Chautauqua County is home to a wealth of year-round outdoor recreation opportunities. Whether you like to swim, fish, hike, bike, ski, or find one of the many other ways to enjoy the natural world surrounding us, there are plenty of places to find exactly what you want in a thoroughly enjoyable setting.

Some of the very best places to go include the more than 250 miles of recreational trails available throughout the county. Most of us take these trails for granted and don’t fully appreciate what an important economic development driver these trails are. In addition to providing low or no-cost recreational opportunities, especially when compared to other leisure-time activities, trails increase tax revenues in the communities where they are located. That’s because trails often attract tourists, new residents, and businesses.

When trails attract tourists from outside the area it often leads to increased spending at local businesses like restaurants, hotels, and other retail establishments. That boosts local economies.

Access to trails and other recreational amenities is attractive to businesses that are seeking to locate in areas with a high quality of life. Many business leaders say quality of life ranks high among the most important factors when they are deciding where to locate a new store, office, or factory. They believe greenways and trails enrich the overall quality of life in a community, making it a more desirable place to live and work. That’s because natural recreational areas provide residents, workers, and visitors with easily accessible and pleasant places to relax and exercise.

When relocating, many people echo this sentiment when they seek out homes in areas featuring trails. Consequently, properties near trails often increase in value, making them more attractive to buyers and investors.

Access to trails encourages active transportation, reducing reliance on cars, and promoting healthier lifestyles. This can lead to reduced healthcare costs for individuals and communities. That’s because trails can help people add exercise to their daily routines. Increases in physical activity have been well documented to significantly improve public health and wellness, ultimately leading to measurable and substantial healthcare savings.

Trails also provide countless opportunities for people to explore the natural world and expand real-life opportunities to enrich the education of children. Showing future generations how important it is to protect natural areas and wildlife habitats will make them more environmentally conscious and more likely to continue to improve the areas near trails.

Trails create new jobs in construction, maintenance, and related industries, like bike and kayak rentals, guided tours, and outdoor gear stores. In turn, those trail-related businesses purchase supplies from other local businesses. As trails help existing businesses thrive and grow it often leads to a ripple effect. That means more economic growth.

When trails cause property values to increase and businesses to flourish we all benefit because that’s likely to result in our local and state governments experiencing an increase in tax revenue.

If you haven’t explored the local trails available to you, there is an interactive Chautauqua County Trails Map that helps people find accessible trails in all areas of Chautauqua County. You can use it to find places to enjoy many outdoor adventures like hiking, cross-country skiing, mountain biking, horseback riding, kayaking, and rowing. It can be found at CHQTrails.org along with links to individual maps and a free mobile application.

Those who choose to focus on the costs associated with developing resources that support trails and their usage will be happy to know there are foundations that support these efforts in Chautauqua County, like The Ralph C. Sheldon Foundation, the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, and the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation.

Chautauqua Community Foundation’s Local Economic Development committee recognizes that trails are valuable public resources that contribute to economic development and strengthen our communities. In addition to improving public health, increasing tourism, and attracting new residents, trails can lead to the creation of new business and employment opportunities. Trails improve our quality of life within Chautauqua County in a multitude of ways.

Patty Hammond is Economic Development Coordinator at the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation. The Local Economic Development (LED) Initiative is a standing committee of the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation (NCCF). Send comments or suggestions to Patty Hammond at phammond@nccfoundation.org