Measuring the effects of public land use change: An analysis of greenways in Raleigh, North Carolina

From 2010–2015 Wake County, NC, and the City of Raleigh, have experienced prolific growth of outdoor amenities, primarily financed through the passage of parks and open space bond referenda. Wake County currently has over 100 miles of off-street, paved greenway trails connecting schools, parks museums and commercial areas, 65 miles of which have been added from 2010 to 2015. As a result of the expansion of the Capital Area Greenway System, several neighborhoods in Wake County now have access to new recreation and transportation opportunities. This research estimates the effects of expanding greenway infrastructure and evaluates heterogeneous demand for greenway infrastructure across households. Using a hedonic framework, I estimate the capitalization effect of greenway expansion, I find heterogeneity in capitalized values ranging from − 4–12% dependent on spatial location and highlight potential drivers of heterogeneous values. •Evaluate the expansion of an interconnected greenway system.•Find evidence of heterogenous willingness to pay for greenways, ranging from − 6 to 10%.•Marginal effects of greenways depend on where they are constructed.•Low income areas experience greater property value increases from greenway construction.