From green to gold: A South African example of valuing urban green spaces in some residential areas in Potchefstroom

Abstract

Recent scientific studies identified multiple benefits of green areas in terms of liveability and sustainability. As such, the need to value green spaces within residential areas is increasing, especially in developing countries. This article summarizes current approaches to green space planning, and introduces the Potchefstroom case study as example where 1) the value of green spaces were determined by means of hedonic price analysis and 2) the impact of green spaces were evaluated on site-scale and neighbourhood-scale, also identifying certain uses and benefits,
described as ecosystem services. Five sites in the more affluent residential areas in Potchefstroom were selected to investigate the impact of proximity to green spaces in relation to residential property prices. This research illustrated contradicting results to most international case studies. Green spaces were found to have a negative impact on site-scale, but a positive impact on neighbourhood-scale. Similar studies need to be conducted in more areas to make evidence-based conclusions in this regard. This article can serve as point of departure for such.