Mercer County, New Jersey has maintained a decades-long commitment to land preservation, resulting in a diverse portfolio of protected parks and open spaces. The County sought an evidence based analysis to challenge the common notion that this conserved land is non-productive. The Mercer County Planning Department engaged ESI to quantify the economic, environmental, and public health benefits of these assets to demonstrate how open space contributes to economic development, fiscal stability, and community well-being.
ESI applied a variety of economic analysis techniques to translate open space and environmental protection investments into measurable impacts on the Mercer County and New Jersey economies. This included input-output modeling techniques to quantify aggregate economic benefits from infrastructure spending. ESI also developed a series of case studies profiling specific county parks and public spaces, quantifying the return on environment for each in economic terms. Findings were synthesized into a digitally accessible report, an executive summary for county decision-makers, and a presentation for use at public meetings.
The analysis provided the county with a comprehensive, data-driven case for continued investment in land preservation. By assessing the economic productivity of conserved land, the findings supported county leadership in making decisions around open space preservation that account for its role as a driver of fiscal stability and economic development, with place-specific evidence of return on investment for a range of parks and natural assets across the county.
ESI produced a designed, graphically accessible open space economic impact report, county park case studies, and an executive summary. The report has been used by county planning officials as a communications and advocacy tool in public meetings and with elected officials.