As Americans, we are the recipients and stewards of an incredible heritage of natural beauty and distinctive, attractive communities. From sea to shining sea, the beauty of our land, our cities, and our towns has shaped the character of America. Yet America the Beautiful is disappearing bit by bit, day by day. We see this loss everywhere around us as our towns and cities sprawl outward with cookie-cutter subdivisions and strip development. New roads pave over farmland and demolish historic sites to make way for subdivisions and strip malls.
Billboards clutter our roadsides and streetscapes.
Cellular towers crowd the ridgelines of our treasured hills and mountains, and a tangle of utility wires ensnare our communities. Meanwhile, our cities, once vibrant repositories of outstanding architecture and cultural institutions, lose people, investment, and talent to this dispersed, sprawl settlement. The challenge is to take action before it is too late to protect these scenic landscapes, preserve community character, save open space, and ensure a better quality of life for future generations. A Last Chance Landscape can be a scenic vista, a swath of productive farmland, a river corridor, an historic urban neighborhood, or a village downtown. The common thread is a special setting that people treasure for its natural beauty or distinctive character.