PARK FINANCING 491 



ment between the public authorities and subdividers whereby substantially 

 the same results are attained without legal compulsion. The legal objec- 

 tions to such mandatory legislation is that it deprives private persons of 

 property without due process of law and without apparent compensation. 

 The practical objection is that in small subdivisions the areas reserved are 

 likely to be too small for practical uses, and they may not be properly 

 located. Moreover, in none of the legislation thus far advanced has the 

 right of a subdivider to sell his lands by metes and bounds been denied, 

 thus giving the subdivider a chance to nullify the legislative requirements. 

 A sound and practical manner of grappling with this problem would 

 be to clothe municipal authorities, directly or through city planning and 

 zoning commissions, with power to reserve on a master plan in all new 

 residential areas, recreation areas of suitable size and properly located over 

 the whole region to be developed, regardless of subdivision lines. If the 

 legal right cannot be secured to take such reservations outright just as 

 streets and alleys are taken, the plan of assessment districts can be evoked 

 for their acquisition and improvement, thus distributing equitably among 

 subdividers or investors the costs involved. Many subdividers through the 

 United States are voluntarily setting aside areas for playgrounds, small 

 parks and neighborhood playfield-parks, and a few have set aside areas 

 large enough for golf courses and large parks. This is considered a good 

 investment for the reason that the remainder of the subdivision is generally 

 enhanced in value and is at the same time likely to be more readily salable. 



II. SOURCES OF REVENUE FOR OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE 



Some of the sources of revenue for operation and maintenance of park 

 and recreation systems are as follows: (i) Annual appropriation by the city 

 or county governing authority. (2) Special tax levy. (3) Special sources 

 of income such as a certain percentage of the gross income of street railway 

 system (Baltimore) ; percentage of a vehicle tax (Kansas City) ; percentage 

 of gross receipts of city from fines, penalties and licenses (Seattle), etc. 

 (4) Gifts, legacies, bequests. (5) Fees from the operation of different types 

 of recreation facilities. (6) Miscellaneous sources. 



I. Annual Appropriations by the Governing Authority of a City or County. 

 This is the most common method of providing current revenues for park 

 departments throughout the United States. It is a method that is open 

 to some serious objections. Among these are the following: (a) The uncer- 

 tainty of the amount that is to be received from year to year and the conse- 

 quent difficulty of formulating and carrying through well-organized plans 

 for a period of years. This is a very serious weakness, for the very essence 



