Think of the foresight that was required for the country to preserve space for parks. In 1791, L'Enfant created a park as the central axis of the District's core. Now known as the National Mall, it spans nearly two miles and hosts 24 million visitors a year.
Similar things happened in all the nation's major cities. Central Park in New York is 2.5 miles long, bordering some of the most valuable real estate in the country. Chicago's Grant Park is 319 acres of mostly lakefront property that developers would die for.
The land preserved for national parks is even more staggering. Yellowstone alone is over 2 million acres (3,472 square miles) -- larger than Delaware and Rhode Island combined. And it is only one of 58 National Parks.
Most of the space that is preserved would be impossible to buy today -- even if you had vast amounts of money. Once businesses/homes/organizations/roads/infrastructure are located there, they become entrenched.
By not developing these spaces, they have become priceless. The forethought of early planners permanently created a different experience for our country. Would Martin Luther King have had the same dream if he delivered his speech in FedEx Field?
Think about what you could set aside and leave sacred -- not for yourself, but for generations to come.
-- beth triplett
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