1. Public Parks, Private Value:
An International Perspective on the
Delivery and Funding of Themed
Parks and Gardens
Presentation to Park Russia Forum
March 27, 2014

2. Introduction
Public Parks, Private Value
 Background
 Some case studies
 Concluding remarks

3. Traditional Park Funding Approaches
Public Parks, Private Value
 Parks traditionally treated as pure public
goods
 Considered an amenity for local residents
 Most of the capital and all of the
operational funding came from the public
sector, with some operational revenue
from concessions and minimal amounts of
sponsorship
 Starts to change in 1970s (USA) and
1980s (UK) as recession puts too much
strain on Park budgets

4. Pressure to Find Alternative Mechanisms
Public Parks, Private Value
 Park quality declines and many fall into
dereliction
 Parks become highly visible symptom of
more general urban economic decline
• Crime
• Litter
• Disrepair
• Lack of maintenance or reinvestment
 In strained city budgets, allocations to
parks and recreation were an easy target

5. Common Methods Used to Finance Parks
Public Parks, Private Value
 Increased in-Park commercial activity
 Implementation of user fees and charges
 Cross-funding from commercial assets
 Aggressive event-led sponsorship
strategies
 Individual philanthropy
 Capturing private value of public parks
 Privatisation of public space
 Exploit commercial assets
 Business Improvement Districts
 Tax Increment Financing
 Developer contributions

6. Public Parks, Private Value
privatisation of public space

7. Jubilee Park / Canada Square, London
Public Parks, Private Value

8. Jubilee Park / Canada Square, London
Public Parks, Private Value

10. Public Parks, Private Value
monetising commercial assets

11. Post Office Square, Boston
Public Parks, Private Value

12. St George’s Park, Burton-upon-Trent
Public Parks, Private Value

13. St George’s Park, Burton-upon-Trent
Public Parks, Private Value

14. St George’s Park, Burton-upon-Trent
Public Parks, Private Value
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2008 2010
Public The FA Sponsorship Private
Original concept required
more than 60% of the
project to be funded by
the public sector and The
FA itself
When restructured, the
project was almost 90%
funded by the private
sector and corporate
sponsorship
Distribution of capital funding, 2008 and 2010

15. Alexandra Palace Park
Public Parks, Private Value

16. Public Parks, Private Value
business improvement district

17. Bryant Park, New York City
Public Parks, Private Value

18. Bryant Park, New York City
Public Parks, Private Value

19. Bryant Park, New York City
Public Parks, Private Value

20. Public Parks, Private Value
tax increment finance

21. Millennium Park, Chicago
Public Parks, Private Value

22. Millennium Park, Chicago
Public Parks, Private Value

23. Millennium Park, Chicago
Public Parks, Private Value
time
property tax
revenue
t0
Incremental tax revenue
used to service the debt
from t0

24. Millennium Park, Chicago
Public Parks, Private Value

25. Public Parks, Private Value
developer contributions

26. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

27. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

28. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

29. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

30. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

31. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

32. High Line Park, NYC
Moscow Region Parks: Investment Opportunities

33. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

34. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

35. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

36. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value

37. High Line Park, NYC
Public Parks, Private Value
15%
15%
25%
14%
39%
47%
PHASE 1 PHASE 2 PHASE 3
Distribution of funding by phase
City State Federal Fundraising Developer Contributions
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3

38. Public Parks, Private Value
concluding remarks

39. Level 33, 25 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5LB
www.fourth-street.com
Principals:
Jim Roberts +44 7966 373724
Dan Anderson +44 7866 454434