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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08272014 Historic Preservation Laydown - Economic Impacts fL 9/25',//zi MeasuringImpactsEconomic of Historic Preservation A Report to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation November 2011 Donovan Rypkema and Caroline Cheong PlaceEconomics Washington, DC and Randall Mason, PhD University of Pennsylvania School of Design, Historic Preservation Program • Table of Contents Executive Summary 1 Introduction 6 Interviews 9 Findings and Issues 9 Detailed Summary of Interviews 10 Symposium 15 Current Data,Methodologies,and Programs 15 Missing the Qualitative Side 16 Jobs and Household Income 16 Heritage Tourism 19 Property Values 22 Main Street/Downtown Revitalization 25 Historic Preservation, the Environment,and Sustainability 26 Effectiveness of State Historic Preservation Programs 28 Social Impacts of Historic Preservation 29 Recommendations on Metrics for Future Data and Methodologies 33 Metric 1—Jobs 33 Metric 2—Property Values 34 Metric 3—Heritage Tourism 36 Metric 4—Environmental Measurements 36 Metric 5—Downtown Revitalization/Main Street 37 Conclusions 39 Appendix A:Interviewees 42 Appendix B:Symposium Summary 43 Appendix C:RIMS II,IMPLAN,and PEIM 47 RIMS II 47 IMPLAN 49 PEIM 51 Appendix D:Qualitative Measurements 53 Appendix E:Tourism Measurements 56 Appendix F:Walk Score 61 Appendix G:Literature Review—Update 63 Appendix H:Data and Programs Included in Economic Impact Studies 89 1 Executive Summary This study,commissioned by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation,seeks to identify a finite number of indicators that can be used to regularly,consistently, meaningfully,and credibly measure the economic impact of historic preservation over time. This interest in the economic aspects of historic preservation is a reflection of how the preservation movement has evolved over time.The historic preservation movement began in the United States a century and a half ago. Many of the philosophical and legal approaches to preservation in America were taken from countries in Western Europe. But over the last 150 years American historic preservation has responded to the particular American political and economic context. Today historic preservation is a complex matrix of laws, incentives, policies and advocacy groups at the national,state,and local level.There is active participation from the public, private and non-profit sectors.This network of interests spans geographical, political,social and economic perspectives. More importantly, however, historic preservation has become a fundamental tool for strengthening American communities. It has proven to be an effective tool for a wide range of public goals including small business incubation,affordable housing,sustainable development, neighborhood stabilization, center city revitalization,job creation, promotion of the arts and culture,small town renewal, heritage tourism, economic development,and others. It was to better understand the economic roles and impact of historic preservation that this study was commissioned. In meeting the goals for this study five specific steps were taken: 1. An extensive literature review of the preservation/economics link was undertaken to understand what has been measured, by whom, how,and what have been the general findings. 2. Interviews were conducted among knowledgeable parties in the public, private,and non-profit sectors. Interviewees were selected based on two criteria: a. their knowledge,expertise,and/or experience in historic preservation b. the likelihood that they would be potential users of historic preservation economic data if it were available. 3. An international symposium was held to better understand the current best practices in preservation economics analysis and to receive recommendations from scholars and practitioners in the field. 4. Interim briefings and updates were provided to the Advisory Council for Historic Preservation for comments and suggestions. 5. The final report and two related documents—a brief"popular report" and a PowerPoint presentation were prepared and delivered to the ACHP. Based on the lessons learned from existing studies and publications, interviews,and a symposium convened at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design in February 2011,seven conclusions were reached: • 1. Various aspects of historic preservation have substantial economic benefits as well as economic costs. While many may argue that the benefits to society, both financial and otherwise, outweigh the costs,the relationship between preservation and the economy as well as overall societal benefit remains imperfectly understood and only partially documented. 2. Research into the relationship between economics and historic preservation is critically needed. 3. There are multiple constituencies for this information, many of whom need the data and information presented in different forms. 4. Information must be consistent and credible, and its collection and dissemination ongoing. 5. While the research and methodologies require scholarly robustness,the information needs to be presented in non-academic terms. 6. While government needs to play an important role in data collection, analysis,and dissemination, it will probably be necessary for a number of private as well as public institutions to gather and evaluate the data. 7. However,there will need to be one entity that is responsible for annually releasing relevant metrics on a predictable basis. The table below summarizes the recommendations for what should be measured,why it should be measured,suggested methodology,and, in brief,the reason that current approaches are inadequate. These findings are discussed in greater detail in the report.