4.0 HPSR 12-08-2005 - Laserfiche WebLink

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economic analysis of historic preservation in Florida. Now Florida is not a state that immediately comes to mind as being heritage tourism based. We tend to think of Disney World, beaches, and golf courses. Tourism is clearly the largest industry in Florida. But just the heritage tourism portion of that industry has impressive impacts, with over $3 billion in expenditures, half a billion in taxes, and over 100,000 jobs. And while most of the jobs, predictably, are in the retail and service industries, in fact nearly every segment of the economy is positively affected. Perhaps the area of preservation's economic impact that's been studied most frequently is the effect of local historic districts on property values. It has been looked at by a number of people and institutions using a variety of methodologies in historic districts all over the country. The most interesting thing is the consistency of the fmdings. Far and away the most common result is that properties within local historic districts appreciate at rates greater than the local market overall and faster than similar non-designated neighborhoods. Of the several dozen of these analyses, the worst-case scenario is that housing in historic districts appreciates at a rate equivalent to the local market as a whole. Like it or not we live in an economically globalized world. To be economically sustainable it's necessary to be economically competitive. But to be competitive in a globalized world a community must position itself to compete not just with other cities in the region but with other cities on the planet. And a large measure of that competitiveness will be based on the quality of life the local community provides, and the built heritage is a major component of the quality of life equation. This is a lesson that is being recognized worldwide. Here's what Marc Weiss of the Prague Institute for Global Urban Development writes, "...investing in and enhancing physical and cultural heritage ... is vital for improving the overall economic climate by substantially improving quality of life not just for tourists, but more importantly, for the people who live and work in the urban region." From the Inter American Development Bank we get, "As the international experience has demonstrated, the protection of cultural heritage is important, especially in the context of the globalization phenomena, as an instrument to promote sustainable development strongly based on local traditions and community resources." Certainly among the most competitive cities in the world is Singapore. But here's what Belinda Yuan of Singapore National University says, "...the influences of globalization have fostered the rise of heritage conservation as a growing need to preserve the past, both for continued economic growth and for strengthening national cultural identity." What neither the supporters nor the critics of globalization understand is that there is not one globalization-but two -economic globalization and cultural globalization. For those few who recognize the difference, there is an unchallenged assumption that the second is an unavoidable outgrowth of the first. Economic globalization has widespread positive impacts; cultural globalization ultimately diminishes us all. It is through the adaptive reuse of heritage buildings that a community can actively participate in the positive