Benefits of The Last Four Miles
Recreational benefits
The Last Four Miles Plan would add almost 500 acres of new parks and beaches, which provide recreational and health benefits for urban dwellers. The plan would complete a single lakefront-long park to knit the city together and extend the lakefront trail for walkers, runners, and cyclists—to Evanston on the north and to the Indiana border on the south.
L E A R N M O R E F R O M R E S E A R C H S T U D I E S :
Trust for Public Land, Health Benefits of Parks: How Parks Help Keep Americans and Their Communities Fit and Healthy, 2007
Increasing Physical Activity. A Report on Recommendations of the Task Force on Community Preventive Services, Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, October 1, 2001.
“Illinois adults getting fatter; State ranks 26th in U.S. for obesity,” Chicago Tribune, June 29, 2010
Economic benefits
Completing the Last Four Miles would increase property values adjacent to the new parkland and beach areas, as well as promote economic revitalization with new small businesses in the vicinity of the new lakefront parks. New construction jobs would be generated.
L E A R N M O R E F R O M R E S E A R C H S T U D I E S :
Gies, Erica. The Economic Benefits of Parks and Open Space. (PDF) Trust for Public Land, 2009
Harnik, Peter and Ben Welle. Measuring the Economic Value of a City Park System (PDF) Trust for Public Land, 2009
How Smart Parks Investment Pays its Way: Analysis of Secondary Economic Impacts of Park Expenditures on New York City Parks. A joint study by New Yorkers 4 Parks and Ernst & Young, 2002.
Lutzenheiser, M. and N. Noelwahr, 2001. “The Effect of Open Spaces on a Home’s Sale Price.” Contemporary Economic Policy 19 3): 291-298
The Impact of Hudson River Park on Property Values Study. Commissioned by Friends of Hudson River Park, researched by the Regional Plan Association with support from the Real Estate Board of New York, October 2008.
Miller, A.R. Valuing Open Space: Land Economics and Neighborhood Parks. MIT Center for Real Estate, 2001
Edwards, Karin Marie. Do Parks Make Cents? An Analysis of the Economic Value of Parks in San Francisco (PDF) Prepared for the San Francisco Neighborhood Parks Council, May 2007
Uhlir, Ed. “The Millennium Park Effect: Creating a Cultural Venue with an Economic Impact,” (PDF) Economic Development Journal, Spring 2005
Schwartz, Anne. “Good Parks are Good for the Economy,” Gotham Gazette, July 2009
Shaikh, S. L. “Uncovering Economic Values for Beach Use,” Presentation for the NOAA Center of Excellence for Great Lakes and Human Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, February 2006.
The Economic Benefits of Open Space, Recreation Facilities and Walkable Community Design Active Living Research Synthesis, May 2010
The Impact of Hudson River Park on Property Values Study A study commissioned by Friends of Hudson River Park, researched by the Regional Plan Association with support from the Real Estate Board of New York, October 2008.
Carleyolsen, Sanya, Tanya Meyer, Joseph Rude, and Ian Scott. Measuring the Economic Impact and Value of Parks, Trails and Open Space in Jefferson County (PDF) Prepared for Jefferson County Parks Department and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Dec. 2005
Ecological benefits
Besides providing additional recreational amenities, the Last Four Miles of new parks and beaches also contribute to Chicago’s long term environmental sustainability. The new parks and beaches would provide shoreline protection from storms and erosion. The new parkland would create aquatic and wildlife habitat and support birds on the migratory bird flyway. Five hundred acres of new ecologically sustainable parks and beaches would improve the air and water quality of Chicago and benefit Lake Michigan’s ecosystem.
L E A R N M O R E F R O M R E S E A R C H S T U D I E S :
Austin, John C., Soren Anderson, Paul N. Courant, Robert E. Litan, Healthy Waters, Strong Economy: The Benefits of Restoring the Great Lakes Ecosystem, (PDF) The Brookings Institution, September 2007
Chicago Shoreline Protection Commission, Recommendations for Shoreline Protection and Recreational Enhancement, 1988.
“Safeguarding the Environment,” from The Economic Benefits of Open Space, The Trust for Public Land, 1999
Chrzastowski, Michael. “Planning for the Future of Chicago’s Lakefront,” Shore & Beach, Vol. 59, pp. 2-10, April 1991.
