Parks and open space can significantly increase the value of the private capital base. (Urban Parks and Open Space, Urban Land Institute/Trust for Public Land, 1997)
- City parks are the places where Americans most often enjoy open space and outdoor recreation (Inside City Parks, Peter Harnick, Urban Land Institute/Trust for Public Land, 2000)
- Numerous studies have shown that parks and open space increase the value of neighboring residential property, growing evidence points to a similar benefit on commercial property value. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
- For small children, play is learning. Play has proven to be a critical element in a child's future success. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
- Green spaces build community. Research shows that residents of neighborhoods with greenery in common spaces are more likely to enjoy stronger social ties than those who live surrounded by barren concrete. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
- They [parks] improve our physical and psychological health, strengthen our communities, and make our cities and neighborhoods more attractive places to live and work. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
- Access to public parks and recreational facilities has been strongly linked to reductions in crime and in particular to reduced juvenile delinquency. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
- Research supports the widely held belief that community involvement in neighborhood parks is correlated with lower levels of crime. (Why America Needs More City parks & Open Space, Trust for Public Land, 2003)
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