Open space--or green space--is an extremely valuable commodity for communities because it contributes to natural systems preservation, recreation, education, cultural heritage and aesthetics. Some types of open space include farmland, wetlands, riparian lands, rangeland, forests and woodlands, parks, coastal lands and urban open space. 

Links

Many state, regional and local land trusts focus their efforts on open space protection. Contact area organizations for more information on local efforts. In addition, many cities, counties and states have open space or greenspace protection programs for land aquisition and management. A few examples are the Virginia Outdoors Foundation, which promotes preservation of open space through easements, the Peninsula Open Space Trust in San Francisco, and the Georgia Community Greenspace Program.

The Trust for Public Land is the only national nonprofit working exclusively to protect land for human enjoyment and well-being. TPL helps conserve land for recreation and spiritual nourishment and to improve the health and quality of life of American communities.

The Center for Green Space Design provides dynamic forums and educational tools to ensure smart design solutions for green space, advocating preservation of green space and implementation of quality patterns of growth.

Open Space Institute is a nonprofit land conservation organization that works to permanently protect from development landscapes of significant environmental, historical and agricultural value in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.

Greenbelt Alliance works to protect open space and promote livable communities in the San Francisco Bay area, by protecting the region's greenbelt.

The Ecological Cities Project at the University of Massachusetts promotes sharing of knowledge and experience regarding new approaches to urban greenspace creation and management.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund was created by Congress in 1964, to provide money to federal, state and local governments to purchase land, water and wetlands for the the benefit of all Americans.

On-line Articles 

The Economic Benefits of Parks and Open Space: How Land Conservation Helps Communities Grow Smart and Protect the Bottom Line, a downloadable report from the Trust for Public Land, relates how communities around the country are learning that open space conservation is not an expense but an investment that produces important economic benefits.

Open Space Protection: Conservation Meets Growth Management, a report from the Brookings Institution, provides an overview of the nature, quantity and objectives of open space programs in the U.S. and begins to speculate how they may affect the shape and form of metropolitan areas.

Open Space Zoning: What It Is & Why It Works describes the advantage of open space zoning over conventional zoning in preserving open space, natural areas and farmland. An article from the Planning Commissioner's Journal, by Randall Arendt.

The Economic Value of Open Space argues that land use decisions ranging from the allocation of scarce conservation budgets to the property rights debate will be better informed if a more comprehensive understanding of the economic value of open space exists. From Land Lines, the newsletter of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Parks for People, a white paper from the Trust for Public Land, outlines how desperate the need is for city parks and describes the social, environmental, economic, and health benefits parks bring to a city and its people.

City Parks Forum Briefing Papers provide information on how healthy parks are fundamental to many aspects of community prosperity.

Using Zoning Techniques to Preserve Open Space, from the National Association of Home Builders, featues a discussion of common zoning tools that are used to increase open space on a particular site.

Publications 

Local Open Space Planning Guide
A 68-page handbook from the New York State Quality Communities Clearinghouse that offers advice and ideas to local officials and citizens who need assistance with their open space planning efforts. The entire document is online as a PDF.

Open Space Conservation: Investing in Your Community's Economic Health, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.
This report explores how American communities have historically protected and maintained open space through a combination of planning strategies, regulatory measures, public investments and private initiatives. The effectiveness of various alternatives used to finance open space acquisitions are analyzed, including conservation easements, impact fees, transfer taxes, specials parks and business improvement districts, and conservation zoning.

Conservation Design for Subdivisions: A Practical Guide to Creating Open Space Networks, Island Press, ISBN 1-55963-489-8. 
A step-by-step approach to conserving natural areas is proposed, in which density on each development parcel is rearranged as the development is being planned so that only half (or less) of the buildable land is turned into houselots and streets. 

Design for Biodiversity (PDF, 6M)
Created by London Development Agency (LDA), the Greater London Authority and English Nature to provide developers guidance in best practices for preserving green space and biodiversity.

Open Space: Preservation and Acquisition, Volume 5 of Building Sustainable Communities, The Global Cities Project, 1991. ISBN 1-880386-05-4. 
This book identifies what local governments can do to preserve and acquire open space within and surrounding communities, and it offers an extensive bibliography. It is available from the Global Cities Project: 2962 Fillmore Street, San Francisco, CA 94123. Phone: (415) 775-0791; FAX (415) 775-4159. 

Last updated: December 10, 2004

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