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Table 2.4: Examples of the types of benefits that have been stressed by asset supporters
Benefits
Example
Return on Investment (RoI) for public spending
• In Frogtown, a diverse and low-income area of St. Paul, Minnesota, a
neighborhood gardening group, Frogtown Gardens, recently saved a
13-acre piece of partially wooded land from being sold for affordable
housing. The aim was to buy it outright and donate it to the City
Council’s Parks and Recreation Department. They conducted a study
and amongst the returns it pointed to (and offered some estimates for)
were:
• improved property tax revenues (from the higher value homes that
would result);
• reduction in flooding;
• reduced water pollution clean-up;
• reduced healthcare costs from healthier diets and exercise.
Evidence of money well spent
• Detroit Public Library showed voters how money allocated previously
through votes on a dedicated property tax for the library has been well
spent in the sense of delivering desired outcomes. They persuaded
voters to approve a renewal and increase (in time and amount) of a
property tax. The voters overwhelmingly approved the tax and its
extension.
Impact upon the business community
Saving money for individuals
• To attract and retain top employees it is especially important to have a
good culture and leisure offer. This was part of the case put forward by
“Vote Yes Minnesota,” the official group that was formed to help secure
a dedicated share of a state sales tax for the arts, cultural heritage, parks,
and trails (which it duly achieved by securing a change, known as the
Legacy Amendment, in the state constitution).
• Troy Public Library in Troy, Michigan, has an online tool that helps
you calculate the value of a library to you. This shows how people can
save through savings on renting books, CDs, and DVDs and through
services such as classes and internet use. 11
You need to prove need if you are looking for funding
If you are looking for funding for a new asset, you will not just need to stress the benefits that might accrue from
that type of asset. You will also need to show that there is a need for it, whether in terms of peoples’ access to
such assets and/or their stated desire to have them. Table 2.5 offers a selection of the types of arguments made
when attempting to show the need for an asset. The examples all revolve around tackling disadvantage or other
social problems. A key stand-out point from the table is that the second and third examples involve groups that
directly address the needs identified by prospective funders or supporters.
11
http://www.troylibrary.info/value_calculator.
Raising Awareness | 34