Measuring Economic Impacts 

of Historic Preservation

A Report to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

Donovan Rypkema and Caroline Cheong

PlaceEconomics

Washington, DC

and

Randall Mason, PhD

University of Pennsylvania

School of Design, Historic Preservation Program

November 2011
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:
2

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. 
3

Recommended Economic Measures for Historic Preservation

Measurement Purpose Methodology Why new approach is needed

Jobs/Household 

Income

Quantify job creation 

and income generated 

by historic 

rehabilitation activity 

or other preservationrelated employment

Input-Output 

Multipliers (RIMS, 

ImPlan, etc.)

Only done sporadically on 

statewide levels

Generally only includes 

projects that are receiving 

tax credits;

Does not take fullest 

advantage of data that could 

be retrieved from NPS, 

Commerce, Labor, and GSA 

reports

Need to distinguish 

permanent full-time vs. 

seasonal or part-time short 

duration employment

Property Values Demonstrate impact 

on property values of 

being within local 

historic district

Measurement of yearto-year value change 

relative to local 

market in general;

Will require selection 

of representative 

communities and 

annual testing by 

national real estate 

data firm.

Research is done irregularly 

and only on local or sample 

communities within a state. 

No national data. 

Measurement approaches 

vary widely.

Recent regional and local 

market fluctuations skew 

picture and may create 

difficulties for baseline 

Heritage 

Tourism

Quantify absolute 

economic impact of 

heritage tourism and 

incremental impact 

relative to other forms 

of tourism

1. Establish definition 

of “heritage tourism”

2. Incorporate 2-3 

questions that will 

more clearly identify 

heritage tourists into 

existing regular 

tourism surveys

3. Based on surveys 

quantify absolute `and 

relative contribution 

of heritage tourism 

over time.

No clear definition of 

“heritage tourist” or focus of 

“heritage tourism” visits 

Specific research on heritage 

tourism impact irregular and 

rarely on national level.

No way to track on an 

annual basis if heritage 

tourism is growing, 

shrinking, changing, etc., 

especially since visitation 

lumped with other travel 

and recreation
4

Measurement Purpose Methodology Why new approach is needed

Environmental 

Measurements

Demonstrate the 

contribution of historic 

preservation to 

broader “sustainable 

development,” “Smart 

Growth,” “energy 

conservation,” and 

environmentallysensitive or “green” 

community planning 

Develop 2-3 standard 

measurables that 

might include: 1) 

infrastructure costs 

savings from historic 

rehabilitation; 2) 

embodied energy of 

rehabilitated 

buildings; 3) 

greenfields not

developed because of 

historic preservation 

activity

No standard definitions or 

approaches for measuring 

historic 

preservation/environment 

relationship

No national data

Weak understanding among 

environmentalists, 

preservationists, and 

general public of link

Downtown 

Revitalization

Understand the role of 

historic preservation 

and downtown, 

commercial district 

revitalization.

Expand and 

supplement existing 

aggregated data 

collected by the 

National Main Street 

Center. Commission 

regular academic 

analysis of 

comparative and nonMain Street 

approaches to 

revitalization and how 

historic resources are 

incorporated or used 

in the process.

Main Street data as 

currently gathered while 

useful, does not meet the 

standards of robust, 

defensible research.

There is no ongoing 

measurement of 

preservation-based 

commercial revitalization 

not affiliated with Main 

Street, except in limited 

ways through CDBG

There is no comparison of 

what is happening in Main 

Street communities and 

similar non-Main Street 

communities.

Next Steps

This study was commissioned in order to: 1) understand what has been learned to date about the nexus 

of historic preservation and economics; 2) learn what specific information would be most valuable to 

preservation advocates and how that information would be used; and 3) receive recommendations on 

specifically what should be measured and by whom. 

It was also expected, however, that the report would identify the next steps that should be taken in 

order to reach the goal of regularly, consistently, meaningfully, and credibly measuring the economic 

impact of historic preservation over time.

1. Identify and reach agreement with responsible parties to undertake the ongoing research and 

data collection for each of the recommended indicators. 
5

Because of the diverse nature of the proposed research as well as costs and other issues it is 

recommended that there be a collaboration of several entities each committed to conducting a 

portion of this research. Among these research partners might be: ACHP, National Park Service, 

Department of Commerce, General Services Administration, Department of Defense, National 

Trust for Historic Preservation, the nascent Ellis Island Preservation Resource Center, and 

universities including Rutgers, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Maryland, and 

others.

2. In conjunction with the responsible parties, create a long-term research, evaluation and 

reporting plan.

At the outset the research partners will need to reach agreement as to: (1) who will conduct 

which research; (2) how and when will that research be provided; (3) who will aggregate the 

individual research projects into a single report; and (4) how and when will the results of the 

research be published and distributed.

3. Establish baseline(s) for each of the recommended indicators. 

As it is the hope that the recommended research will be conducted and released annually, there 

will need to be a base established against which change is measured. As the first step in each 

research component, the responsible research partner should identify what that base will be 

and how the data that constitutes that base will be acquired.

4. Work with the identified parties to systematize data collection.

While it will be important that the reports of the research are written in such a fashion as to be 

understandable by a non-technical audience, the methodologies and research approaches 

utilized will need to be both transparent and defensible under scholarly scrutiny. Each 

participating research entity should, therefore, identify a data collection and analysis procedure 

that is academically robust and replicable from year to year.

Historic preservation will not reach its optimum potential to contribute to the American economy or 

American society without such research being done.
6

Introduction

The historic preservation movement in the United States began with a focus on protecting and restoring 

individual monuments of national importance. By the time the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) 

was passed in 1966, however, the range of what constituted “heritage” and the purposes that 

protecting that heritage advanced had widened considerably. The NHPA specifically noted that:

...the historical and cultural foundations of the Nation should be preserved as a living part of our

community life and development in order to give a sense of orientation to the American people;

and further that:

...the preservation of this irreplaceable heritage is in the public interest so that its vital legacy of

cultural, educational, aesthetic, inspirational, economic, and energy benefits will be maintained

and enriched for future generations of Americans. 1

As in most countries, the beginning of the historic preservation movement in America focused on the 

preservation of individual monuments. In the case of the United States the beginning of historic 

preservation is usually identified as the efforts in 1853 of Ann Pamela Cunningham to acquire and 

preserve Mt. Vernon, the home of the first president, George Washington. 

Just over fifty years later the federal government first became involved with the passage of the Federal 

Antiquities Act in 1906. The act was passed in part because of concern about plundering of Native 

American sites in the southwest United States. This law was largely confined to Federal lands. It 

authorized the President to declare areas within Federal ownership as National Monuments and 

prohibited the excavation, destruction or appropriation of antiquities on Federal lands without a permit.

In the 1920s and 1930s two American cities – Charleston, South Carolina and New Orleans, Louisiana –

each adopted what are now known as historic district commissions to protect neighborhoods of historic 

houses.

These events represent the ongoing evolution of historic preservation in the United States – from 

monument to archeology to neighborhood. That evolution continues. Today “historic preservation” 

means attention to cultural landscapes, the role of historic buildings in comprehensive sustainable 

development, downtown revitalization, heritage tourism, the contribution of historic sites, trails, and 

corridors to outdoor recreation, and – the focus of this report – economic development.

But the structure and focus of today’s historic preservation was codified with the passage of the 

National Historic Preservation Act in 1966. To celebrate 40 years of progress in historic preservation 

throughout the country under the National Historic Preservation Act and to look forward to its 

milestone 50th anniversary in 2016, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) convened the 

Preserve America Summit in New Orleans in October 2006. Keynoted by the First Lady Laura Bush, 

serving as the Honorary Chair of Preserve America, the Summit brought together a wide range of 

individuals, organizations, and agencies that are committed to promoting historic preservation and its 

 

1

National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 as amended through 2006, Section 1(b)
7

benefits. The Summit resulted in a number of ideas for improving the national historic preservation 

program and its integration with other important public priorities, including economic and community 

development.

One of the recommendations emerging from that Summit was to:

Measure and share preservation’s benefits by developing consistent ways to measure direct and 

indirect impacts (particularly economic) and by pursuing and promoting necessary research.

It was as an outgrowth of that recommendation that the ACHP commissioned the analysis of which this 

document is the final report. Specifically the purpose of this effort was identified as follows:

The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) is seeking proposals for conducting 

research on the most effective methods for quantifying and measuring the economic impacts of 

historic preservation, including both local impacts (e.g., property rehabilitation, job creation, 

property values, tax incentives, and investment) and regional impacts (e.g., spending from 

heritage tourism). The ACHP is particularly interested in the best means for measuring and 

expressing local and regional economic sustainability through the preservation and use of 

historic assets; the creation of economic base jobs and infrastructure investment; the ripple 

effect of historic preservation and heritage tourism through local, statewide, and regional 

economies; and any indicators of potential success (including leveraging) in future historic 

preservation investment.

The economic development consulting firm PlaceEconomics in conjunction with the graduate program in 

Historic Preservation at the University of Pennsylvania was selected to undertake this analysis. Between 

November 2010 and May 2011 the following steps were undertaken to respond to the requirements of 

the assignment:

1. A literature review was conducted of the analyses, academic papers, impact studies, and other 

documents that have been completed on the topic and in related fields since the release of the 

comprehensive literature review completed by Dr. Randall Mason and the Brookings Institute in 

2005 entitled The Economics of Historic Preservation. 

http://www.brookings.edu/reports/2005/09metropolitanpolicy_mason.aspx (See Appendix G)

2. All of those economic impact studies of historic preservation were collected and the areas 

included in the research and the methodologies used were identified. All studies completed and 

released subsequent to 2005 were included if the primary focus of the report was on the 

economic impact of historic preservation. Studies that were primarily tourism studies, for 

example, but only addressed historic preservation in passing and/or not in a quantifiable 

manner were not included

3. An international symposium on the economics of historic preservation was held at the 

University of Pennsylvania to help inform the analysis and offer insights into fruitful approaches.

4. A series of interviews were conducted with persons in federal agencies, state agencies, the 

national education/advocacy preservation community and the private sector. The purpose of 

the interviews was to gain an understanding of the importance of research on the economics of 
8

historic preservation and the types of data the interviewee thought might be valuable based on 

his or her particular experience or insight. Interviewees offered comments and critiques of 

existing analysis with which the interviewee was familiar and suggestions as to types of 

methodologies that might be useful in future preservation economic research. Discussions also 

elicited the ways such research might be used in the future and the desired target audience(s) 

for this information from each interviewee’s perspective.

5. Interim presentations were made to ACHP members and staff to allow comments, suggestions, 

and interactions prior to the preparation of the final report.

6. Based on all of the above, the consultant team tried to answer the following questions:

a. What indicators of economic activity are currently being measured as resulting from 

historic preservation?

b. What are the methodologies that are being used in each area?

c. Are the methodologies being used robust, credible, and understandable by ultimate 

users of the information?

d. What are the economic measures that should be evaluated?

e. What are the recommended methodologies for those areas?

f. Who might be responsible for the collection and analysis of the data in each area?

Based on that construct for this report, the consultant team simplified the assignment as follows:

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.

The report that follows is meant to fulfill that assignment.
9

Interviews

In December, 2010 and January, 2011, we conducted interviews with the persons listed at the end of 

this report in order to ascertain the existing perceptions of economic impact analysis within the broader 

governmental and historic preservation community. Interviewees were selected from the public, nonprofit and private sectors and each had experience, expertise, or direct responsibilities in historic 

preservation and had either knowledge about or had utilized historic preservation economic analyses. 

Participants were asked for their opinions of extant data and methodologies and what, if any, data and 

methodology they thought would be useful in the future. A complete list of interviewees is found in 

Appendix A.

Findings and Issues

During our discussions, several themes emerged. These include but are not limited to:

1. The importance. There has been substantial if not universal agreement on the need for 

quantifiable metrics on the economic impact of historic preservation. One interviewee said the 

need was for information that was usable, sustainable, and annualizable. Whether or not it was 

possible to obtain information on an annual basis, it certainly should be available on a regular 

and systematic basis.

2. The audience. It has become very clear that there is not just one “audience” for this 

information. Among the target audiences identified have been: Congress, the Office of 

Management and Budget, colleagues within a Cabinet department, other Cabinet departments, 

senior political appointees, state legislators, local public officials, preservation advocates, and 

the general public. Certainly what each of these groups would do with the information and how 

it should be articulated and presented for that group would vary considerably.

3. The methodology, clarity, and transparency. A number of observations were received regarding 

methodology, some of them mutually contradictory:

a. The need for further, detailed explanation of a study’s methodology and approach, 

highlighting a need for transparency and clarity in assessments (this comment came 

primarily from economists or academics who felt that a study’s validity lay in 

understanding the methodology).

b. In contrast, several interviewees stated a strong preference for simply presented facts 

absent of detailed explanations of methodology and details, emphasizing 

approachability and easy comprehension.

c. Methodologies are not universal – while there is an acknowledged need to identify key 

measurables or values, local context and factors must be taken into account.

d. Measurements on a state, regional, town or Congressional district level would be useful.
10

e. However, there is an acknowledged need for standardized measurables across reports 

so that data can be more easily compared and analyzed, particularly over longer periods 

of time. Currently it is difficult to aggregate or even compare data from one report to 

another, as they are commissioned by different clients at different times using different 

researchers. Having a standardized model or set of measurables also contributes to the 

overall validity of such economic impact assessments.

f. Methodologies (software or other reporting/data collection and analysis mechanism) 

need to be accessible and usable (“simple”) for those collecting and analyzing data. 

g. Data collection, in terms of type and objectivity of data, frequency of collection, and 

who collects it and where it is collected, needs to be improved. This also raises a 

funding issue. 

h. The economic impact of historic preservation regulations and/or local zoning with 

preservation implications on property values is a necessary measurable. 

i. Data in general needs to be more readily available and shared among states.

4. Broader definition of economic. There has been agreement that clearly economic data such as 

property values and job creation is important. However, there is wide-spread and growing 

consensus that also important are the “economics once removed” data, particularly on the 

environmental side. Reliable and defensible data on factors such as landfill impact, embodied 

energy, reuse of infrastructure, life cycle costing, et al, are seen as critical. It was noted that in 

spite of a federal mandate to agencies to reduce their carbon footprint and the emphasis on 

sustainable buildings, the data that would include the attributes of a building already in 

existence are not currently included in the calculus.

Detailed Summary of Interviews

The following are comments received from the interviewees. In writing this it was decided that a range 

of opinions would be represented in summarizing the key points, recognizing that there are occasionally 

contradictory comments. In several instances the authors of the report do not necessarily concur with 

the interviewee’s response, but this section is intended to reflect the varied opinions of other experts in 

historic preservation and/or economic analysis.

Key Points

Some respondents had heard from colleagues that, while the data collected and presented by

historic preservation organizations was appreciated, it was biased because it came from the 

preservation field. Therefore, there is a need for data that is collected and analyzed by an 

independent institution, perhaps an academic one. However, others felt that this issue of 

impartiality is not as important because the developers and local officials with whom some 

officials work do not focus on the study’s author. 
11

Data, methodology and subsequent studies need to be accessible and understandable in cost, 

collection and analysis for local and state officials and preferably not require a third-party 

analyst. They also need to have longer relevance and applicability beyond just the initial data 

collection or study years. Methodologies in particular should be stand-alone and accessible for 

annual updates. Ideally, the historic preservation field would have an official model, endorsed 

by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the National Park Service, the ACHP, and 

academic institutions, with funding behind it so that it can be updated annually. This model 

should be available and usable by anyone – metrics should be simple and applicable to states, 

regions, tribes, and communities of different sizes. 

One respondent said that the majority of preservation-related studies the person had seen have 

been environmental impact assessments that fail to convey the net economic benefits that may 

accrue from preservation. This raises questions regarding the investment costs of tax credits, 

and the return on investment (ROI). Many studies discuss the impacts, but not the benefits. 

States are increasingly looking at the impact of federal, state and local tax credits on their 

overall budgets. 

Data is lacking – there is a need for primary research. 

Most of the studies currently produced are tenuous. Models are too hypothetical and all 

different. However, there cannot be one model for the whole industry as historic places need to 

be considered within their context. Models need to reflect that. 

Many felt that the federal government is not currently using existing tools to their fullest 

capabilities. For example, applications for receiving the federal tax credit require both the 

building’s square footage and the amount spent. But the National Park Service does not make 

the relatively simply calculation – rehabilitation cost per square foot. Since historic preservation 

is often accused of being excessively expensive, a report showing the range of projects costs 

could be a simple but exceedingly useful annual calculation.

In spite of labor intensity, historic preservation seems to have weak support among labor 

unions.

Data, methodologies, and studies need to show not only what is happening at the national and 

state level, but also, and perhaps most importantly, at the local level. 

Data

Data should focus on jobs created, how private investment is leveraged, how incentives like the 

federal tax credit generate more benefits and revenue than they cost in lost tax revenues. (A 
12

good example comes from Michigan where a study was conducted that compared the economic 

impact of the Community Rehabilitation and Reinvestment Act with that of the Homeowner’s 

Tax Credit. ) A community needs baseline data to use through the ups and downs of social and 

economic cycles. This data should be as geographically specific as possible, as legislators want to 

know what is happening in their district. However, the localized data also should be amenable to 

aggregation so that broader trends can be seen across states or nationally.

o Data could perhaps connect census data and property values. In measuring property 

values, the quality of school districts could be used as a control to isolate the impact of

historic district designation. Transactional data is more reliable than census data, so 

including market transactions would help but probably not be sufficient on its own. 

o Data needs to indicate who is getting the jobs that are created and filter them through 

demographic categories such as income and industry. It also needs to track, for 

example, what happens in a historic commercial building after a rehabilitation project is 

completed. For example, jobs data needs to help people articulate the direct, indirect,

and induced impacts of these jobs, particularly to legislators, with geographic specificity.

This data should also emphasize the fact that historic preservation jobs often require 

advanced skills and pay higher wages. Union involvement should be explored.

Data collection needs to be improved. This process could be built into the model. Collection 

needs to begin at census tract and congressional district levels. 

o Some thought that data collection should start with tax credits, and then look at 

buildings that are more than 50 years old. This could pull from data collected by the 

American Institute of Architects and Urban Land Institute in addition to the National 

Park Service and the State Historic Preservation Offices.

Data can also highlight the relationship between the National Register of Historic Places, tax 

credits, and poverty.

Data on the economic impact of heritage tourism is not readily available, in part because it is not 

separable from other tourism industry, public lands, or outdoor recreation data. Data that is 

available is collected with different baselines and methodologies. 

Tourism professionals want data that identifies the big numbers (i.e. “heads in beds,” lodging 

and entertainment tax revenues) and for marketing purposes. Key questions are: How much do 

heritage travelers spend compared to other tourists? Do they stay longer? How many heritage 

travelers are there and what are their characteristics?

o The definition of a “heritage site” is changing to include “attractions” beyond museums 

or commercial properties that charge admission. Currently, these sites are not wellaccounted for in heritage tourism data in a regular way. 

Perhaps data could be approached by looking at it in terms of the future – “what are our unmet 

needs? What kinds of economic activity would we have generated if we were fully funded over X 
13

years? How does this relate to broader trends such as Baby Boomer retirement and leisure 

travel, or climate change?” 

Methodology

A methodology needs to be stand-alone and accessible for annual updates. It should also have 

longevity so that what is tracked now can be used for comparative purposes in 25 years, just as 

weather records are tracked. However, state and local partners are not currently equipped to 

measure economic impacts in such a format. Nonetheless, the methodology needs to:

o account for degrees of historic preservation, from complete preservation and 

restoration to demolition and interpretation of vacant sites 

o allow for dollar-for-dollar comparisons across industries

o be accessible and approachable so that advocates can find data easily 

o be quick to produce so that data can be readily available and not require the contracting 

of a third-party to either collect or process data

o be simple to gather and not just an academic tool, standardized and official (which 

would require a steady funding source and perhaps the credibility of a university) 

Collection and methodology needs to be standardized so that information is regular and 

comparable. 

End audience is: local officials, legislators, politicians, private foundations and funders. Local 

governments are most important. 

Case studies need to be developed and shared so that their lessons can be applied locally and 

successful strategies replicated.

Study

A compelling study of any particular measure needs to lay out the benefits, costs, who receives 

the benefits, who pays the costs and how. There needs to be a systematic technique or model 

that is transparent in its methodology. 

Studies need to present data and analysis in the context of broader issues such as community 

vitality, quality of life and environmental sustainability. The economic data is important, but 

studies should be careful not to be too detailed and confusing – they need to be approachable 

by and understandable to the average reader. 

For historic rehabilitation, a study needs to measure the impact of a project after it is serviced, 

not just at the beginning and end of the construction period. Individuals look at the benefits 

demonstrated in studies in the short-term, while a community takes a longer-term perspective. 
14

However, there is difficulty in generalizing from anecdotal evidence, or from general assertions 

about the tourism potential of a historic resource. 

o There are currently too many caveats in existing analyses and methodologies.

Any study must demonstrate a positive cost-benefit: that the cost to protect and use the 

historic site or resource is equal to or less than the value of the protected object to society. If it 

is not, then protection may not be in the public interest. 

Some respondents would like to see a study that analyzes the connection between the costs and 

benefits of preservation based on ultimate property values and return on investment from tax 

credits. 

Federal Rehabilitation Tax Incentive

Currently, two-thirds of approved projects for the federal tax credit are in low-income areas.

This could be a new target area for a credit

o The current format for analyzing the impact of federal tax credits differentiates between 

money spent on new construction and rehabilitation of existing structures. More data is 

needed on the pluses and minuses of the credit – what costs are included in the listed 

costs? Where are the real savings from using extant buildings and how are they 

quantified? 

In order to analyze the relationship between the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Incentive and lowincome areas, applications should ask for census tract and congressional district. Additionally, 

every time a Part 32is approved a letter could be sent to the congressional representative. This 

would increase the credit’s visibility and benefits. 

Some respondents would use the data to lobby for federal tax credit support, including 

expanding the use of tax credits to non-commercial properties. 

Data should consider the tax base’s impact on the provision of the credit, as the cost of 

administering the credit is scaled. It also needs to consider the size of the credit market – there 

is a threshold issue with the tax credits in looking at the size of the market below $1.

Modeling of tax credit and investment trends at a local and regional level would be very useful.

Data regarding Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credits needs to dig deeper into the impacts of money 

spent on extant structures.

 

2

“Part 3” refers to the form submitted to the National Park Service after completion of a historic rehabilitation 

project. It is on the approval of a Part 3 that a property owner is entitled to take the federal tax credit.
15

Symposium

As part of the research project, a one-day symposium was convened at the University of Pennsylvania’s 

School of Design on February 8, 2011. The goal of the symposium was to lend additional depth to the 

team’s exploration of best practice in conceptualization and measurement of the economic values of 

historic preservation.

The symposium framed possibilities for applying economic methods to practical, policy, and political 

problems encountered in historic preservation—as opposed to regarding economic studies as ends in 

themselves. The goal was to bridge academic research and practical application; to match the needs of 

advocacy and policy workers with the capabilities of academic (particularly economic) researchers.

Keynote presentations were made by Drs. Guido Licciardi of the World Bank and Christian Ost of the 

ICHEC Brussels Management School, followed by commentary and responses from Erica Avrami of the 

World Monuments Fund, Dr. Jeff Adams of Beloit College, and Dr. David Listokin of Rutgers University. 

The symposium highlighted the following points, among many others:

Economic studies set up decisions but they do not make the decisions. The results of studies are 

used—or ignored—in the context of “political will,” perceptions of political gain or risk, and the 

political economy of government action and/or investor profit motive.

It is a danger to focus too narrowly on economic values. Studies of economic value should 

contextualize this among the other values of historic preservation (cultural, aesthetic, etc.)

There is a lack of serious evaluation work, using accepted econometric methodologies, in the 

historic preservation field.

Preservation consists of both private goods and public goods; this “mixed” nature yields both 

confusion and opportunity when it comes to choice of methods to evaluate and measure 

economic impacts.

We tend to understand “economic benefits” in a single-time snapshot, static way that is too 

narrow. Historic preservation yields “process” benefits as well, such as community cohesion, 

social capital, etc., that are not captured by looking just at property values. Our tools need to be 

matched to the whole spectrum of benefits we wish to measure.

A more complete report on the symposium is found in Appendix B.

Current Data, Methodologies, and Programs

Over the last 15 years a number of studies have been undertaken to measure the economic impact of 

historic preservation. Most of these have been done on a statewide basis. While there are variations 

among the studies, included in nearly all of them is an effort to measure that impact in four areas: the 

creation of jobs and household income from the rehabilitation process itself; the impact of heritage 

tourism; the impact on property values stemming from the protections of a local historic district; and 

economic development indicators from preservation-based downtown revitalization programs such as 

Main Street. 
16

Less common, but included in some statewide studies are: 1) environmental impacts of historic 

preservation; 2) analysis of the effectiveness of state tax credit and grant programs; 3) the role of 

historic preservation in providing affordable housing; and 4) such environmental/social measurements 

such as walkability. 

Despite these commonalities, there is no standard template of indicators or methodology to guide those 

conducting historic preservation economic impact assessments. However, the resultant diversity in 

approaches and methodology should not be considered detrimental to measurement efforts, as 

preservation economics is still an emerging discipline and this variety currently serves to further develop 

and enhance the field. 

Missing the Qualitative Side

While existing studies have provided valuable information on the quantitative side, many of the positive 

impacts still go unmeasured. Historic preservation yields both private and public goods. In economic 

terms this means that the benefits flowing from these goods include those traded in markets (by 

definition the private) and those provided outside of markets (by definition the public; provided by 

government agencies or philanthropic organizations). While some of the approaches discussed below 

capture private/market values well; qualitative methods are warranted as a complement to quantitative 

econometrics because the public goods are poorly understood in terms of price. It follows that some 

combination of qualitative and quantitative methods are appropriate to the two-fold task of, first,

capturing the full range of economic and noneconomic values in measurements; and secondly,

mitigating against the isolation of just a few values and privileging private values by overemphasizing 

quantitative, econometric measures. 

Without casting doubt on the insights to be gained from econometric studies of historic preservation, 

qualitative methods have particular contributions to make to heritage economics as a complement to 

quantitative studies. While specific qualitative measurements are not among the five specific indicators 

recommended in this report, suggestions of this type of research that might be carried out 

independently or in the future are discussed at length in Appendix D.

Below is discussed each of the areas of research that has been included in existing studies, including a 

brief description of what is measured and the methodology used and the strengths and weaknesses of 

each approach.

Jobs and Household Income

The most frequently cited indicator of the economic impact of historic preservation is the number of 

jobs and amount of household income created through the process of rehabilitating a historic building. 

This measurement is included in nearly every analysis for a number of reasons. First, data on private 

investment is generally readily available as owners and investors must report their expenditures to be 

eligible for federal and state tax credits. Second, widely recognized and accepted methodologies are 

available to translate investment into numbers of jobs and amount of household income. Finally, local 
17

elected officials, economic development proponents, and taxing jurisdictions are all eager to discover 

local economic activity that generates jobs. 

What is measured?

Based on dollars of expenditure, calculations are made that reveal: number of jobs (direct, indirect, and 

induced), amount of household income (direct, indirect, and induced), and sometimes value added

through the rehabilitation process. The expenditure amounts generally come from the amount reported 

for projects utilizing the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit. Where applicable the investment in projects 

utilizing state historic tax credits and, when they exist, state grant programs is also converted into jobs 

and household income. Graphically the analysis is as follows:

How is it measured?

The calculation of the above, including jobs and household income, are calculated using sophisticated 

econometric modeling systems such as the RIMS II – the Regional Input-Output Modeling System 

created by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the US Department of Commerce – or the IMPLAN 

system - (IMpact analysis for PLANning) economic impact modeling system. Some studies have also used 

Rutgers University Center for Urban Policy Research’s and the National Park Service’s Preservation 

Economic Impact Model (PEIM). 3All of these databases are commonly used by planners, economists 

and other professionals in creating economic impact models and analysis within a variety of industries.

The widespread acceptance and use of such econometric modeling systems standardizes their 

application within the historic preservation field. 

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

The strengths of the methodology are: 

It is well known and commonly accepted.

 

3

See Appendix C for a full description of RIMS II, IMPLAN and PEIM. Investment

Jobs

Direct Induced

Indirect Induced

Value Added

Household Income

Direct Induced

Indirect Induced
18

It is relatively easy to apply.

Historic rehabilitation (mostly construction) can be directly compared with other industries as to 

job creation and household income per million dollars of output. 

Because of the labor intensity of the rehabilitation process and because construction jobs are generally 

well paid, particularly for those without advanced formal education, the local economic impact is not 

only significant but significantly greater per amount of output that most other sectors of economic 

activity, particularly manufacturing. Further, since the models themselves are created by those 

disinterested in any particular industry, there is less risk that the findings are seen as “tainted” by an 

advocacy position.

There are weaknesses, however. First it is only the expenditure data from tax credit projects and grants 

that is readily available. But those amounts are far from the total amount invested annually in historic 

rehabilitation. A homeowner who restores her historic house is not eligible for the federal tax credits, 

nor is the religious institution, fraternal organization, non-profit entity, or most colleges or hospitals. 

Further many property owners, who would otherwise be eligible for federal or state tax credits, simply 

choose not to use them or don’t even know they exist. Government at all three levels invests in historic 

buildings but rarely are those systematically disaggregated from overall capital budgets and separately 

reported as historic rehabilitation investments. Conservatively the total amount of “historic 

rehabilitation” in any given year is likely to be three to five times the amount reported for tax credit and 

grant projects.

The second weakness is that “historic rehabilitation” is not a specific category of industry for which data 

is directly available. Therefore proxy indicators must be derived from existing categories. Most often 

used in ImPlan, for example, is the category Maintenance and repair construction for either residential 

or non-residential activity. Because historic rehabilitation is in most cases even more specialized and

labor intensive than just typical “maintenance and repair construction” the impacts on jobs and 

household income is probably understated. RIMS II formerly had a maintenance and repair construction 

category but no longer provides separate multipliers in that area, so an indirect method must be used to 

calculate the greater numbers of jobs and household income than is generated by new construction.

Finally, the third weakness is a definitional one – what, exactly, constitutes “historic preservation”? Here 

the use of tax credit projects is useful since: a) those buildings are, by definition, “historic,” and b) there 

is a quality control imposed by the use of the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation which is 

a prerequisite for receiving the federal and most state tax credit awards. Additionally the work by 

federal government entities on historic buildings under their purview would in most cases qualify under 

most definitions of “historic preservation” since it is generally held that they are obligated to 

appropriately treat the buildings as part of their obligations under the National Historic Preservation Act. 

In most cases historic buildings subject to review by a local historic district commission (or its 

equivalent) where there are good design standards would count as “historic preservation.”

But there are thousands of other projects (and hundreds of millions of dollars of investment) each year 

for which determining “Is this historic preservation?” is much more problematic. Examples of these

situations are:
19

Institutional (e.g. universities, hospitals, religious institutions) investment in historic structures 

where there are no specific guidelines to which the work must conform.

Investment in historic residential structures where there is no applicable tax credit and no 

preservation program oversight.

Rehabilitation of historic buildings by state and local governments where there is not a local 

equivalent of the standards the federal government sets..

Historic building rehabilitation of commercial structures, absent a tax credit application to the 

state, where there is no local preservation commission.

Most new construction in local historic districts that is not subject to preservation review.

Remodeling of historic buildings where the work is entirely on the interior and not subject to 

any preservation review.

In the United States there are more than 18,000 units of local government (cities, towns, villages, 

counties, etc.) but the National Park Service reports that only 2,700 of them have local preservation 

commissions that have been certified under the program. So what about the “historic preservation” in 

the other 15,000 or so?

The point is that if there were a consistent definition of what constitutes “historic preservation” and

there were a means of estimating the amount of investment for those areas where data is not currently 

available, the jobs/household income calculations would more accurately reflect the totality of that sum 

of historic preservation’s economic impact. We believe that the number would be much larger than 

those reported in existing studies.

Heritage Tourism

Often when “historic preservation” and “economics” are mentioned in one sentence, the default 

response is “Oh, you must mean heritage tourism.” What is known is that tourism is a growth industry 

worldwide, there seems to be consistent evidence that heritage tourism is one of the fastest growing 

segments of that industry, and many states report that tourism is one of their largest industries, 

particularly when measured by number of employees.

What is measured?

Because of the size and sophistication of the tourism industry (at least on a state and national level) a 

number of variables are regularly measured. An extended list of these variables is found in Appendix C.

Because heritage tourism is a sub-set of total tourism, most analyses of this sector do not include the full 

range of variables. Among those that are commonly included in heritage-specific tourism studies are the 

following:

Demand side Supply side Economic 

Measurements

Satisfaction 

Indicators
20

Demand side Supply side Economic 

Measurements

Satisfaction 

Indicators

Number of visitors Activity venues* Expenditure per day Difference between 

expectation and 

experience

Duration of stay Museums Expenditure per trip Value of visitation 

relative to cost

Origin of visitors Civil War sites Allocation of 

expenditures

Quality of exhibits

Means of 

transportation

Historic sites Employment generation Opportunity to learn

Place of lodging Other Tax generation (sales, 

income)

Facilities*

Destination(s) Relative per-day and 

per-trip expenditures of 

heritage visitors as 

compared to all tourists

Staff**

Visitor characteristics Inclination to return

Depth of visitor 

emphasis*

Heritage visitors as 

percentage of all 

visitors

Other sites visited

* How strongly were 

heritage-related activity 

a driver for the choice of 

where to go and what to 

do

* Often merged with 

“Activities undertaken 

during trip”

* Cleanliness, condition, 

sense of safety, gift shop 

or purchase opportunities

** Helpfulness, 

friendliness, knowledge of 

site/history

How is it measured?

Tourism impact studies are survey based. The Tourism Industry Association (TIA) commissions massive 

surveys, the results of which are available for a fee to members. This data is also sortable and is

frequently purchased by state tourism offices and used as the base for their own analyses and 

subsequent strategies. The Department of Commerce conducts in-flight surveys among international 

visitors arriving in the US by plane. Several states regularly conduct visitor surveys at welcome centers 

and at state-owned visitation sites. 

For the past several years the National Park Service has evaluated the economic impact of park visitors

using MGM2 – Money Generation Model. This relatively user-friendly approach requires the park to 

enter three basic pieces of information: number of visitor nights; visitor segments (based on nature of 

accommodations); and a choice of multipliers (rural, small metro area, large metro area, or region). 
21

Based on this input the MGM2 system will calculate: sales, jobs, personal income and value added, 

broken down in the twelve industries most affected by tourism expenditures. 

Graphically the process could be represented as follows

While every study will have some customization, this process most often used is first, estimating the

number of visitors and daily expenditures through surveys; and then aggregating those expenditures 

and applying I-O (input-output) multipliers.

Finally surveys are often included as an original research component of commissioned tourism studies. 

Depending on the scale of the analysis, these surveys may be conducted as one-on-one surveys at a 

historic site, or as telephone or mail surveys among a target group likely to be travelers. More recently 

online surveying has been utilized in the tourism industry but some analysis suggests that the accuracy 

of internet-based surveys is significantly less than telephone or mail surveys.

Again, since heritage tourists are a sub-set of all tourists, typically heritage tourism analysts will simply 

start with larger scale tourism data and disaggregate that portion of the whole defined as heritage 

tourists. In cases where attempting to define “total impact” seems problematic given the base data, 

some analyses have simply calculated the incrementally greater impact of heritage tourists versus 

tourists in general. In nearly all the comparative analyses, heritage tourists (however defined) tend to 

stay longer, visit more places, and spend more per day than tourists in general, thereby having a 

significantly greater per trip economic impact.

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

Surveys are a perfectly adequate means of gathering base data upon which overall impacts can be 

calculated using I-O models or other methods, if: 1) the survey base is large enough (one national survey 

Survey Data

• Number of visitor nights

• Accommodation segment

Input-Output 

Modeling

• Choice of multiplier geography

• IMPLAN localized multipliers

• Direct and total impacts calculated

Reporting

• Sales

• Jobs

• Personal Income

• Value Added
22

interviews between 22,000 and 25,000 households quarterly); and 2) if the questions are properly 

drawn. The problem is quantity – regular surveys of large numbers of households are an expensive 

undertaking.

Furthermore, some recent heritage tourism surveys have had, arguably, sufficient numbers of 

respondents to be reasonably accurate on first-level questions (male/female; origin of trip, etc.) but the 

numbers become so small as to provide questionable reliability on “drill down” percentages (i.e.,

responses of women who arrived by airplane). 

And certainly with tourism survey data there is a definitional problem on two levels: 1) what counts as a 

“heritage tourist”; and 2) how much of the visitor’s expenditures should be included in the impact 

analysis? Further, especially when trying to calculate impacts locally, what about transportation costs? 

This is particularly true of visitors arriving by plane or other form of public transportation. Since a major 

budget item for any tourist is transportation, where are those impacts measured? At the corporate 

headquarters of the airline? At the point of origin of the trip? At the arrival point? Allocated between 

both? 

In candor, there are probably few industries where greater amounts of data are presented with as much 

confidence as with the tourism industry. But much of that data should be viewed with significant 

skepticism, not because the data is consciously skewed by the analysts, but because the “what should 

count” question is rarely adequately addressed.

Property Values

Because of concerns of “property rights” and a widespread suspicion of regulation among property 

owners, the creation of local historic districts is not infrequently an issue of heated debate. Among the 

arguments used by opponents is “a local historic district will constitute another layer of regulation and 

more regulation, prima facie, will have an adverse effect on property values.” Historic property owners 

may also resent being regulated more than their neighbors, when they may have already agreed 

through their stewardship to devote extra care for a historic resource. Because of this, the relationship 

between local historic districts and property values has been the most studied area of preservation 

economics in the United States.

What is measured?

Most studies of the relationship between historic designation and property value look at the value of 

the affected properties, the rate of value change of the properties, or the contributory value of being 

within a local historic district.

In the first category two approaches are common:

Simple value comparison. What is the difference in value between a property in a historic 

district with a similar property not in the district?

Before and after designation. What was the average value of houses in the neighborhood before 

historic designation and after historic designation?
23

In the second category common types of analysis are:

Appreciation compared to the local market. At what rate did properties in the historic district 

appreciate (or decline) in value over time and how does that value change compare with 

properties in the local market that are not in a historic district?

Appreciation compared to similar neighborhood. At what rate did properties in the historic 

district appreciate (or decline) in value over time and how does that value change compare with 

properties in a similar neighborhood that is not a historic district?

The third category of analyses is the most sophisticated and attempts mathematically to identify the 

monetary contribution of each of the significant variables that affect the price of a property (size, 

number of bedrooms, garage, pool, etc.). Once all the other variables are accounted for the difference, if 

any, of being within a local historic district can be isolated. 

How is it measured?

Property values (and value changes) are measured in two alternative ways: actual transactions in the 

marketplace, or a proxy for those transactions. Since in most places in the United States, property taxes 

are levied on an ad valorum basis, the assessed value for taxation purposes can usually be effectively 

used as a proxy for sales prices. The advantages of using assessed valuation are:

The numbers of properties are large, obviating the small sample problem that is encountered 

when using actual transactions.

The assessed data is generally in the public record so can be easily accessed (which is not always 

the case with Multiple Listing Services of local Boards of Realtors®).

Many jurisdictions have all of their property records computerized so sorting and evaluating 

becomes easier.

Most of the variables between properties (size of lot, zoning, size of house, number of 

bathrooms, etc.) are usually included in the property records.

Assessed value databases facilitate the use of GIS representation of findings.

Since there is a great variety among residential properties, however, it is always necessary to convert 

the data and make the representations using a unit of comparison, typically dollars per square foot of 

livable area.

When there are enough transactions over an extended time period, some studies have used resales of 

the same property. If a property sold more than once during the study period, what was the value 

change and how does that value change compare to the appreciation rates for non-designated 

property?

The most sophisticated analysis that has been used in heritage property value studies is known as 

hedonic pricing. This method tries to identify the individual components of a property and each 
24

component’s contribution to the overall property value. One study of historic neighborhoods in the US

used a limited number of rather straightforward variables:

Number of bedrooms

Number of bathrooms

Square feet of living area

Square feet of lot

Number of garage spaces

Availability of swimming pool

Age of property

Then having calculated the relative contribution of each of those elements a final distinction was made –

historic designation. The assumption was that when the contributory value of all of the other variables 

was accounted for, any remaining difference in price was attributable to that designation.

Other studies have had a more comprehensive list of variables which have included such things as 

distance to the center city, proximity to water, architectural style, condition of the building, character of 

the neighborhood, population density, existence of a garden, and others. The selection of which 

variables to use is dependent on a knowledge of which variables are significant to buyers and sellers in 

the marketplace.

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

The strength of this methodology is that the base source of data is indifferent to historic preservation so 

it is relatively free from charges of advocacy bias. When assessment data is complete, computerized, 

and sortable, the issue of the relationship between property values and location within a historic district 

can be evaluated in depth and in a variety of ways. Because virtually every property in a local jurisdiction 

will have parallel value and other information, the quantity of data far outweighs any minor error that a 

individual property value estimate might include. Further, it is not necessary that each value estimate is 

“right” as to the probable sales price tomorrow, as long as there is a consistent ratio between the 

market value and the assessed value for tax purposes.

This approach is not without challenges, however, including:

There is a wide variation in experience and competence among local assessors around the 

country. While most are highly professional and reliable with their value estimates, some simply 

are not.

Assessed values tend to trail movements in the marketplace (in both directions) so “current 

estimates” may, in fact, be a number of years behind.
25

Some jurisdictions have a rolling reassessment, so that even properties within the jurisdiction 

are not adjusted at the same time. Comparisons between properties may, therefore, lead to 

erroneous conclusions.

There are reasons why a property’s assessed valuation increases may not be attributable to a 

general upward movement in the market. Adding a garage, for example, would likely add to the 

assessed value. If the only thing that is considered is the assessed value between two points in 

time, this capital improvement could be misinterpreted as appreciation. (Even so, because the 

numbers of properties involved will generally be large, it is a reasonable assumption that 

properties both within and outside of a local historic district will have had capital improvements, 

so on a comparative basis the errors probably offset each other).

When actual transactions are used, rather than assessed values, a greater understanding of the 

peculiarities of any given property is possible. However, because the number of sales will be limited, 

even in an active market, the chance that an “outlier” transaction statistically affects the conclusions is 

greater.

Main Street/Downtown Revitalization

National Main Street is a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. In simplest terms it is 

downtown revitalization within the context of local business activity in historic buildings. In the past 

thirty years more than 2,500 communities (and a hundred or so urban neighborhoods) have had Main 

Street programs. It has been called the most cost-effective economic development program in America. 

Local Main Street programs generally receive technical assistance, but rarely money, from the state 

agency that coordinates the program (most but not all states have a state coordinator) and from the 

National Main Street Center of the National Trust. From a measurements perspective, almost from the 

beginning the National Main Street Center has required that local programs keep track of a handful of 

indicators to measure their success.

What is measured?

All state coordinating programs are asked to provide five pieces of information annually for aggregation 

at the national level. The states gather and transmit information from each of their active local Main 

Street communities. The basic numbers are:

All State Programs Collect Some State Programs Collect

Net new jobs (new jobs less loss of jobs) Volunteer hours

Net new businesses (businesses opening less 

businesses closings)

Attendance at downtown festivals

Amount of public and private investment in 

physical improvements

Buildings sold

Number of building rehabilitations Business expansions

Façade improvements

Number of housing units created
26

Finally the total investment is divided by the average local community financial support for the Main 

Street program to calculate a “leverage” figure of investment to program costs.

How is it measured?

All of the data is gathered by the local Main Street manager and forwarded to the state coordinating 

program. The data from each participating town is then aggregated and sent to the National Main Street 

Center. The local manager is responsible for identifying how to acquire and verify each piece of 

information.

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

The consistent gathering, aggregating, and reporting of these finite number of indicators for nearly 

thirty years is certainly a strength. And for the most part the information that is being gathered is 

appropriate to the program. 

Unfortunately the weaknesses of this approach are numerous:

There is no comparative analysis. There is no data to demonstrate that these communities are 

doing better, worse, or the same as other similar towns without Main Street programs.

The process of gathering the basic data is done by a local manager who has every motivation to 

report numbers as positively as possible. While there is no evidence of conscious inflation of the 

“good news” by local managers, the “advocate as data source” would not qualify as a robust 

research methodology.

This is not to say the numbers are not useful, or that they should not continue to be gathered. But a 

comparative approach and a more neutral source of the data would strengthen the credibility of the 

Main Street numbers.

Historic Preservation, the Environment, and Sustainability

The most recent area of significant research is the relationship between preservation and the 

environment, particularly the contribution of historic preservation to sustainable development and 

Smart Growth. Although these measures emerge from environmental metrics, they often have a 

considerable economic consequence, particularly in the area of public infrastructure expenditures. 

While other measurements of the economic impact of historic preservation are usually expressed as 

dollars gained (property values, household income, etc.) the environmental measurements are often 

dollars saved.

Historic buildings are often regarded as energy inefficient in measurement systems that focus solely on 

annual energy usage. This approach ignores two important factors: 1) the annual energy use in an 

appropriately rehabilitated historic building is not measurable greater than for a new building; and 2) 

Fifteen to thirty times as much energy is used in the construction of a building than its annual operation. 

For an existing building the energy expended in construction has already been “embodied” in the 

structure (see footnote 4 below). When the energy consumption analysis is approached from a life cycle 
27

perspective wherein both the energy needed to construct the building as well as annual energy usage is 

included, the energy inefficiency claim against historic buildings largely disappears. This is an area, 

however, where more research and more widely dispersed research is necessary.

What is measured?

In studies conducted to date that included some environmental component, the measurements have 

been:

Reduced land fill from buildings being reused rather than razed.

Savings in infrastructure from buildings being reused rather than razed.

The embodied4energy in an existing building that would be lost if the structure were 

demolished.

Reduced vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and CO2 emissions because existing buildings are reused

rather than replaced with new ones.

Amount of “greenfield” acreage left undeveloped if existing building are reused as the 

alternative.

How is it measured?

Most of the measurements are of the “what if” variety in a cost-benefit sense. That is to say, what 

would be the environmental consequences of building a new structure of the same utility and razing an 

existing historic structure? First either an actual rehabilitated building or a hypothesized building 

(assuming a given size, materials, type of construction, and use) is chosen as an example. Then 

calculations are made on a variety of environmental metrics.

In some cases (specifically the Maryland/Abell Foundation report; See Appendix G) calculations were 

made on a composite basis using all of the projects that received state tax credits as the alternative to 

demolition and new construction.

The data sources for making these calculations include factors generated by the Environmental 

Protection Agency, the Urban Land Institute, the Construction Materials Recycling Association, and 

others.

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

The methodology is valuable for several reasons:

1. It makes the historic preservation case in terms environmental advocates understand.

2. It shows a demonstrable connection between where development is encouraged (or accepted) 

and the public costs of accommodating that development, and is therefore a measure of 

community support.

 

4

Embodied energy is the sum of the energy consumed by extracting raw materials, processing those materials into 

a finished product, transporting them to the building site, and installing the building components into a structure.
28

3. As in other approaches, the bases upon which the calculations are made come from nonpreservation sources so the “research by advocacy” criticism is lessened.

4. The field of environmental economics is growing in sophistication so there will likely be more 

cross-over measurements in the future.

To the extent that there is a weakness, it is in the hypothesized nature of the approach. “If this building 

had been torn down rather than reused, then...” On measurements such as vehicle miles travelled and 

cost of infrastructure, the same score would be achieved by tearing down the existing historic structure 

and building on the same site.

Effectiveness of State Historic Preservation Programs

Under fiscal and political pressures many state government are requiring all departments to defend 

their various programs on some type of cost/benefit or effectiveness measurements. Historic 

preservation programs are subject to these same requirements. Some states, therefore, have 

commissioned analyses of how well their programs are working and this is often measured in economic 

terms.

What is measured?

The particular analysis is dictated by the programs available through the State Historic Preservation 

Office. Because every state reviews projects applying for the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit, that 

program is always included. Where there is a state tax credit, the activities utilizing that program are 

usually also included. Beyond those two types of programs, however, there is a great variety from state 

to state on what else is studied. Grant programs, when they exist, are sometimes reviewed. Other 

programs, such as the share of Transportation Enhancement funds that are directed toward 

preservation related projects, are also the focus of some studies

How is it measured?

Regarding tax credit projects – either federal or state – the approach is as described in the Jobs and 

Household Income section above. Additionally, however, in the context of Effectiveness of State 

Programs commonly there is a discussion of the amount of leveraged funds that the existence of the tax 

credit program generates. For the federal tax credit the minimum leverage ratio is four to one (since the 

federal tax credit is 20%) but the actual leverage is generally higher as a result of two factors: 1) 

acquisition costs are not eligible for federal tax credits, so the dollars represented in the purchase price 

constitute additional investment (and therefore leverage) by the private sector; and 2) not all of the 

expenditures are eligible for tax credits (site improvements, landscaping, etc.). As a result, when 

comprehensive numbers are available, the actual leverage is often found to be five to one or greater.

For grant programs as well, leverage is often discussed, but because many grants require only a 50%

match, and sometimes less, the public-to-private investment ratios will be less dramatic than for tax 

credit programs.
29

Additionally, grants and other state programs are frequently described through their geographic 

distribution throughout a state. This is assumed to convey the message to the public that there are 

historic resources everywhere and to legislators that their district, too, is benefiting from state historic 

preservation resources.

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

To the extent that adequate data is available for the state tax credit projects, the job/household income 

calculations are generally reliable. What is not considered in most analyses is what percentage of those 

projects would have been completed were the tax credit(s) not available. While some surveys of tax 

credit users (See particularly Prosperity through Preservation: Virginia’s Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit 

Program) (See Appendix G) indicate that there is a very high percentage of projects that would not have 

gone forward without the credits, there is not typically an adjustment for projects in this regard.

Public budget analysts make a distinction between direct expenditures (i.e. funds spent by a unit of 

government) and “tax expenditures”, the latter being a reduction of taxes payable generally though an 

incentive in the tax code. From a budgeting perspective it is argued that a reduction of tax receipts has 

the same net effect as the expenditure of collected funds. State tax credits are a “tax expenditure” and 

grants a direct expenditure of taxpayers’ dollars. But in either case something else, theoretically, could 

have been spent on something else, e.g. instead of paying for ten more teachers the state could have 

hired ten more highway patrolmen. In the studies to date there has not been any comparative analysis 

of the impacts on a state’s economy had those resources been spent in a manner other than for historic 

preservation.

As to grant programs, while there is typically a reporting requirement from an audit standpoint (i.e.,

evidence that the monies were actually spent on the project for which they were rewarded) there often 

is not a requirement to report on the results of the project. In evaluation terms, what is being measured 

is “outputs” rather than “outcomes.”

Social Impacts of Historic Preservation

What is measured?

As was noted earlier, very little research has been done in the United States on the social impacts of 

historic preservation. The exception is that many reports identify the number of low- and moderateincome housing units that were created using (usually in conjunction with other incentives) the Federal 

Rehabilitation Tax Credit.

Elsewhere in the world, however, particularly in Great Britain and a few countries in Western Europe, 

there has been some primary research on the relationship between heritage conservation (and/or 

heritage conservation-based programs) and social impacts. Probably the most comprehensive has been 
30

the analysis of both the economic and social impacts of the use of lottery funds for heritage 

conservation in England.5

How is it measured?

In the study of the impacts of English lottery funds, citizen surveys and focus groups were conducted to 

supplement the “hard data” on money invested, leverage of public funds, numbers of buildings 

rehabilitated, and new businesses started. 

The European Union funded a network of five European cities that used heritage conservation as the 

bases of center-city revitalization programs. Their measurements were on both the “hard” and “soft” 

side and included the categories of Immediate Economic, Strategic Economics, Social and 

Environmental. These indicators and what was measured and how are listed in the table below:

European Livable Cities Project6

Indicator Measure Technique

Immediate Economic

Pedestrian activity People flows Manual counts, cameras, surveys 

of special events

More Expenditure Expenditures (retail, leisure, 

hotel, on street event)

Interviews, surveys (on street, 

self-completion, operators)

More uses on street Number of: cafes, street traders, 

stalls, events

Before & after survey

More repair/regeneration of 

sites

Level of activity Exterior condition surveys, 

planning applications, repair 

frequencies, occupier surveys

Increased local distinctiveness Number of independent shops

Number of distinctive events

User attitude

Image change

Audit of shops

Audit of events

User surveys

Survey of distinctive elements

Strategic Economic

Improvement in town’s 

performance

Performance of shops

Tourism performance

Quality of life

National retail rankings

National tourism rankings

Various surveys

New strategic roles for public 

space

Role changes Before & after surveys

Integration of latent economic 

assets

More effective use Audit of new economic activity

Before & after surveys of vacant 

sites

Creation of new economic 

quarters

Diversity Audit of changes in 

cultural/social/econ offerings

Improvement in quality of life Overall quality User surveys

 

5

See especially Kate Clark and Gareth Maeer, "The Cultural Value of Heritage: Evidence from the Heritage Lottery 

Fund," Cultural Trends 17.1 (2008).

6

Liveable City Project, Measuring the Benefits of Public Domain Regeneration. Time and Space Innovateurs, (2008)
31

Indicator surveys

Creation of new image

Image changes

Image changes Surveys (user, business, opinion 

maker, media)

Social

Reduction in road deaths, 

injuries

Accidents Before & after surveys

Wider health and well-being 

benefits

Health User surveys

General health records

Reduction in actual threat Crime, anti-social behavior Before & after surveys

Reduction in perceived threat Fear User surveys

Reduction in social exclusion

Engagements

Before & after surveys Observation (cameras)

User surveys

More efficient walking trips Routing User surveys, camera surveys, 

GPS monitoring

Greater community ownership Sense of civic pride User perception surveys, plotting 

of new community initiatives

Environmental

Reduction in noise pollution Audible quality Noise surveys

Ambient sound surveys

Reduction in air pollution Air quality Air quality surveys

Reduction in vehicle use Vehicle presence Flow surveys

Parking surveys

Reduction in visual intrusion Visual quality Environmental audit

User surveys

Reduction in vehicle 

infrastructure

Infrastructure presence Infrastructure audit

More sustainable use of urban 

space

Space use Before & after surveys

Camera surveys

Individual preferences as expressed by market prices and transactions are important but there are also 

public-good aspects of historic preservation that are, by definition, beyond individual preferences. These 

are not well captured in markets and have to be measured via other methodologies. These other 

methodologies range from the purely qualitative (narrative accounts of decisions or conflicts over 

preservation issues) to the very quantitative (statistical analysis of demographic data from the Census).

Strengths and weaknesses of the methodology

Since there is nearly no US-based research on the social impacts of historic preservation, the biggest 

weakness of the methodology is that it does not exist (or at least does not exist in application form. 

There is obviously social impact analysis with focuses other than historic preservation that could readily 

be adapted.)

The strength of the European Livable Cities evaluative approach is that it is comprehensive and captures 

change over time. The weakness is not in the methodologies but in the fact that they are both 
32

extraordinarily time consuming and expensive. It might be possible, however, for preservation to 

partner with other entities with an urban focus to jointly conduct this type of research.
33

Recommendations on Metrics for Future Data and Methodologies 

Broad categories for which we should have annual data

The intent of this project was to identify a finite number of metrics demonstrating the link between 

historic preservation and economics. The data for these measurements would be gathered annually and, 

it is assumed, publicized and promoted. It was not within the scope of the project to provide detailed 

descriptions of particular methodologies to be used. Rather it was to provide recommendations on what 

data should be collected, and to provide a general idea of how that data would be gathered and what 

would be measured.

Based on the activities described earlier in this report, it is recommended that there be the collection, 

evaluation, and dissemination of five categories of data: jobs, property values, heritage tourism, 

environmental measurements, and downtown revitalization/Main Street. Most of the categories have 

been part of one or more statewide preservation impact studies and are discussed in detail in the 

Current Data, Methodologies and Programs section of this report. The descriptions of the categories 

below, therefore, are brief.

Metric 1 – Jobs

This is the measurement of number of jobs that are created annually through the rehabilitation of 

historic buildings and the household income that those jobs generate. This data should be compiled 

reflecting direct, indirect, and induced jobs and household income accompanied by adequate and 

understandable definitions of what those categories mean. 

What should be measured

Historic rehabilitation should include the following:

Projects receiving the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit

Projects receiving state tax credits for historic preservation

Federal, state, and local government projects that are considered historic preservation

An estimate of activity that would be defined as “historic preservation” but is not reflected in 

any of the categories above

How it should be measured

The dollar amounts aggregated from the four categories above would be converted into jobs and 

household income using ImPlan, RIMSII, or other reliable Input-Output methodology.
34

Where the information could be found

For projects receiving the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit

From National Park Service data (perhaps supplemented with SHPO data)

For projects receiving state tax credits for historic preservation

Aggregated annual reports from State Historic Preservation Offices of state tax credit 

investment (making sure projects are not included that also received the federal credit, so as 

not to double count)

For federal, state, and local government projects that are considered historic preservation

General Services Administration

State Historic Preservation Offices (from data gathered from their respective state’s equivalent 

of the GSA)

Modeling of estimates of local government expenditures on capital improvements to buildings 

and percentage of those expenditures going to the rehabilitation of historic buildings

An estimate of activity that would be defined as “historic preservation” but is not reflected in any of the 

categories above

Estimates based on a model that would include the following:

o Total rehabilitation expenditure

o Percentage of that expenditure within local historic districts overseen by Certified Local 

Governments (CLGs)

o Percentage of total spending in local historic districts not overseen by CLGs 

o Percentage of total spending on the appropriate rehabilitation of historic buildings not 

covered by any local historic district

o Percentage of institutional expenditures (hospitals, colleges, etc., not included in any of 

the above) that is considered the appropriate rehabilitation of historic buildings 

Metric 2 – Property Values

This is a measurement of the impact on property values attributable to being located within a local 

historic district and/or a National Register Historic District.

What should be measured

While a number of variables might be measured, for simplicity of explanation and data collection, two 

measurements are recommended:
35

1. What is the year-to-year change in property value for residential structures within historic 

districts as compared to property value change for houses in the rest of the local market not 

within historic districts.

2. What, if any, is the “heritage premium7” paid for properties within historic districts.

How it should be measured

1. Based on a representative sample of cities, and using either assessed valuation or actual 

transactions, calculate on a dollar-per-square-foot basis the change in property values year to year 

within historic districts as compared to properties in the local market not within historic districts. 

The data should be represented as follows:

a. Percentage change in per-square-foot value of properties within local historic districts

b. Percentage change in per-square-foot value of properties within National Register Historic 

Districts but not within local historic districts

c. Percentage change in per-square-foot value of properties within both National Register and 

local historic districts

d. Percentage change in per-square-foot value of properties in neither local nor National 

Register historic districts

2. Based on a localized hedonic pricing model, determine what is the difference in value (if any, and if 

positive or negative) for properties within historic districts as compared to similar properties not 

within historic districts after all other variables in value contribution have been accounted for.

Where the information could be found

Because there needs to be consistent analysis and data over time, it is recommended that research be 

conducted in conjunction with (or by) one of the national data and research firms the regularly report 

on change in real estate values. Two firms/systems to be considered are the S&P/Case-Shiller Home 

Price Indices8and Zillow Real Estate Research. With relatively minor additional data input factors (i.e., in 

or out of historic districts), one of these ought to be able to provide useful data vis-a-vis value and 

historic designation. The S&P/Cash-Shiller Composite 20 Metro Areas might be a useful base.

 

7

A heritage premium is the amount, if any, that the marketplace pays for a property in a historic district after all 

other variables are accounted for. This would typically be done using a hedonic pricing methodology.

8 Methodology explained at http://www.standardandpoors.com/servlet/BlobServer?blobheadername3=MDTType&blobcol=urldata&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobheadervalue2=inline%3B+filename%3DMethdology_SP_CS_H

ome_Price_Indices_Web.pdf&blobheadername2=ContentDisposition&blobheadervalue1=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobheadername1=contenttype&blobwhere=1243624745188&blobheadervalue3=UTF-8
36

Metric 3 – Heritage Tourism

What should be measured

Again, for consistency and simplicity a finite number of measurements should be sought to determine:

1. What is the total number of tourists that would be considered “heritage tourists” and what 

percentage do they represent of all tourists

2. What are the trip characteristics of the heritage tourist including:

a. Number of annual trips

b. Number of places visited

c. Daily expenditures

d. Total expenditures 

3. How do the numbers from 2 above contrast with tourists not considered heritage tourists

4. What are the demographic characteristics of heritage tourists and how do they contrast with all 

other tourists

How it should be measured

This information should be measured through regular, comprehensive, and consistent surveys.

Where the information could be found

There already exist major, comprehensive, regular, and consistent surveys regarding tourism using large 

national samples. For heritage tourism data three things must be done:

1. Establish a reasonable definition of what attributes/activities a tourist needs to have (and in 

what magnitude) to fall in the category of “heritage visitor” (including distinguishing these 

visitors from other tourists who engage in cultural activities such as attending concerts).

2. Write two to four questions that would reveal those attributes/activities as part of a survey.

3. Incorporate those questions into an existing national survey.

Once that is done, the “drilling down” to reveal the information desired is a relatively straight forward 

process. There does not need to be a heritage-specific tourism survey – only questions within an 

existing survey that identifies “heritage tourists.”

Metric 4 – Environmental Measurements

Quantifying the contribution of historic preservation to the environment is, as was noted earlier, the 

most recent area of research. That research continues to evolve. The “Green Lab” of the National Trust 

for Historic Preservation is both compiling existing research and conducting original research of the 

preservation/environment nexus. Additionally the Department of the Army has commissioned an in-
37

depth look at issues such as life cycle costs and environmental impacts. The statewide analysis of the tax 

credit program in Maryland9in 2009 tested a variety of approaches to measure the environmental 

savings spawned by opting for rehabilitation rather than new construction on undeveloped land.

What should be measured

A variety of measurements could be undertaken annually. Examples of calculations might be:

Embodied energy in buildings rehabilitated

Infrastructure cost savings of rehabilitation rather than new construction at an outlying location

Reduction of emissions and vehicle miles travelled 

Reduced impact on land fill and corresponding dollar savings

Comparative analysis of annual operating costs of rehabilitated historic buildings with new 

buildings

Life cycle energy use calculations that include both operating expenditures and energy used in 

construction

Because the research in this area is new and evolving, and because alternative approaches are being 

tested, it is the recommendation of this report that there certainly should be an 

environment/preservation annual measurement but the specifics of what is measured and how be 

deferred for a few years until more is learned through existing research programs

Metric 5 – Downtown Revitalization/Main Street

The role of historic preservation in downtown revitalization efforts is apparent in nearly every town and 

city in the country where the center has begun to return from a four-decade period of decline. The Main 

Street program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation has been the one national program that 

has been specifically defined as economic development within the context of historic preservation. By 

almost any measure Main Street has been an extraordinary success and the Main Street Approach has 

been adopted as the set of organizing principles for downtown revitalization even by communities that

are not formally participants in the Main Street process.

What should be measured

The data currently gathered by state Main Street programs and then forwarded to and aggregated by 

the National Main Street Center is certainly valuable measurements: net new jobs, net new businesses, 

amount of investment, number of buildings rehabilitated. The research deficiencies of the current 

approach notwithstanding, this data should continue to be collected. The consistency of the information 

gathered, the size of the database, and the length of time the information has been assembled to a 

significant degree offset research weaknesses from an academic perspective.

 

9

http://www.abell.org/pubsitems/arn309.pdf
38

What is missing from these numbers are: 1) comparable numbers from cities that have had successful 

downtown revitalization programs, but have not used historic preservation as part of their strategy; and 

2) a detailed analysis of the catalytic impact of an individual historic preservation project on the 

economy of the immediately surrounding area.

How it should be measured

The credibility of data on the historic preservation/downtown revitalization connection would be 

enhanced if:

The information were gathered by a third party and/or all of the data came from public record 

sources

There were a comparison of the activity in the program area with commercial districts 

elsewhere in the community or with comparable downtowns which did not have a preservationbased revitalization strategy

The catalytic measurement should be done on a before-and-after basis (five to ten years before and 

after the project completion) and consider such variables as: property values, retail sales, investment, 

net new jobs, net new businesses, and commercial occupancy rates.

Where the information could be found

To obtain data that is parallel to what the National Main Street Center accumulates, city building permit 

records, city directories, Chamber of Commerce listings, business improvement district data, and 

business owner surveys would provide most of the requisite information.

For the catalytic impact of preservation projects, the above data sources on a before-and-after basis, as 

well as ad valorum property tax records and building owner surveys, would be useful
39

Conclusions

There was a consistent message from the existing research, from the interviews, and from the 

symposium: research on the relationship between historic preservation and economics is critical and 

needs to be provided on a regular basis. To be useful, however, while the research must be conducted 

on an academically robust level, research findings and resultant recommendations need to be written so 

that they are comprehensible to preservation advocates, public servants, elected officials, and the 

general public.

Five areas of research demonstrating (directly or indirectly) the link between historic preservation and 

economics are recommended in this report:

Jobs

Property values

Heritage tourism

Environmental measurements

Downtown revitalization

It is unlikely that a single institution would have the resources to cost-effectively conduct annual 

research into each of these areas. Rather it is recommended that the research be “farmed out” and 

then assembled, distributed, and publicized by a single agency. 

Of the five areas of suggested research, one of them, heritage tourism, is primarily survey based. It is 

recommended that a limited number of questions (2-3) be incorporated into larger, existing surveys 

currently conducted.

For property values it is recommended that a historic property subcomponent analysis be commissioned 

within one of the existing national real estate value analyses.

Because of the evolving nature of the research on the connection between historic preservation and the 

environment, it is recommended that any decisions on exactly what is measured and the investigation of 

the connection between historic preservation and environment be deferred until more has been learned 

from ongoing studies and their methodologies.

There is an acceptable methodology for measuring the job creation impact of historic rehabilitation 

activity. There has been an analysis on a national level of the economic impact of the Federal Historic 

Tax Credit that is reportedly going to be updated annually. An expanded methodology needs to be 

developed, however, that includes historic preservation activity nationwide that is not reflected in 

federal tax credit projects.

Finally the National Trust and its National Main Street Center are encouraged to continue aggregating 

and publicizing the data that have been collected over the last twenty-five years. If, however, the 

contribution of historic preservation to downtown revitalization is to be credibly demonstrated, 

additional research needs to be undertaken using more rigorous methodologies and needs to consider 

the preservation/revitalization link in downtowns that have not been part of the Main Street program. 
40

Because these stories may well be better understood on a case study rather than a comprehensive 

quantitative basis, graduate students might be encouraged to make this the focus of their masters 

theses and PhD dissertations. An annual report could be produced summarizing that year’s research 

findings. 

This report was not commissioned to develop specific methodologies, to identify specific research 

institutions, or to suggest funding sources and amounts that this research would require. Rather this 

report was intended to identify whether such research is necessary, to document what has been learned 

in existing research, and to recommend areas of research in the future.

To that end:

Research on the connection between historic preservation and the economy is critical

A growing body of research has been conducted and while much of that research is useful, it is 

not being done on a regular, consistent, national level

An ongoing program of preservation/economics research should be initiated that would include: 

jobs, property values, heritage tourism, environmental impacts, social impacts, longitudinal 

public opinion, and downtown revitalization

The next steps in this process are recommended as follows:

1. Identify and reach agreement with responsible parties to undertake the ongoing research and 

data collection for each of the recommended indicators. 

Because of the diverse nature of the proposed research as well as costs and other issues it is 

recommended that there be a collaboration of several entities each committed to conducting a 

portion of this research. Among these research partners might be: ACHP, National Park Service, 

Department of Commerce, General Services Administration, Department of Defense, National 

Trust, the nascent Ellis Island Preservation Resource Center and Universities including Rutgers, 

University of Pennsylvania, University of Maryland and others.

2. In conjunction with the responsible parties, create a long-term research, evaluation and 

reporting plan.

At the outset the research partners will need to reach agreement as to: 1) who will conduct 

which research; 2) how and when will that research be provided; 3) who will aggregate the 

individual research projects into a single report; 4) how and when will the results of the research 

be published and distributed.

3. Establish baseline (s) for each of the recommended indicators.

As it is the hope that the recommended research will be conducted and released annually there 

will need to be a base established against which change is measured. As the first step in each 
41

research component the responsible research partner should identify what that base will be and 

how the data that constitutes that base will be acquired.

4. Work with the identified parties to systematize data collection.

While it will be important that the reports of the research are written in such a fashion as to be 

understandable by a non-technical audience, the methodologies and research approaches 

utilized will need to be both transparent and defensible under scholarly scrutiny. Each 

participating research entity should, therefore, identify a data collection and analysis procedure 

that is academically robust and replicable from year to year.

Historic preservation will not reach its optimum potential to contribute to the American economy or 

American society without such research being done.
42

Appendix A: Interviewees

The following persons were interviewed in conjunction with this report.

Caroline Alderson Government Services Administration

Serena Bellew Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, Department of 

Defense

David Brown National Trust for Historic Preservation

Francisco Carrillo Department of the Interior

Sarah Cline Department of Interior, Office of Policy Analysis

Jim Galvin Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, Department of 

Defense

Frank Giblin Government Services Administration

Peter Grigelis Department of Interior, Office of Policy Analysis

Erik M. Hein Preservation Action

John Leith-Tetrault National Trust Community Investment Corporation

Jeffrey Jensen Government Services Administration

Jennifer Martin Center for Resource Solutions (environmental planner/economist)

Ruth Pierpont Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer, New York State

Paul Neidinger Architect

Douglass Reed Preservation Associates (cost estimator)

Dorothy Robyn Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, Installations & Environment

Beth Savage Office of the Chief Architect, Federal Historic Preservation Officer, General 

Services Administration

David Shiver Bay Area Economics

Benjamin Simon Department of Interior, Office of Policy Analysis

Rhonda Sincavage National Trust for Historic Preservation

Pat Sparks Sparks Engineering (structural engineer)

Al Tetrault Tetrault & Associates

Beth Savage Government Services Administration

John Sprinkle Federal Preservation Institute, National Park Service

Richard Waldbauer Federal Preservation Institute, National Park Service

Amy Webb National Trust for Historic Preservation

Constance Werner 

Ramirez

Federal Preservation Institute, National Park Service

Cherilyn Widell Seraph, LLC (historic preservation consultant)
43

Appendix B: Symposium Summary

As part of the research project, a one-day symposium was convened at the University of Pennsylvania’s 

School of Design on February 8, 2011. The goal of the symposium was to lend additional depth to the 

team’s exploration of best practice in conceptualization and measurement of the economic values of 

historic preservation.

The symposium framed possibilities for applying economic methods to practical, policy, and political 

problems encountered in historic preservation—as opposed to regarding economic studies as ends in 

themselves. The goal was to bridge academic research and practical application; to match the needs of 

advocacy and policy workers with the capabilities of academic (particularly economic) researchers.

Two international scholar/practitioners (themselves bridging in some manner the worlds of research 

and practice) were invited to present keynote speeches; three distinguished researchers with yet 

different combinations of academic focus with practical application were invited to comment on the 

speeches. This summary captures the main points raised and discussed during the day of formal 

presentations and informal discussions.

The day’s workshop was introduced by Prof. Randall Mason; Donovan Rypkema presented the overall 

context and challenges presented by the research project commissioned by the ACHP. 

The two invited keynote presenters were:

Guido Licciardi, PhD: Urban Specialist, Urban Development and Local Government, The World 

Bank.

Prof. Christian Ost: Professor and former Dean, ICHEC Brussels Management School; 2008-09 

Guest Scholar, Getty Conservation Institute.

Highlights from the two morning keynote speeches

Licciardi: Presenting heritage economics through the lens of the World Bank (Bank) and its processes for 

internal project monitoring and evaluation, Licciardi argued that a greater appreciation of econometrics 

applied to heritage is possible, productive, even urgent, given the threats presented by urbanization 

(particularly in developing countries). The Bank’s growing work on urban regeneration as a poverty 

reduction measure attests to the centrality of heritage (especially in its form as historic urban centers). 

The pursuit of this work by the Bank’s Urban department will require an increasing effort to measure the 

economic values of heritage outcomes. A detailed presentation of Bank evaluation procedure and the 

role of econometrics was enhanced by a case study from Shandong province, China, and a short video 

highlighting a recent Bank project in Tunisia. In 2010 the World Bank published The Urban 

Rehabilitation of Medinas which highlights many of these issues, including fiscal and social policies. 

Ost: Professor Ost presented some of his ongoing work in spatial analysis of heritage towns, using the 

case study of Djenne, Mali, (a World Heritage site) as an example. Ost takes as a starting point the 

multivalent nature of urban heritage and proceeds to create, through fieldwork and surveying, 

mappable data representing the different values for a historic urban center. Economic values, 
44

importantly, are presented as one among several significant value types including use and non-use 

values, vacancy rates, building conditions, and others. His work is an exciting and promising extension of 

the kinds of quantifying research so central to the economics field regarding the multiple social 

processes and variables characterizing urban heritage. The fundamental role of GIS in his work 

represents an important future direction of research and practice, as the management and synthesis of 

data related to economic and cultural values of heritage places remains a challenge for practitioners. It 

is also a potential boon to the understanding of decision-makers.

Afternoon discussion

Following formal presentations in the morning, much of the afternoon was devoted to wide-ranging 

discussion among a larger group of participants, which included colleagues from the world of policy and 

public service, academic colleagues, and graduate students. Three leading thinkers in areas related to 

economic values of heritage and other public goods were invited to comment on the keynote speeches 

and kick off the afternoon discussion. They were:

Erica Avrami, Director of Research and Education, World Monuments Fund

Dr. Jeff Adams, Professor of Economics, Beloit College

Dr. David Listokin, Professor, Center for Urban and Policy Research, Rutgers University

As with the key points of the interviews enumerated in the body of this report, the main points of the 

discussion were included to reflect the range of opinions of the participants, even though some of them 

are contradictory and other subject to dissent by the authors of this report.

Main points from the open discussion:

Corresponding to the mix of participants from the academic, professional, and policy sectors, 

the discussion yielded a range of ideas and topics, including essential conceptual issues 

regarding the application of economic thinking to heritage phenomena as well as practical topics 

related to what kinds of arguments hold sway with decision-makers.

Economic studies (or other academic studies for that matter) set up decisions but they do not 

make the decisions. The results of studies are used – or ignored – in the context of “political 

will,” perceptions of political gain or risk, and the political economy of government action 

and/or investor profit motive.

It is a danger to focus too narrowly on economic values. Studies of economic value should 

contextualize this among the other values of historic preservation (cultural, aesthetic, etc.).

There is a lack of serious evaluation work, using accepted econometric methodologies, in the 

historic preservation field. Many opportunities for ex post facto economic analysis of 

preservation projects/policies exist. For example there is no known report that systematically 

compares the effectiveness and efficiency of state historic rehabilitation tax credit programs 

with other state-provided incentives meant to encourage local economic development.
45

Evaluations are always subjective, no matter how successful our efforts to quantify them.

Studies quantifying the economic value of preservation, no matter how professional and sound,

always exist (or will be used) within a political context. So the “political will” to act on the 

studies will remain a major variable in determining whether such studies are successful. Since 

the decisions based on economics are so highly determined by politics, we might think in terms 

of “political economy” instead of “economics. 

Preservation consists of both private goods and public goods; this “mixed” nature yields both 

confusion and opportunity when it comes to choice of methods to evaluate and measure 

economic impacts. For the private goods in preservation (individually owned homes, for 

instance), economic value is relatively straightforward; for the public-good aspects remain 

difficult. Embracing the public-good aspects can serve as a kind of conceptual bridge to social 

and political questions shared more widely in society (outside of preservation), as with the idea 

of the loss of the public commons and the nature of social cooperation.

The alleged culture and habits of the preservation field (single-mindedness, resistance to 

change) present barriers to accepting economic concepts and methodologies. Many in 

preservation want data “to make the case” (i.e., advocate what they would have advocated 

anyway) without really opening up to understanding how economic research could shape, 

change, and improve the field’s understanding of how historic preservation should work as well 

as preservation’s potential and actual benefits. As a field, preservation needs to recognize the 

inevitability of change and determine the best strategies to respond, not just fear change and 

the associated risks. Perhaps thinking of historic preservation in terms of portfolio management 

(as agencies like GSA or NPS must do) would be a way to adapt economic thinking to a 

“managing change” approach for evaluating preservation policies and making sensible decisions 

that are not isolated from the overall goal of improving the portfolio’s performance.

We tend to understand “economic benefits” in a single-time snapshot, static way that is too 

narrow. Historic preservation yields “process” benefits as well, such as community cohesion, 

social capital, etc., that are not captured by looking just at property values (though may be 

indicated in metrics such as depth of local government support for preservation, or existence of 

special incentives, permanent professional and technical jobs created). Our tools need to be 

matched to the whole spectrum of benefits we wish to measure. Perhaps the notion of 

“environmental services” as compared to “architectural” or “historic preservation” services is a 

useful analog (from the environmental conservation sector) in this regard.

How effective are quantitative expressions of preservation benefits to decision-makers? We 

assume that numbers are the most effective means for swaying people to support preservation, 

but this is an unexamined, or at least anecdotal, belief. Rational arguments may not matter as 

much as well-articulated but irrational arguments crafted to identify with an audience/decisionmaker more emotionally (such as community pride or identity associated with history and 

culture).
46

In choosing metrics to collect, it is critical to ensure they can be collected regularly and into the 

future so longitudinal studies can be undertaken over some length of time.

It is important that the metrics not only relate to market values but also captures core “outputs” 

of historic preservation such as educational outcomes, community cohesion, etc. Threat, risk, 

and price are not the only (or most relevant) measures.

Issues such as the relationship between urban density and preservation policy, or competing 

market interests, raise the stakes for including some kinds of econometric analyses in 

preservation discourse and debate. It is obvious that the market plays a key role in shaping 

discussions over both commercial and residential density, so we better know how it works, how 

to measure outcomes, and how to talk about markets.

The solutions to our problems cannot be found just within our sector; we have to collaborate.

In addition to the invited participants already mentioned, those active in the afternoon discussion 

included:

Ron Anzalone, Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

David Brown, National Trust for Historic Preservation

Caroline Cheong, PlaceEconomics

Brian Daniels, Penn Center for Cultural Heritage

Scott Doyle, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission

Cory Kegerise, Maryland Historical Trust

Brent Lane, University of North Carolina

Constance Ramirez, National Park Service

Donovan Rypkema, PlaceEconomics

Benjamin Simon, Department of Policy Analysis, Department of Interior

Erika Stewart, National Trust for Historic Preservation and National Trusts Community 

Investment Corporation

Cherilynn Widell, Preservation consultant 
47

Appendix C: RIMS II, IMPLAN, and PEIM

RIMS II

US Department of Commerce

Bureau of Economic Analysis

Regional Economic Accounts

https://www.bea.gov/regional/rims/brfdesc.cfm

Overview

Effective planning for public- and private-sector projects and programs at the state and local levels 

requires a systematic analysis of the economic impacts of these projects and programs on affected 

regions. In turn, systematic analysis of economic impacts must account for the interindustry 

relationships within regions because these relationships largely determine how regional economies are 

likely to respond to project and program changes. Thus, regional input-output (I-O) multipliers, which 

account for interindustry relationships within regions, are useful tools for conducting regional economic 

impact analysis.

In the 1970s, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) developed a method for estimating regional I-O 

multipliers known as RIMS (Regional Industrial Multiplier System), which was based on the work of 

Garnick and Drake. 1In the 1980s, BEA completed an enhancement of RIMS, known as RIMS II (Regional 

Input-Output Modeling System), and published a handbook for RIMS II users. 2In 1992, BEA published a 

second edition of the handbook in which the multipliers were based on more recent data and improved 

methodology. In 1997, BEA published a third edition of the handbook that provides more detail on the 

use of the multipliers and the data sources and methods for estimating them.

RIMS II is based on an accounting framework called an I-O table. For each industry, an I-O table shows 

the industrial distribution of inputs purchased and outputs sold. A typical I-O table in RIMS II is derived 

mainly from two data sources: BEA's national I-O table , which shows the input and output structure of 

nearly 500 U.S. industries, and BEA's regional economic accounts, which are used to adjust the national 

I-O table to show a region's industrial structure and trading patterns. 3

Using RIMS II for impact analysis has several advantages. RIMS II multipliers can be estimated for any 

region composed of one or more counties and for any industry, or group of industries, in the national I-O 

table. The accessibility of the main data sources for RIMS II keeps the cost of estimating regional 

multipliers relatively low. Empirical tests show that estimates based on relatively expensive surveys and 

RIMS II-based estimates are similar in magnitude. 4

BEA's RIMS multipliers can be a cost-effective way for analysts to estimate the economic impacts of 

changes in a regional economy. However, it is important to keep in mind that, like all economic impact 

models, RIMS provides approximate order-of-magnitude estimates of impacts. RIMS multipliers are best 

suited for estimating the impacts of small changes on a regional economy. For some applications, users 

may want to supplement RIMS estimates with information they gather from the region undergoing the 

potential change. Examples of case studies where it is appropriate to use RIMS multipliers appear in 

the RIMS II User Handbook.
48

To effectively use the multipliers for impact analysis, users must provide geographically and industrially 

detailed information on the initial changes in output, earnings, or employment that are associated with 

the project or program under study. The multipliers can then be used to estimate the total impact of the 

project or program on regional output, earnings, and employment.

RIMS II is widely used in both the public and private sectors. In the public sector, for example, the 

Department of Defense uses RIMS II to estimate the regional impacts of military base closings. State 

transportation departments use RIMS II to estimate the regional impacts of airport construction and 

expansion. In the private sector, analysts and consultants use RIMS II to estimate the regional impacts of 

a variety of projects, such as the development of shopping malls and sports stadiums.

RIMS II Methodology

RIMS II uses BEA's benchmark and annual I-O tables for the nation. Since a particular region may not 

contain all the industries found at the national level, some direct input requirements cannot be supplied 

by that region's industries. Input requirements that are not produced in a study region are identified 

using BEA's regional economic accounts.

The RIMS II method for estimating regional I-O multipliers can be viewed as a three-step process. In the 

first step, the producer portion of the national I-O table is made region-specific by using six-digit NAICS 

location quotients (LQs). The LQs estimate the extent to which input requirements are supplied by firms 

within the region. RIMS II uses LQs based on two types of data: BEA's personal income data (by place of 

residence) are used to calculate LQs in the service industries; and BEA's wage-and-salary data (by place 

of work) are used to calculate LQs in the non-service industries.

In the second step, the household row and the household column from the national I-O table are made 

region-specific. The household row coefficients, which are derived from the value-added row of the 

national I-O table, are adjusted to reflect regional earnings leakages resulting from individuals working 

in the region but residing outside the region. The household column coefficients, which are based on the 

personal consumption expenditure column of the national I-O table, are adjusted to account for regional 

consumption leakages stemming from personal taxes and savings.

In the last step, the Leontief inversion approach is used to estimate multipliers. This inversion approach 

produces output, earnings, and employment multipliers, which can be used to trace the impacts of 

changes in final demand on directly and indirectly affected industries.

Accuracy of RIMS II

Empirical evidence suggests that RIMS II commonly yields multipliers that are not substantially different 

in magnitude from those generated by regional I-O models based on relatively expensive surveys. For 

example, a comparison of 224 industry-specific multipliers from survey-based tables for Texas, 

Washington, and West Virginia indicates that the RIMS II average multipliers overestimate the average 

multipliers from the survey-based tables by approximately 5 percent. For the majority of individual 

industry-specific multipliers within these states, the difference between RIMS II and survey-based 

multipliers is less than 10 percent. In addition, RIMS II and survey multipliers show statistically similar 

distributions of affected industries. 4
49

Advantages of RIMS II

There are numerous advantages to using RIMS II. First, the accessibility of the main data sources makes 

it possible to estimate regional multipliers without conducting relatively expensive surveys. Second, the 

level of industrial detail used in RIMS II helps avoid aggregation errors, which often occur when 

industries are combined. Third, RIMS II multipliers can be compared across areas because they are 

based on a consistent set of estimating procedures nationwide. Fourth, RIMS II multipliers are updated 

to reflect the most recent local-area wage-and-salary and personal income data.

Applications of RIMS II

RIMS II multipliers can be used in a wide variety of regional impact studies. For example, the U.S. 

Nuclear Regulatory Commission has used RIMS II multipliers in environmental impact statements 

required for licensing nuclear electricity-generating facilities. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 

Development has used RIMS II multipliers to estimate the impacts of various types of urban 

redevelopment expenditures. RIMS II multipliers have also been used to estimate the regional economic 

and industrial impacts of: opening or closing military bases, tourist expenditures, new energy facilities, 

energy conservation, offshore drilling, opening or closing manufacturing plants, shopping malls, new 

sports stadiums, and new airport or port facilities.

Footnotes

1. See Daniel H. Garnick, "Differential Regional Multiplier Models," Journal of Regional Science 10 (February 1970): 35-47; and Ronald L. 

Drake, "A Short-Cut to Estimates of Regional Input-Output Multipliers," International Regional Science Review 1 (Fall 1976): 1-17.

2. See U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Input-Output Modeling System (RIMS II): Estimation, 

Evaluation, and Application of a Disaggregated Regional Impact Model (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1981). 

Available from the National Technical Information Service, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, VA 22161; order no. PB-82-168-865; price 

$26.

3. See U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, The Detailed Input-Output Structure of the U.S. Economy, Volume II

(Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 1994); and U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, 

State Personal Income, 1929-93 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, June 1995).

4. See U.S. Department of Commerce, Regional Input-Output Modeling System (RIMS II), chapter 5. Also see Sharon M. Brucker, Steven E. 

Hastings, and William R. Latham III, "The Variation of Estimated Impacts from Five Regional Input-Output Models," International Regional 

Science Review 13 (1990): 119-39.

IMPLAN

David Mulkey and Alan W. Hodges

University of Florida, IFAS Extension

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fe168

The IMPLAN Database

The economic data for IMPLAN comes from the system of national accounts for the United States based 

on data collected by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and other 

federal and state government agencies. Data are collected for 528 distinct producing industry sectors of 

the national economy corresponding to the Standard Industrial Categories (SICs). Industry sectors are 

classified on the basis of the primary commodity or service produced. Corresponding data sets are also 
50

produced for each county in the United States, allowing analyses at the county level and for geographic 

aggregations such as clusters of contiguous counties, individual states, or groups of states.

Data provided for each industry sector include outputs and inputs from other sectors, value added, 

employment, wages and business taxes paid, imports and exports, final demand by households and 

government, capital investment, business inventories, marketing margins, and inflation factors 

(deflators). These data are provided both for the 528 producing sectors at the national level and for the 

corresponding sectors at the county level. Data on the technological mix of inputs and levels of 

transactions between producing sectors are taken from detailed input-output tables of the national 

economy. National and county level data are the basis for IMPLAN calculations of input-output tables 

and multipliers for local areas.

IMPLAN Multipliers

The IMPLAN software package allows the estimation of the multiplier effects of changes in final demand 

for one industry on all other industries within a local economic area. Multipliers may be estimated for a 

single county, for groups of contiguous counties, or for an entire state; they measure total changes in 

output, income, employment, or value added. Definitions are provided below. More detail on the 

derivations of multipliers is available in the earlier cited IMPLAN Users Guide.

For a particular producing industry, multipliers estimate three components of total change within the 

local area:

Direct effects represent the initial change in the industry in question.

Indirect effects are changes in inter-industry transactions as supplying industries respond to 

increased demands from the directly affected industries.

Induced effects reflect changes in local spending that result from income changes in the directly 

and indirectly affected industry sectors.

IMPLAN allows the analyst to choose from multipliers that capture only direct and indirect effects (Type 

I), multipliers that capture all three effects noted above (Type II), and multipliers that capture the three 

effects noted above and further account for commuting, social security and income taxes, and savings 

by households (Type SAM). Total effects multipliers usually range in size from 1.5 to 2.5 and are 

interpreted as indicated below:

Output multipliers relate the changes in sales to final demand by one industry to total changes 

in output (gross sales) by all industries within the local area. An industry output multiplier of 

1.65 would indicate that a change in sales to final demand of $1.00 by the industry in question 

would result in a total change in local output of $1.65.

Income and employment multipliers relate the change in direct income to changes in total 

income within the local economy. For example, an income multiplier for a direct industry change 

of 1.75 indicates that a $1.00 change in income in the direct industry will produce a total income 

change of $1.75 in the local economy. Similarly, an employment multiplier of 1.75 indicates that 

the creation of one new direct job will result in a total of 1.75 jobs in the local economy.

Value added multipliers are interpreted the same as income and employment multipliers. They 

relate changes in value added in the industry experiencing the direct effect to total changes in 

value added for the local economy.
51

PEIM

Preservation Economic Impact Model, created by Rutgers University Center for Urban Policy Research 

for the National Park Service

Excerpted from Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in Oklahoma (2008)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and 

Public Policy at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey for Preservation Oklahoma. 

www.okhistory.org/shpo/econimpact.pdf

The Preservation Economic Impact Model (PEIM) was produced by Rutgers University Center for Urban 

Policy Research for the National Park Service. The PEI Model produces very accurate estimates of the

total regional impacts of an economic activity and employs detail for more than 500 industries in 

calculating the effects.

This model and its predecessors have proven to be the best of the non-survey-based regional inputoutput models at measuring a region’s economic self-sufficiency. The models also have a wide array of 

measures that can be used to analyze impacts. In particular, PEIM produces one of the only regional 

economic models that enable an analysis of governmental revenue (i.e., tax) impacts and an analysis of 

gains in total regional wealth. 

The results of PEIM include many fields of data. The fields most relevant to this study are the total 

impacts with respect to the following:

Jobs: Employment, both part- and full-time, by place of work, estimated using the typical job 

characteristics of each detailed industry. (Manufacturing jobs, for example, tend to be fulltime; 

in retail trade and real estate, part-time jobs predominate.) All jobs generated at businesses in 

the region are included, even though the associated labor income of commuters may be spent 

outside of the region. In this study, all results are for activities occurring within the time frame 

of one year. Thus, the job figures should be read as job-years; i.e., several individuals might fill 

one job-year on any given project.

Income: “Earned” or “labor” income—specifically wages, salaries, and proprietors’ income. 

Income in this case does not include non-wage compensation (i.e., benefits, pensions, or 

insurance), transfer payments, or dividends, interest, or rents.

Wealth: Value added—the equivalent at the subnational level of gross domestic product (GDP). 

At the state level, this is called gross state product (GSP). Value added is widely accepted by 

economists as the best measure of economic well-being. It is estimated from state-level data by 

industry. For a firm, value added is the difference between the value of goods and services 

produced and the value of goods and nonlabor services purchased. For an industry, therefore, it 

is composed of labor income (net of taxes); taxes; non-wage labor compensation; profit (other 

than proprietors’ income); capital consumption allowances; and net interest, dividends, and 

rents received.
52

• Output: Of the measures in any input-output report, perhaps the least well defined one is that 

labeled "output." Output is defined as the value of shipments, which is reported in the Economic 

Census. The value of shipments is very closely related to the notion of business revenues. Thus it 

is NOT the "output" to which most other economists refer and which is better known as "gross 

domestic product" (GDP). Input-output analysis "output" is not the same as business revenues 

for several reasons, however. First, establishments often sell some of their output to themselves 

and therefore do not ship it. Hence, such sales cannot be included in the Census's tally of the 

value of shipments. Second, to avoid some double counting in national accounts (those used to 

produce input-output tables), "output" in the wholesale and retail trade industries is measured 

simply as their margins, which is value added plus the costs of inputs used in the course of doing 

business. That is for these trade industries, "output" does NOT include the value of the items 

stocked on shelves.

Taxes: Tax revenues generated by the activity. The tax revenues are detailed for the federal, 

state, and local levels of government. Totals are calculated by industry.

Federal tax revenues include corporate and personal income, social security, and excise taxes, 

estimated from the calculations of value added and income generated.

State tax revenues include personal and corporate income, state property, excise, sales, and 

other state taxes, estimated from the calculations of value added and income generated (e.g., 

purchases by visitors).

Local tax revenues include payments to sub-state governments mainly through property taxes 

on new worker households and businesses. Local tax revenues can also include revenues from 

local income, sales, and other taxes.
53

Appendix D: Qualitative Measurements

Longitudinal Public Opinion re: Historic Preservation

Two particular applications of qualitative methods would be useful complements to market-based 

quantitative analyses: 1) understanding of social and psychological contexts of decision-making within 

political structures and organizations; and 2) understanding public preferences and opinions directly 

related to cultural, spiritual, aesthetic, and political meanings of heritage, which are only indirectly and 

imperfectly represented by market measures

It would be useful to undertake studies of the political and decision-making processes in which 

economic considerations of preservation are embedded. Such investigations would be related not just 

to how preservation decisions are made about significance, integrity, and the like but also to resource 

allocation questions, both within the preservation field and putting the field in context of other 

alternative kinds of investments or policies.

What should be measured

Public opinion surveys and other narrative forms would be effective for understanding the aggregation 

of individual preferences, to build a “public” snapshot as well as the reasoning behind preferences. 

Additionally, following quantitative findings with ethnographic methods would provide insights on how 

the trade-offs are perceived both by individual consumers/owners and also by the decision-makers who 

possess greater power to create and decide public policies, make regulatory decisions, etc.

How it should be measured

To understand the nuances of public perception of historic preservation, three discrete approaches are 

recommended:

1. Decision-maker surveys: Since the principal audience for economic research on historic 

preservation is decision-makers (politicians, public agency heads, bankers, etc.), small-sample 

surveys or interviews of typical decision-makers would yield direct insight into the types of 

information, arguments, and expectations these important stakeholders regard as most 

relevant. Delphi studies10 or focus groups could be conducted regularly at relevant professional 

meetings or other regular gatherings (legislative meetings, annual conventions of city managers, 

U.S. Conference of Mayors, American Planning Association, CEOs for Cities, Mayors Institute for 

City Design, etc.)

2. Community indicators: A number of American cities have, in the past ten years, established 

community indicator projects to measure the provision or perception of a variety of outcomes 

usually unmeasured because there is no easily available data, the data is inaccessible, or the 

 

10 Delphi studies are a type of survey methodology with two important distinctions from general surveys: 1) the 

persons questioned are experts in the area being studied (as opposed to a random sample of the general 

population), and 2) the process is usually iterative with surveys being refined and retaken after initial results are 

received.
54

community scale is not the level of aggregation. Many of the indicator projects are motivated by 

better understanding sustainability and how to achieve it at the community scale. Historic 

preservation indicators could be added to these creative, longitudinal efforts. One particularly 

effective and prominent indicator system is used in Baltimore, where there is also a robust 

historic preservation community. Baltimore’s effort could be used as a test case, later to be 

promoted nationally. 

3. Annual survey of bellwether preservation sites: A range of places should be studied, including 

publicly and privately operated sites; historic districts; interpreted historic sites and museums. A 

small number of sites could be measured to broadly encompass market and nonmarket 

(educational, aesthetic) values. One basis for the educational methods is Parks Canada’s process 

for gauging the commemorative integrity of its historic sites, which includes interviewing some

visitors about the effectiveness of site interpretation, and interpreting the interviews within a 

clear framework relating outputs to outcomes.

Where the information could be found

A great deal of valuable insight would be gained by creating qualitative, longitudinal data sets tracking 

public preferences and perceptions of historic preservation. Survey questions specific to historic 

preservation values could be included in existing, long-standing public surveys such as the Chicago social 

survey, Michigan consumer preference survey, one of the regular surveys conducted by the Pew 

Charitable Trust, or others. Building on the example of the Presence of the Past11 survey, these could be 

designed to focus on educational questions as well—not just consumer preferences but what people are 

actually seeking and learning in their experiences with historic places.

Social Impacts of Preservation

Metrics concerning the social impacts of historic preservation are meant to test and support the 

assumption that greater levels of historic preservation activity in a place are associated with improved 

quality of life (vis-à-vis similar places, or the population at large) or higher levels of social well-being. In 

other words, are well-preserved places also places that are reflective of higher education levels, more 

stable, and safer, with populations that are more diverse?

A second area of research into the social impacts of preservation concerns urbanistic impacts –

correlating places where higher levels of preservation is implemented with other measures of 

environmental quality or design. 

What should be measured

The specific kinds of social benefits that could be explored include: 

 

11 Presence of the Past: Popular Uses of History in American Life, Roy Rosenzweig and David Thelen, Columbia 

University Press, 1998
55

Levels of education (% of residents with college education, or standardized school test scores, 

for instance) 

Ethnic, class, racial, and age diversity; 

Length of housing tenure (a gauge of community stability) 

Incidence of crime

Other categories of data about social phenomena that are hypothesized to have some 

connection to historic preservation

On the urban quality side, the use of the Walk Score12 metric, for example, enables the precise mapping 

of an index about the pedestrian-friendly quality of a property’s surrounding context. And there is a 

growing body of research on measuring the “grain” of urban fabric (related to building scale, street 

design, intensity of street activity, etc.). To the extent these methodologies prove successfully it would 

present another way to associate preservation activities with particular empirical qualities of the built 

environment more generally. 

How it should be measured

Because most of this social data is collected as part of the decennial Federal Census, longitudinal 

analysis, tracking change in these relationships through time is enabled. It is much more useful to be 

able to understand processes of change through longitudinal studies than to glimpse only an isolated 

snapshot in time.

Straightforward statistical regression can be carried out to determine correlations between historic 

preservation activity (designation, tax credit investments, etc.) and one (or multiple) other factors.

It should be cautioned that these analyses would yield insight about the correlation of preservation and 

social factors, without necessarily determining causal relationships. In other words, the studies would 

not prove that better preserving a neighborhood will lead to great diversity, etc., only that it is 

associated with greater diversity.

Notwithstanding the limitations of regression analysis, it would be illuminating to document objectively 

the association between places that pursue historic preservation also being places where citizens enjoy 

greater levels of social well-being. And, if one is able to study change over time, a clear understanding of 

the direction of chance (positive or negative), if not its precise magnitude, would be a significant finding 

in itself. This would be useful, among other reasons, as a contribution to debates about preservation 

and gentrification.

 

12 See Appendix F
56

Appendix E: Tourism Measurements

On the Demand side

Number of visitors

Duration of stay

Origin of visitors

o In-state, out-of-state

o International/domestic

Purpose of visit

o Leisure

o Professional/Business

o Other

Means of transportation

Place of lodging

Destination(s)

Visitor characteristics

o Age

o Sex

o Number of travellers in party

o Income

o Race

o Education

o Employment status

o Household composition

o Propensity to travel

o Activities undertaken during trip

o Organization of trip (individually organized, group tour, travel agent assisted, etc.)

On the Supply side

Accommodations

o Hotels and motels
57

o B&Bs, Inns

o Hostels

o Campgrounds

o Private residence (paid)

o Private residence (non-paid; with family, friends)

o Owned dwelling (second home, time-share)

o Other

Activity venues (often merged with “Activities undertaken during trip”

o Sports and recreation

 Observational

Professional

Semi-professional

Amateur

 Participatory

Golf

Tennis

Swimming

Boating/sailing/surfing

Skiing, skating

 Parks

 Beaches

 Hiking trails

 Climbing

 Fishing/hunting

 Other

o Events

 Theater

 Concert

 Opera

 Ballet
58

 Festivals

 Amusement parks and theme parks

 Circus

 Sports car races

 Other

o Gambling

 Casinos

 Horse, dog racing

 Other

o Education and heritage

 Museums

 Educational short courses (not related to profession)

 Exhibitions

 Historic sites

 Zoos

 Nature reserves

 Botanical gardens

 Other

o Sightseeing 

o Shopping

o Meetings and conventions

 Conferences

 Trade shows

 Symposiums

 Exhibitions

o Passive leisure

 Sunbathing

 Relaxing

 Eating and drinking
59

Tourism Segments

This category varies greatly based on who is doing the analysis and where the tourism study is being 

done. But common categories of tourism segments include:

Business tourism

Recreational tourism

Adventure tourism

Religious tourism

Cultural tourism 

Heritage tourism (often included as part of cultural tourism)

Eco-tourism

Architectural tourism

Gaming tourism

Health and wellness tourism

Rural/agricultural tourism

Visiting friends and relations tourism

Holiday leisure tourism

Voluntarism tourism

Recreational vehicle tourism

Winter sports tourism

Tourism Economic Measurements

Depending on the purpose and the depth of the analysis, comprehensive tourism studies might 

measure:

Hotel room occupancy rates

Jobs and household income associated with tourism

Dollars spent per day

Dollars spent per trip

Allocation of expenditures

Taxes generated:

o Sales
60

o Gasoline o Bed tax o Income tax (indirect) o Property tax (indirect)
61

Appendix F: Walk Score 

http://www.walkscore.com/methodology.shtml

Street Smart Walk Score calculates a score by mapping out the walking distance to the closest amenity 

locations of 9 different amenity categories. Different numbers of amenities are counted in each category 

(for instance the first 10 restaurants and bars are counted, while only 1 park is counted), which are 

referred to as counts.

Each category receives different weights as well, which shows that category’s importance relative to 

other categories. The distance to a location, the counts and the weights determine a base score of an

address, which is then linearly expanded to range from 0 to 100. After this, an address may receive a 

penalty for having poor pedestrian friendliness metrics, such as having long blocks or low intersection

density.

The following categories, counts and weights are used:

amenity_weights = {

"grocery": [3],

"restaurants": [.75, .45, .25, .25, .225, .225, .225, .225, .2, .2],

"shopping": [.5, .45, .4, .35, .3],

"coffee": [1.25, .75],

"banks": [1],

"parks": [1],

"schools": [1],

"books": [1],

"entertainment": [1],

}

The numbers after a category indicate the assigned weight and number of counts of that amenity. More 

than one number means that more than one count of that amenity is included, with the second nearest 

amenity of that type receiving the weight of the second number, etc. At this point, the weights indicate 

the relative importance of categories to one another. So having a grocery store nearby is 3 times as 

important as having a bank nearby.

These weights were determined from the research literature and testing the algorithm. Lee and Moudon 

(2006) find evidence that nearby grocery stores, restaurants/bars, banks and schools increase walking, 

as do areas with grocery/retail/restaurant clusters. Moudon et al. (2006) and Cerrin et al. (2007) both

cite collected survey data showing that grocery stores, restaurants/bars, retail locations, coffee shops, 

and banks are common walking destinations. The Cerrin et al. (2007) survey responses find that people 

frequently walk to parks as well. The categories we use here are also similar to ones used in studies and 

work on walkability by Iacono et al. (2010), El-Geneidy and Levinson (2010), and Piekarski (2009).

The amenity categories have been determined from the available research to be of either of high 

importance to walkability, medium importance or low importance. This is reflected in the category 

weights. Grocery store and restaurants/bars have total category weights summing to 3, while shopping 

and coffee shops have weights summing to 2, while the other categories sum to 1.
62

Grocery stores receive the heaviest weight because they have been found to be drivers of walking (Lee 

and Moudon 2006), as well as the most common walking destination in surveys (Moudon et al. 2006, 

Cerrin et al. 2007).

Restaurants and bars are combined into a single category due to their overlapping nature: many 

restaurants have bars and many bars serve food. Restaurants/bars are found to be some of the most 

frequent walking destinations (Moudon et al. 2006, Cerin et al. 2007), so this category has a combined 

total weights of 3.

Variety and options are important, so 10 counts of restaurants/bars are included, with the first counts 

receiving greater weight than the later counts to account for diminishing returns. Including 10 counts of 

restaurants also allows for more differentiation among high scoring locations, as 10 restaurants or bars 

must be very nearby to receive a perfect score.

The shopping category includes clothing stores and stores categorized as “gift shops”, which defines a 

broad range of retail locations (e.g. specialty food store, flower store, children’s store, etc.). The “gift 

shop” category is used as a proxy for the breadth of retail stores near an address.

Shopping and retail are commonly used categories in the research literature, are one of the more 

common walking destinations (Cerin et al. 2007) and are found to increase walking (Lee and Moudon 

2006). The category has a combined total weight of 2, and there are 5 counts included. Giving this 

category 5 counts demands a certain density of shopping locations for an address to score well. The

stores looked at in this category are important in themselves, but are also meant to proxy to a degree 

for other shopping stores. Not every retail location falls under clothing store or gift shop, but an address 

that scores well in this category is likely to have these other retail locations close by as well.

For coffee shops, variety is also important, but not to the same degree that it is for restaurants and 

shopping. Two counts are included, so that in the ideal walkable area some choice is available. 

Additionally, coffee shops are found by both Cerin et al. (2007) and Moudon et al. (2006) to be 

important destinations, and the presence of nearby coffee shops gives an indication of the overall 

walkability of an area. Because of this, we have made the total weight of this category 2.

The other categories are deemed to be more or less equal and all receive a weight of 1 and have 1-

count. The literature does not give a clear indication of which of these other categories should have a 

greater weight, while still indicating that they are important. However, they are not generally found to 

be as important as grocery stores, restaurants/bars, and retail, and it does not seem appropriate to

include more than one count for any of them.
63

Appendix G: Literature Review – Update

Since Randall Mason’s 2005 Brookings Institute Report, numerous studies, reports, and papers focusing on the economic impact of historic 

preservation have been produced. Both academics and practitioners have written about the various aspects of this diverse topic, some 

deepening the extant body of knowledge and others opening new avenues to explore. This report collects literature published since 2005 that is 

intended to be a continuation of Mason’s report. Within each category, sources that focus directly on the subject or are particularly relevant are 

summarized; other interesting but less-relevant works are also listed, but not summarized. Overall, the intention of this document is to call 

attention to the most useful and illuminating literature for practitioners and decision-makers, not to list exhaustively everything published on a 

topic.

Some of the published work relevant to the economics of heritage and preservation are difficult to categorize. For example, many of the national 

and statewide economic impact reports contain tourism information and analysis. Regarding cultural and heritage tourism in particular, much of 

the current research and resultant publications on its economic impact is subsumed under tourism in general or focuses on reporting visitor 

spending habits and travel services, rather than econometric analysis. This is an area within cultural and heritage tourism that warrants further 

analysis. 

Since 2005, the literature on environmental sustainability has grown dramatically and issues of sustainability have taken center stage in the 

thinking and practice of those involved in evaluating the economic impact of historic preservation. The additional category “Sustainability and 

Historic Preservation” is thus necessary to sample some key works that put this recent shift in focus. Similarly, new technologies have opened 

doors to new and innovative ways of visualizing and presenting economic data by placing it within its geographic context. The additional 

category of “Geographic/Information Technology and Historic Preservation” is thus necessary. It should also be noted that public lands and 

outdoor recreation is a growing focus due to the creation and promotion of National Heritage Areas, National Heritage Corridors, and other 

public lands. However, literature currently focuses on the reporting of data rather than scholarly or economic assessment.

Mason’s 2005 Brookings Institute report, Economics and Historic Preservation: A Guide and Review of the Literature, can be found here: 

http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2005/09metropolitanpolicy_mason/20050926_preservation.pdf. 

ECONOMICS AND PRESERVATION: REVIEW AND RESULTS FROM THE LITERATURE 

NEW CATEGORIES:

1. Sustainability and Historic Preservation
64

Literature focusing on the connections between sustainability and historic preservation is varied and growing. Articles focus on such topics as 

the impact of historic preservation regulations on property values, the reuse of historic buildings, LEED standards, and the integration of culture 

in sustainability measurements. The linkages between sustainability and heritage conservation are becoming increasingly prominent and 

receiving more attention from practitioners and academics alike. 

Stubbs, Michael. “Heritage-Sustainability: Developing a Methodology for the Sustainable Appraisal of the Historic Environment.” Planning, 

Practice & Research 19. 3 (August 2004): 285–305.

This article sets out to establish a framework for appraising sustainability in the heritage sector. Focusing ostensibly on case study material, a 

methodology is advanced for the promotion and appraisal of other projects that seek to promote sustainability. The hypothesis tested by 

this work is that policy makers in the heritage sector need to pay regard to a ‘bespoke’ application of sustainability when devising indicators 

to measure the consequences of their actions. It follows that the null hypothesis, therefore, is that such projects can be measured by generic 

indicators, applicable to both heritage and non-heritage projects.

Young, Robert. “Striking Gold: Historic Preservation and LEED.” Journal of Green Building 3.1 (2007).

This article explores the growth and emergence of the preservation movement as an increasingly recognized and important form of 

sustainable design. The article provides an overview of the relationship between the preservation and environmental movements, 

exemplifying how to multiply the benefits of historic preservation and environmental stewardship. The article uses the case study of the W. 

P. Fuller Paint Company Building in Salt Lake City. This project is among the first to simultaneously incorporate LEED and Historic 

Preservation Tax Incentives to achieve a “Gold” rating by LEED while meeting conformance requirements to the Secretary of the Interior’s 

Standard for Rehabilitation and earning a 20% historic preservation tax credit.

APT Bulletin: The Journal of Preservation Technology “Special Green Issue” 36.4 (2005).

Caramitru, Ion, et al. "Session III: Policies for Culture in Sustainable Development." Proceedings of Culture Counts: Financing, Resources, and the 

Economics of Culture in Sustainable Development, October 4-7, 1999, Florence, Italy. Washington, DC: The World Bank, 2000. 49-60.

Chusid, Jeffrey M. “Natural Allies: Historic Preservation and Sustainable Design.” In Steven A. Moore, ed. Pragmatic Sustainability: Theoretical 

and Practical Tools. New York: Routledge, 2010. 

Deakin, Mark, et al, eds. Sustainable Urban Development Volume 2: The Environmental Assessment Methods. Oxford: Taylor & Francis, 2007.

De Groot, R. "Function-Analysis and Valuation as a Tool to Assess Land Use Conflicts in Planning for Sustainable, Multi-Functional Landscapes." 

Landscape and Urban Planning 75.3-4 (2006): 175-186. 
65

Farr, Douglas. Sustainable Urbanism: Urban Design with Nature. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2007. 

Gražuleviciute, I. "Cultural Heritage in the Context of Sustainable Development." Environmental Research, Engineering and Management 3.37 

(2006): 74-79.

Lombardi, P. and P.S. Brandon. "A Framework for Understanding Sustainability in the Cultural Built Environment." Cities & Sustainability: 

Sustaining Our Cultural Heritage, Conference Proceedings, Vishva Lekha Sarvodaya, Sri Lanka, cap.IV, 2000. Eds. Lombardi, P., et al. 1-25.

McMahon, Edward T. “Sustainability and Property Rights.” Urban Land, June 2005: 30-33.

Moreno, Y.J., W. Santagata, and A. Tabassum. "Material Cultural Heritage, Cultural Diversity and Sustainable Development." ACEI, 13th

International Conference on Cultural Economics, June 3-5, 2004, University of Illinois at Chicago, Department of Economics, Chicago, 

Illinois.

National Trust for Historic Preservation website: http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/sustainability/

Rypkema, Donovan. “Economics, Sustainability, and Historic Preservation.” National Preservation Conference, October 1, 2005, Portland, 

Oregon.

--- “New Life in Warehouse Districts: The Inherent Sustainability in the Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Sites." Sustainable Urban 

Redevelopment (Spring 2008): 6-12. 

---. "Economics, Sustainability, and Historic Preservation." Forum Journal 20.1 (2005). 

---. "Historic Preservation as Sustainable Development." North Carolina Preservation Magazine, Spring 2005. 

Stubbs, Michael. “Heritage-Sustainability: Developing a Methodology for the Sustainable Appraisal of the Historic Environment.” Planning 

Practice and Research 19.3 (August 2004): 285-305. 

Tweed, Christopher and Margaret Sutherland. "Built Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Urban Development." Landscape and Urban Planning

83.1 (2007): 62-69. 

Wheeler, Stephen M. and Timothy Beatley, eds. The Sustainable Urban Development Reader. New York: Routledge, 2004.
66

2. Geographic / Information Technology and Historic Preservation

Recent innovations in technology have opened new avenues and possibilities for measuring the economic impact of historic preservation. 

Mapping techniques have allowed for the visualization of valuable information that informs policy makers, practitioners, academics, community 

members, and other stakeholders by presenting data in an easily understood format. Other forms of media technology have altered the way in 

which information is conveyed, changing the landscape of cultural economics and heritage. The relationship between technology and historic 

preservation is expanding and will likely continue to create new ways in which the values of heritage resources can be communicated. 

Ost, Christian. “A Guide for Heritage Economics in Historic Cities: Values, Indicators, Maps, and Policies.” Getty Conservation Institute. (2009).

Ost uses familiar language but approaches measurement of heritage economics in a values-based framework, beginning with use value 

then distinguishing between direct and indirect values and the indicators that can be used to measure heritage’s economic impact. Some 

of his suggested indicators are specific, such as the visitor/resident ratio to measure tourism pressures, full- versus part-time residency, 

population decline/increase, and rental rates. He also suggests mapping as a powerful tool, then describes various methods for policy

approaches, including cost-benefit analysis and multi-criteria analysis. 

Indicators – explains how to measure the economic value by the use of indicators. Based on definitions of the economic values of a 

historic city’s cultural heritage, it suggests categories of indicators for each component of the total economic values. It also describes 

economic and strategic analysis of historic cities using heritage indicators.

Indicators are used to communicate performance and guide decision-making. They are well regarded as a way to test a city’s 

performance. Heritage’s contributions to a city’s economic performance can also be measured by indicators. Page 41 has a good chart of 

examples of such indicators. He suggests their use because they’re low-cost, and can be gathered without a huge amount of difficulty or 

time. 

Mapping – explains how to present economic landscapes, from data or indicators to maps. The mapping process is defined, along with 

its specific software and on database requirements. The purpose of this section is also to prepare the decision-making process by using 

mapping techniques compatible to urban-planning methods.

Policies – proposes methodologies to city authorities – as macroeconomic policy makers – to enhance planning and managing of 

heritage conservation, such as cost-benefit analysis and multi-criteria analysis applied to historic cities, with the goal of achieving a 

balance between conservation and city development.
67

Bodurow, Constance C., Calvin Creech, Alan Hoback, and Jordan Martin. "Multivariable Value Densification Modeling Using GIS." Transactions in 

GIS 13 (2009): 147-75.

The article focuses on the development and use of a GIS mapping tool – called the Value Densification Community Mapping Project 

(VDCmp) – used primarily to evaluate density of resources and physical features. The authors focused on Southwest Detroit, Michigan, 

as a case study. This project was developed to explore how aspects of the post-industrial city can be understood, communicated, and 

leveraged in service of equity and sustainability and to use technology to reveal data about the city in order to convince community, 

political, and economic leadership to embrace a broader interpretation of value. The VDCmp digital interface is unique in that it models 

“social exchanges” in three dimensions and allows the user to overlay social and infrastructure layers with physical density. These 

techniques have allowed the community groups to visually identify over- or under-served resources, conflicting planning objectives, 

environmental health impacts, or areas of social inequality, with an end-goal of developing a dynamic, unified development and 

preservation strategy for the community 

Other

Heuer, Tad. "Living History: How Homeowners in a New Local Historic District Negotiate Their Legal Obligations." The Yale Law Journal 116.4 

(2007): 768-822.

American historic preservationists are increasingly emphasizing the need to preserve not only prominent landmarks but also the 

vernacular architectural culture of "ordinary neighborhoods." Preserving such neighborhoods often requires convincing homeowners to 

agree to legal restrictions on how they maintain their homes, yet to date there has been no empirical research on how homeowners 

have responded to the policy tradeoffs inherent in making such a decision. This Note fills that gap, using extensive original empirical 

research to examine how homeowners in New Haven's recently approved City Point Local Historic District viewed and managed their 

legal obligations. This Note then draws upon these data to develop policy recommendations for improving local preservation efforts 

nationwide. (Abstract taken from publication)

Kaminski, Jaime, Jim McLoughlin, and Babak Sodagar. "Assessing the Socio-economic Impact of Heritage: From Theory to Practice." Technology 

Strategy, Management and Socio-economic Impact. Budapest: Archaeolingua, 2007.

This chapter describes the key dimensions and interconnections that drive impact and combines this with a typology of impacts and 

accompanying measurement considerations. This theoretical construction is converted into a practical tool for assessing and measuring 

impact through the new 6Cs HIT (Heritage Impact Training) model, which is designed to help heritage managers, strategists, and policy 

makers implement coherent and effective approaches to capturing the socio-economic impacts of heritage.

Rypkema, Donovan. Feasibility Analysis of Historic Buildings. Washington, DC: National Trust for Historic Preservation, 2007. 
68

Rypkema provides a thorough methodology for assessing the feasibility for reuse of a historic building. Through step-by-step guidelines, 

he takes users through the stages of determining the potential outcomes for a heritage building, emphasizing the importance of 

capitalizing upon each team member’s strengths and the economic impact of potential uses. 

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Below is a listing of pertinent additions to Mason’s 2005 Brookings Institute annotated bibliography. 

A. “First Ten Readings”

Peacock, Alan, and Ilde Rizzo. The Heritage Game: Economics, Policy, and Practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.

A notable feature in cultural life is the growing demand to preserve and promote public access to historical buildings and sites, and artistic 

treasures of the past. Governments are increasingly involved in financing and regulating private attempts to meet this growing demand as 

well as extending their own provision of these treasures in state and locally owned museums and galleries. These developments raise 

important issues about the scope, content, and relevance of heritage policies in today's world. Written by two leading figures in the field of 

cultural economics, this authoritative book focuses on the impact of economic analysis on the formulation and implementation of heritage 

policy. (Abstract taken from publication)

Journal of Cultural Economics

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development

B. Overarching Works on Economics and Historic Preservation

Bowitz, Einar and Karin Ibenholt. “Economic Impacts of Cultural Heritage – Research and Perspectives.” Journal of Cultural Heritage 10.1 

(January-March 2009): 1-8.

Doyle, Gillian. “Why Culture Attracts and Resists Economic Analysis.” Journal of Cultural Economics 34 (2010): 245-259. 

Glaeser, Edward. Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention Makes Us Richer, Smarter, Healthier and Happier. New York: Penguin 

Press, 2011.

Mason, Randall. “Be Interested and Beware: Joining Economic Valuation and Heritage Conservation.” International Journal of Heritage 

Studies 14.4 (2008): 303-318.
69

Snowball, J.D., Measuring the Value of Culture: Methods and Examples in Cultural Economics. Berlin: Springer, 2008.

C. Economics of the Arts and Culture 

Anheier, Helmut K., and Yudhishthir Raj. Isar. The Cultural Economy: Cultures and Globalizations. London: Sage, 2008.

This second volume The Cultural Economy analyses the dynamic relationship in which culture is part of the process of economic 

change that in turn changes the conditions of culture. It brings together perspectives from different disciplines to examine such 

critical issues as:

• the production of cultural goods and services and the patterns of economic globalization

• the relationship between the commodification of the cultural economy and the aesthetic realm

• current and emerging organizational forms for the investment, production, distribution, and consumption of cultural goods 

and services

• the complex relations between creators, producers, distributors, and consumers of culture

• the policy implications of a globalizing cultural economy

Currid, Elizabeth, “How Art and Culture Happen in New York: Implications for Urban Economic Development.” Journal of the American 

Planning Association 73.4 (2007).

This article looks closely at the mechanisms that structure and drive the cultural economy and suggests possible avenues for cultural 

economic development and policymaking based on these mechanisms. The author focuses on how cultural producers obtain jobs, 

advance their careers, gain value for their goods and services, and interact with each other.

Butcher, Jim. "Cultural Politics, Cultural Policy and Cultural Tourism." Cultural Tourism in a Changing World: Politics, Participation and 

(Re)presentation. By Melanie K. Smith and Mike Robinson. Clevedon, UK: Channel View Publications, 2006: 21-35. 

Cowen, Tyler. "Why Everything Has Changed: The Recent Revolution in Cultural Economics." Journal of Cultural Economics 32.4 (December 

2008): 261-273. 

DeNatale, Douglas and Gregory H. Wassall. “Creative Economy Research in New England: A Reexamination.” White paper prepared for 

discussion at the Research Convening of the New England Research Community, New England Foundation for the Arts (March 27, 

2006). 
70

DeNatale, Douglas and Gregory H. Wassall. “New England’s Creative Economy: The State of the Public Cultural Sector – 2005 Update. A new 

research methodology.” New England Foundation for the Arts (August, 2006).

Evans, Graeme. “From cultural quarters to creative clusters: creative spaces in the new city economy.” The Sustainability and Development

of Cultural Quarters: International Perspectives. Edited by M. Legner. Stockholm: Institute of Urban History, 2009: 32-59.

Evans, Graeme. “Creative Cities, Creative Spaces and Urban Policy” Urban Studies 46.5&6 (2009): 1003-1040. 

Frey, Oliver. “Creativity of Places as a Resource for Cultural Tourism,” in Enhancing the City: New Perspectives for Tourism and Leisure: Urban

and Landscape Perspectives, vol. 6. Edited by Giovanni Maciocco and Silvia Serreli. New York: Springer, 2009: 135-154. 

Ginsburgh, Victor A. and David Throsby, eds. Handbook of the Economics of Art and Culture. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2006.

Grodach, C. "Cultural Development Strategies and Urban Revitalization." International Journal of Cultural Policy 13.4 (2007): 349-370.

Madden, Christopher. “Indicators of Arts and Cultural Policy: A Global Perspective.” Cultural Trends 14.3 (September 2005): 217-247.

Markusen A. "Urban development and the politics of a creative class: evidence from a study of artists." Environment and Planning 38.10 

(2006): 1921 – 1940.

Potts, Jason, Stuart Cunningham, John Hartley, and Paul Ormerod. “Social network markets: a new definition of the creative industries.” 

Journal of Cultural Economics 32.3 (2008): 167-18.

“Culture and Economic Performance: What strategies for sustainable employment and urban development planning?” Forum d’Avignon. 

Prepared by Ineum Consulting and Kurt Salmon Associates. 2010. http://www.forumavignon.org/sites/default/files/editeur/2010_Etude_Ineum_UK.pdf

D. Environmental Economics

Cato, Molly Scott. Green Economics: An Introduction to Theory, Policy and Practice. London: Earthscan, 2009.

Davis, Steven M. “Preservation, Resource Extraction, and Recreation on Public Lands: A View from the States.” Natural Resources 

Journal[CORRECT?] 48.303 (2008).
71

E. Works on the Notion of Value

Maskey, Vishakha, Cheryl Brown, and Ge Lin. "Assessing Factors Associated With Listing a Historic Resource in the National Register of 

Historic Places." Economic Development Quarterly (2009).

The authors focus on the socioeconomic, institutional, and location factors behind a community’s reasons for approving or 

disapproving of historic district listings. Findings are summarized here: Two separate models of total historic listings and rate of 

historic house listings in the National Register identify the following: number of higher education institutions and older houses, rural 

area, more than one historic preservation organization, proportion of females, and the share of income in the service economy. Age, 

poverty rate, and the Gini coefficient of income inequality have an inverse relationship with listing.

Levi, Daniel J. “Does History Matter? Perceptions and Attitudes toward Fake Historic Architecture and Historic Preservation.” Journal of 

Architectural and Planning Research 22:2 (Summer 2005).

Mason, Randall. “Theoretical and Practical Arguments for Values-Centered Preservation." CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship 25 

(Summer 2006): 21-48.

Provins, Allan, David Pearce, Ece Ozdemiroglu, Susana Mourato, and Sian Morse-Jones. “Valuation of the historic environment: the scope for 

using economic valuation evidence in the appraisal of heritage-related projects.” Progress in Planning 69 (2008): 131-175.

F. Basic Cost Studies / Descriptive Work

Ozdil, Taner R. "Assessing the Economic Revitalization Impact of Urban Design Improvements: The Texas Main Street Program." Diss. Texas 

A&M University, 2006. 

G. Economic Impact Studies

Many of these studies have focused on the holistic economic impact of a state’s tax credit and grant programs, non-profit activities, and 

private investment, while others have more narrowly analyzed the impact of specific programs. Standard indicators such as jobs, household 

income, and private investment continue to be used as primary quantitative units of measurement. However, the expansion of thinking 

within urban planning and public policy towards sustainability and the creation of livable neighborhoods has led many academics and 
72

practitioners to focus on new indicators that are representative of these shifting priorities. These include walkability, embodied energy, 

infrastructure savings, and waste saved from landfills. 

The subcategories below – National, State, Tax Credits, Tourism, and Public Lands and Outdoor Recreation – attempts to distinguish the 

focus of the studies by theme, however it should be noted that in some cases there is significant overlap. For example, a statewide study 

may include tourism impacts in its scope. Similarly, a tourism study may focus entirely on an outdoor recreation area. 

For more details on the focus of each study, please see Appendix B.

a. National

Measuring the Economic Impact of Federal Historic Properties (2005)

Prepared by the Federal Preservation Institute.

https://www.historicpreservation.gov/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=6d67e144-49b2-4088-8506-46694fab5757&groupId=14502

This 45-page report discusses the difficulties in measuring the economic impact of preservation and advocates for federal agencies to 

engage in measuring the economic impacts of their historic preservation programs. It describes in detail the metrics and methodologies 

commonly used and their implications for the agencies. Measuring such impacts would help agencies understand the economic 

contributions of their historic preservation activities. 

Blue, Gray, and Green: A Battlefield Benefits Guide for Community Leaders (2006)

Prepared by Davidson – Peterson Associates for The Civil War Preservation Trust.

http://www.civilwar.org/land-preservation/blue-gray-and-green-report.pdf

The full report analyzes the economic impact on local communities of the preservation of 20 historic battlefields.

b. State

The Economic Benefits of Historic Preservation in Colorado (2005)

Prepared by Clarion Associates of Colorado, LLC in association with BBC Research and Consulting for The Colorado Historical Foundation.

http://www.blm.gov/heritage/adventures/HT_Resources/Colorado%20Historical%20Foundation/ECONOMIC%20BENEFITS%20OF%20HISTO

RIC%20PRESERVATION%20IN%20COLORADO%20.pdf

This report looks at the state and federal historic preservation tax credit, the state historical fund, heritage tourism, property values, and 

Colorado’s Main Street program. 

Banking on Tennessee’s History: The Economic Value of Historic Preservation to the People of Tennessee (2005)

Prepared by the Tennessee Preservation Trust.
73

http://www.sitemason.com/files/evPV1C/Banking%20on%20Tennessee%20History.pdf

This report addresses public/private partnerships, downtown revitalization, job creation, heritage tourism, and property values.

Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in Arkansas (2006)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program. 

http://www.arkansaspreservation.org/economic-benefits/

The report was prepared during the advocacy for a state historic preservation tax credit. It examines economic impacts of the federal 

historic preservation tax credit, rehabilitation, grant programs, heritage tourism, Main Street, and property values.

Contributions of Historic Preservation to the Quality of Life of Floridians (2006, 2010 update) 

http://www.flheritage.com/preservation/economic-impact.cfm

Two reports are available. Sections include: “Quality of Life Indicators”; “Preservation Law and Policies”; “Heritage Tourism”; “History 

Museums”; “Historic and Affordable Housing.”

Report Card: The Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in Michigan (2006)

Original 2002 report prepared by Clarion Associates for the Michigan Historic Preservation Network. 

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/rehabilitation-tax-credits/addtional-resources/Michigan-Report-on-Tax-Credit.pdf

Two reports are available. Key chapter/section titles of the original report: "Rehabilitation of Historic Buildings"; "Historic Districts and

Property Values"; "Preservation and Michigan Tourism."

Preservation at Work for the Nebraska Economy (2007)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for the Nebraska State Historical Society and the Nebraska State Historic Preservation Office.

http://www.nebraskahistory.org/histpres/publications/EconImpactReport.pdf

This 16-page illustrated report summarizes the findings of the study referenced below, Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in 

Nebraska.

Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in Nebraska (2007)
74

http://www.nebraskahistory.org/histpres/publications/Nebraska_Hist_Pres_Econ.pdf

This full report addresses rehabilitation, heritage tourism, the Main Street Program, historic sites and museums, historic tax credits, and 

historic property valuation.

The Economic Benefits of Historic Preservation in Washington State: Technical Report (2007)

Prepared by Matt Dadswell, Tetratech, Inc and William Beyers, University of Washington for the Washington Department of Archaeology 

and Historic Preservation.

http://www.dahp.wa.gov/pages/HistoricSites/documents/FinalTechnicalReport_January30.pdf

This report focuses on the economic impact of federal and state historic preservation tax credits, Main Street programs, heritage tourism, 

and the impact of historic designation on property values. 

Historic Preservation in Kentucky (2008)

Prepared by John I. Gilderbloom, Erin E. House and Matthew J. Hanka for Preservation Kentucky.

http://sun.louisville.edu/preservation/PreservationinKentucky201-29-08.pdf

The report focuses on affordable housing, property values, tax incentive programs, Main Street programs, heritage tourism, rural heritage, 

jobs, and environmental benefits. It also provides a demographic background of the state’s population and recommendations for local and 

state government. 

Economic Impacts of Historic Preservation in Oklahoma (2008)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for Preservation Oklahoma. 

www.okhistory.org/shpo/econimpact.pdf

www.okhistory.org/shpo/econimpactes.pdf

Two reports are available: a 393-page technical report and a 34-page executive summary. The study includes a detailed analysis of the 

economic impacts of general rehabilitation work in Oklahoma; of redevelopment completed under the federal and state rehabilitation tax 

credits programs; of the Oklahoma Main Street Program; of heritage tourism initiatives; and of local historic district designation.

The Abell Report: March 2009 –- Heritage Tax Credits: Maryland's Own Stimulus to Renovate Buildings for Productive Use and Create Jobs, an 

$8.53 Return on Every State Dollar Invested (2009)

Prepared by Lipman Frizzell & Mitchell and Northeast-Midwest Institute for the Abell Foundation.

http://www.abell.org/pubsitems/arn309.pdf
75

This report addresses economic impacts such as job creation, leverage of historic preservation investment, generation of state and local 

taxes. Significantly, it also includes a substantial section on environmental impacts. These are measured using infrastructure savings, 

calculations of landfill savings, embodied energy, walkability, climate change, and greenfields. Some of the key findings include: 

The reuse of extant historic structures over the past 12 years resulted in an infrastructure investment “savings” of $102-$163 million.

Assuming each tax credit preservation project to be an alternative to demolition, the state’s investment in historic commercial 

properties has “saved” 387,000 tons of material from landfills over the past 12 years. This amount of landfill material is the 

equivalent of filling a football stadium to a depth of 50-60 feet.

The Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Philadelphia (2010)

Prepared by Econsult Corporation for the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

http://www.preservephiladelphia.org/wp-content/uploads/Econ_Report_Final.pdf

The report examines federal historic preservation tax credit projects, investment on other real estate projects, investment by government

and other non-profit entities, residential conversions, heritage tourism, the impact of the film industry in Philadelphia, historic resources and 

the urban form, and the real estate impact of historic designation.

The Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Southwestern Pennsylvania (2010)

Prepared by the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh. 

http://www.youngpreservationists.org/YPADocs/Economic%20Impact%20in%20SW%20PA.pdf

The study examines construction and trade-related jobs produced during rehabilitation, new permanent employment positions established 

as a result, new business development, housing unit creation, and annual tax benefit generated. 

Good News in Tough Times: Historic Preservation and the Georgia Economy (2011)

Prepared by PlaceEconomics for the Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources. 

http://www.gashpo.org/Assets/Documents/Economic_impact_study.pdf

The report looks at the impact historic preservation has had on spurring investment, attracting visitors, revitalizing historic downtowns, and 

effectively leveraging scarce resources. 

Investment in Connecticut: The Economic Benefits of Historic Preservation (2011)

Prepared by PlaceEconomics for the Historic Preservation and Museums Division, Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism. 

Two reports will be available: a four-page summary report and a longer, technical report. The study includes an analysis of job creation, 

private investment, walkability, household income, geographic diversity and distressed neighborhoods. 
76

c. Tax Credits

Rhode Island Historic Preservation Investment Tax Credit Economic and Fiscal Impact Analysis (2005)

Prepared by Lipman Frizzell & Mitchell LLC for Grow Smart Rhode Island.

http://www.ncshpo.org/current/pdfinitiatives/RhodeIsland.pdf

A 16-page report that discusses employment impact, fiscal impact, the necessity for tax credits, and return on state investment.

Economic and Fiscal Analysis of Changes to the Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program in Maryland (2006)

Prepared by Richard Romer and Kristen Waters for Dr. Jacqueline Rogers, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, College Park. 

http://www.preservationmaryland.org/pdf/Historic%20Tax%20Credit%20Report.pdf

A series of studies of Maryland historic rehabilitation tax credits.

The Economic Benefits of State Historic Preservation Investment Tax Credits (2007) 

Prepared by Wendy Wichman, Preservation Associates for The Historic Hawaii Foundation.

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/rehabilitation-tax-credits/addtional-resources/State_Tax_Credit_Rept_Jan2008-1.pdf

This 15-page study of state preservation investment tax credits nationwide was prepared for the Historic Hawaii Foundation as the Hawaii 

State Legislature considered creation of a state historic preservation tax credit.

Prosperity Through Preservation: Virginia’s Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program (2008)

Prepared by the Virginia Commonwealth University Center for Public Policy for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.

http://www.dhr.virginia.gov/pdf_files/Prosperity%20through%20Preservation.pdf

This 42-page, full-color, illustrated report summarizes effects of the program after a decade in operation.

Iowa's Historic Preservation and Cultural and Entertainment District Tax Credit Program Evaluation Study (2009)

Prepared by Zhong Jin and Mike Lipsman for the Tax Research and Analysis Section, Iowa Department of Revenue. 

http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/14794/

The Delaware Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program: Good for the Economy, Good for the Environment, Good for Delaware’s Future 

(2010)

Prepared by PlaceEconomics for the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs.

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/rehabilitation-tax-credits/addtional-resources/Rypkema-Report-on-Delaware-Tax-Credit2010.pdf
77

This report focuses on job creation, affordable housing, household income, smart growth, leveraging of private funds, and a comparison of 

historic preservation activity with construction activity. 

The Statewide Economic Impact of Federal Historic Preservation Investment Tax Credit Projects in Southeastern Pennsylvania (2010)

Prepared by Econsult Corporation for the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

http://www.pennsylvaniaworks.org/news/Study_20100428_HistPresSE.pdf

Economic Impact of Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits in Kansas (2010)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for Kansas Preservation Alliance.

http://www.kshs.org/preserve/documents/Kansas_40_Page_Report_for_Web.pdf

The report focuses on trends regarding geographic dispersion of tax credits projects, jobs, income, tax base, and a comparison of activity 

before and after the implementation of the Kansas state historic rehabilitation tax credit. 

An Evaluation of the Missouri Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program’s Impact on Job Creation and Economic Activity Across the State

(2010)

Prepared by Sarah L. Coffin, Rob Ryan and Ben McCall, Saint Louis University for The Missouri Growth Association.

http://www.novoco.com/historic/resource_files/research/slu_mo_hptc_0310.pdf

The 35-page report examines the impact of the state’s tax credit via jobs, income, affordable housing and environmental impact. 

First Annual Report on the Economic Impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit (2010)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for the National Trust Community Investment Corporation.

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/community-revitalization/jobs/Rutgers-Report.pdf

The report provides a cumulative look at the economic impact of the federal historic tax credit using data provided by the National Park 

Service. It includes such indicators as jobs, income, affordable housing and taxes. 

The Economic and Fiscal Impact on Maine of Historic Preservation and the State Historic Preservation Tax Credit (2011)

Prepared by Planning Decisions, Inc for Maine Preservation. 

http://www.novoco.com/historic/resource_files/research/me_htc_impact_042111.pdf

This 27-page report provides a summary of impact of preservation in Maine from 2007-2011, highlighting jobs, income, affordable housing 

and property values. 
78

Second Annual Report on the Economic Impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit (2011)

Prepared by the Center for Urban Policy Research at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, the State 

University of New Jersey for the National Trust Community Investment Corporation.

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/community-revitalization/jobs/2nd_Annual_Rutgers_Report.pdf

The report provides an update of the first report, using updated data from the National Park Service. 

d. Tourism 

2005 Heritage Tourism Spending in Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Area (2005)

http://www.nationalheritageareas.com/documents/DL_MGM2_Final_2005_Fact_Sheet.pdf

Produced by Public Works. 

This short fact sheet highlights the impact of tourism spending on jobs, income, and total direct and indirect economic impact to the region. 

Economic Impact of Heritage Tourism Spending (2005)

http://www.nationalheritageareas.com/documents/ANHA_Eco_Imp_Report_2005_MGM2.pdf

Produced by the Alliance of National Heritage Areas.

The study focuses on job creation, visitor spending, visitor behavior, profits and rents, indirect business taxes, and income. 

Cultural Tourism in Indiana: The Impact and Clustering of the Arts and Creative Activities in this Recession (2009)

Prepared by Ball State University’s Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER).

http://cms.bsu.edu/Academics/CentersandInstitutes/BBR/CurrentStudiesandPublications.aspx

The study found that the arts and creative activities account for $4.9 billion in direct economic activity and employ 43,000 workers in 

Indiana.

e. Public Lands and Outdoor Recreation

Economic Impact of Pennsylvania’s Heritage Areas: A Study in Success (2008)

http://www.heritagepa.net/publication_files/summary-of-economic-impact-study.pdf

Sponsored by Heritage PA. 

The study used visitor surveys and the MGM2 model to identify job creation, visitor spending, direct and indirect economic effects. 
79

The Economic Impact of Arizona’s State Parks (2009)

http://www.pr.state.az.us/publications/downloads/2009_ASP_Economic_Impact_c.pdf

Prepared by The Arizona Hospitality Research & Resource Center, Center for Business Outreach, Northern Arizona University.

The study found that the total economic impact of Arizona State Parks on the state during FY 2007 was $266,436,582. Of that, historic parks 

accounted for $35.4 million. 

A Development and Economic Impact Study of the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor (2010)

Prepared by University of South Carolina – Clemson University Tourism Research Partnership, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation – Travel & Tourism 

Industry Center. 

http://www.hrsm.sc.edu/travelandtourism/documents/2010ADevelopmentEconomicImpactStudySCNationalHeritageCorridor.pdf

The study focuses on stakeholder interviews, economic impact scenarios, travelers’ needs and preferences, and product development. 

H. Regression Analyses

Noonan, D. S. “Finding an Impact of Preservation Policies: Price Effects of Historic Landmarks on Attached Homes in Chicago, 1990-1999.” 

Economic Development Quarterly 21 (2007): 17-33.

The article attempts to provide an example of an assessment of impact of landmark designation on property values without 

methodological limitations and biases. Examples of such bias include an omitted variable such as important unobserved 

characteristics that likely correlate with landmark designation and can bias results. Second, if designations depend on property 

values or neighborhood housing market conditions, the endogenous selection process further undermines inferences about 

preservation policies’ effects. The article outlines more robust empirical strategies and presents new evidence on landmark 

designation effects on property values. For a sample of Chicago home sales during the 1990s, a hedonic price analysis suggests that 

landmark buildings and districts sell at a small premium. To address the omitted-variable bias, a repeat-sales approach demonstrates 

significant spillover effects of landmark designation on prices. These estimates are also robust to sample selection bias and some 

forms of spatial autocorrelation.

Ruijgrok, E. C. M. “The Three Economic Values of Cultural Heritage: A Case Study in the Netherlands.” Journal of Cultural Heritage 7 (2006): 

206-213. 

The paper demonstrates that conservation of historic properties is a sound investment and that the costs of conservation are 

outweighed by the benefits. The authors use three measurements: a housing comfort value, a recreation value, and a bequest value. 
80

The housing comfort value is measured using the hedonic pricing method, while the recreation and bequest value are measured 

using the contingent valuation method.

Narwold, A., J. Sandy, and C. Tu. “Historic Designation and Residential Property Values,” International Real Estate Review 11 (2008): 83-95.

I. Stated-Preference Studies: Contingent Valuation and Choice Modeling 

Choi, Andy S., Franco Papandrea, and Jeff Bennett. "Assessing Cultural Values: Developing an Attitudinal Scale." Journal of Cultural 

Economics 31.4 (2007): 311-35.

The authors outline the limitations of existing attitudinal valuation methods, including contingent valuation methods. They explore 

the potential for the identification of latent variables that are likely to help explain the multidimensional nature of cultural value. In 

particular, they outline the development of a cultural worldview scale. The scale is a measure of people’s underlying general 

attitudes such as primitive beliefs and perceptions in the major dimensions of perceived cultural value, which are represented as a 

limited number of latent variables.

Tuan, T. and S. Navrud. "Capturing the Benefits of Preserving Cultural Heritage." Journal of Cultural Heritage 9.3 (2008): 326-37.

This paper details the results from a contingent valuation (CV) study in My Son, Vietnam. The authors provide advice on the policy 

use of the results and the ways these benefits could be captured and used to improve the condition of the sites by using the 

estimated benefits for visitors to assess optimal entrance fees that maximize revenues for the site. They also perform a cost-benefit 

analysis of the preservation project, and show how the outcome can be used to justify investments in cultural heritage preservation.

Boter, Jaap, Jan Rouwendal, and Michel Wedel. "Employing Travel Time to Compare the Value of Competing Cultural Organizations." Journal 

of Cultural Economics 29.1 (2005): 19-33. 

J. Appraisal Studies

Reynolds, Judith. Historic Properties: Preservation and the Valuation Process, Chicago, IL: The Appraisal Institute, 2006.

Roddewig, Richard. Appraising Conservation and Historic Preservation Easements. Chicago, IL: The Appraisal Institute, 2010.
81

Winson-Geideman, Kimberly and Dawn Jourdan. "Historic façade easements and single-family home value: a case study of Savannah, 

Georgia (USA)." International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis 4.1, (2011): 6-17.

Winson-Geideman, Kimberly and Dawn Jourdan and Shawn Gao. “The Impact of Age on the Value of Historic Homes in a Nationally 

Recognized Historic District.” Journal of Real Estate Research 33.1 (2011): 25-48. 

http://aux.zicklin.baruch.cuny.edu/jrer/papers/pdf/new_current/vol33n01/02.25_48.pdf

K. Policy and Decision-Making Support 

Frey, Patrice. “Building Reuse: Finding a Place on American Climate Policy Agendas.” National Trust for Historic Preservation. 2009. 

http://www.preservationnation.org/issues/sustainability/additional-resources/buillding_reuse.pdf

Kurtz, Rick S. “Public Lands Policy and Economic Trends in Gateway Communities.” Review of Policy Research 27.1 (2010): 77–88.

Noonan, D.S. and D. Krupka. “Determinants of Historic and Cultural Landmark Designation: Why We Preserve What We Preserve.” Journal 

of Cultural Economics 34 (2010): 1-26 .

Schwartz, Harry K. “State Tax Credits for Historic Preservation.” The National Trust for Historic

Preservation’s Center for State and Local Policy. (Updated October 2010).

Throsby, David. The Economics of Cultural Policy. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010. 

“Historic Preservation’s Critical Role in the Economic and Sustainable Development Policy of New York State.” The Preservation League of 

New York State. 2007. http://www.uticalandmarks.org/Research/histprespolicyNY.pdf

L. Case Studies

“HeritageWorks: The Use of Historic Buildings in Regeneration – A toolkit of good practice.” English Heritage (2007).

This toolkit provides valuable case studies of large-scale regeneration projects in the UK, detailing the role of historic resources in 

this process. The economic impact of these projects is discussed. 

Gilderbloom, John I., Matthew J. Hanka, and Joshua D Ambrosius. “Historic preservation’s impact on job creation, property values, and 

environmental sustainability.” Journal of Urbanism 2.2 (July 2009): 83-101. 
82

This study examines the impacts of historic preservation on jobs, property values, and environmentalism in Kentucky and its largest 

city, Louisville.

Coulson, N. Edward and Michael L. Lahr. “Gracing the Land of Elvis and Beale Street: Historic Designation and Property Values in Memphis.” 

Real Estate Economics 33.3 (2005): 487–507.

Productivity Commission (Australian Government). Conservation of Australia's Historic Heritage Places Inquiry report, 2006. 

http://www.pc.gov.au/projects/inquiry/heritage/docs/finalreport.

Vishakha Maskey, Cheryl Brown, Alan R. Collins, and Hala F. Nassar. “What Is Historic Integrity Worth to the General Public? Evidence from a 

Proposed Relocation of a West Virginia Agricultural Mill.” Agricultural and Resource Economics Review 36.1 (April 2007) 39–52.

M. Economic Development and Historic Preservation 

Tweed, C. and M. Sutherland. "Built Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Urban Development." Landscape and Urban Planning 83.1 (2007): 62-

69.

The paper considers changing definitions of built heritage before outlining the broad contribution it can make to sustainable urban 

development. The paper then considers how the built environment contributes to the satisfaction of human needs by providing 

symbolic meanings that bind cultural groups and communities across generations. Results from the development and application of 

a novel survey method, designed to assess different people’s perceptions of and attitudes to urban historical areas, are presented 

before describing a case study of recent urban development in Belfast that highlights the problems of intangible heritage. The paper 

concludes with a brief discussion of shortcomings of existing approaches to urban regeneration and suggests how these might be 

overcome through a greater understanding of how people interact with the urban environment and its heritage. 

Department for Communities and Local Government, Regeneration. “Valuing the Benefits of Regeneration.” United Kingdom, December 

2010.

The report is designed to provide an analytical framework that will underpin a research methodology on the value of the benefits 

from regeneration and how they compare with the relevant costs. The intention for such a framework is to establish a robust 

evidence base, identify potential challenges, and provide constructive suggestions on how these could be overcome. Section 2 of the 

final report identifies three main themes of regeneration activity: Worklessness, Skills and Business Development (18.8% of public 

sector expenditure on regeneration in period 2009-2011); Industrial and Commercial Property and Infrastructure (11.3% of 
83

expenditure); and Homes, Communities and the Environment (69.9% of expenditure). Within each of these three over-arching 

themes eight Activity Categories are identified and then a series of Activity Types. The study developed logic chains for each of the 

Activity Types that show how regeneration investment in each type generates different outputs that in turn contribute to outcome 

change. 

Greenblatt, A. "Downtown Renaissance: Are Center Cities Finally Returning to Health?" Congressional Quarterly Researcher 16.24 (2006): 

553-576. 

Leinberger, Christopher B. Turning Around Downtown: Twelve Steps to Revitalization. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Center on 

Urban and Metropolitan Policy, 2005. 

Lindberg, James. “Rural Development Trends and Opportunities for Historic Preservation.” Historic Preservation Forum 20.4 (Summer 2006): 

6-14. 

Mallach, Allan. Bringing Buildings Back: From Abandoned Properties to Community Assets: A Guidebook for Policymakers and Practitioners. 

New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 2006. 

Rypkema, Donovan. Strengthening Communities through Historic Preservation. Washington, DC: Department of Housing and Urban 

Development, to be released 2011. 

Rypkema, Donovan. Feasibility Analysis of Historic Buildings. Washington, DC: National Trust for Historic Preservation, 2007. 

Thurley, Simon, Louis Armstrong, and Liz Peace. Heritage Works: The Use of Historic Buildings in Regeneration. A Toolkit of Good Practice. 

England: RICS, British Property Federation, English Heritage, and Drivers Jonas, 2006. 

http://www.rics.org/site/download_feed.aspx?fileID=8385&fileExtension=PDF

Wagner, Fritz W., et al, eds. Revitalizing the City: Strategies to Contain Sprawl and Revive the Core. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2005.

N. Gentrification

Freeman, Lance. There Goes the 'hood: Views of Gentrification from the Ground Up. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press, 2006.
84

Rather than hewing to theory by asking professionals about gentrification in minority-dominated urban areas, Columbia assistant 

professor Freeman takes a practical approach, bringing his questions to the residents themselves. Focusing on New York City 

neighborhoods Harlem, in Manhattan, and Brooklyn's Clinton Hill, he asks residents about everything from widespread retail 

development to expensive apartments and residential developments. What he uncovers is a "nuanced reaction toward 

gentrification. ... welcomed by some and feared and loathed by others, and even dreaded and welcomed at the same time by the 

same people." It's Freeman's pursuit of this duality that makes the book strong – he's willing to admit that gentrification is both a 

pleasure and a problem, rather than setting up camp on one side. He explores the reasons that residents welcome gentrification, 

and the very real, though by no means universal benefits imparted by it. Simple experiences like grocery shopping in a clean, well-lit 

store, or eating at a decent restaurant, are new and much-appreciated by indigenous residents – except that those residents must 

struggle to afford such places, despite the measure of economic opportunity created by them. That sense of balance, combined with 

the powerful voices of the folks involved makes this study important and informative. (From Publisher’s Weekly)

Lees, Loretta, Tom Slater, and Elvin K. Wyly. Gentrification. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group, 2008.

This [was] the first ever textbook on the topic of gentrification, written for upper-level undergraduates in geography, sociology, and 

planning. The gentrification of urban areas has accelerated across the globe to become a central engine of urban development, and 

it is a topic that has attracted a great deal of interest in both the academy and the popular press. Gentrification is the first 

comprehensive introduction to the subject. It explains the theories surrounding gentrification and includes numerous case studies 

explaining how it works. The book has international coverage, but also features a sharp analysis of gentrification in the United 

States. (Publisher abstract)

Hutton, Thomas A. The New Economy of the Inner City: Restructuring, Regeneration and Dislocation in the 21st Century Metropolis. New 

York: Routledge, 2008

O. Affordable Housing and Historic Preservation

Arigoni, Danielle, Robin Surratt, and Janice Clark. Making the Connection. The Smart Growth Network Subgroup on Affordable Housing. 

2009. (http://www.smartgrowth.org/pdf/epa_ah-sg.pdf)

Ceraso, Karen. "Eyesore to Community Asset: Historic Preservation Creates Affordable Housing and Livable Neighborhoods." National 

Housing Institute: Shelter Force Online.
85

Johnson, Helen. The Economics of Rehabilitation for Affordable Housing Projects: Are the Secretary of Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation a 

Significant Barrier to Project Completion. MA thesis. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 2010. 

http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1143&context=hp_theses&seiredir=1#search=""affordable+housing"+historic"

Listokin, David et al. Best Practices for Effecting the Rehabilitation of Affordable Housing: Framework and Findings (Vol. I). Washington, DC: 

US HUD, Office of Policy Development and Research. 2006.

Rosenthal, Larry A. and David Listokin New or Rehab: Striking A New Balance Under California's Affordable Housing Standards. UC Berkeley: 

Berkeley Program on Housing and Urban Policy. 2009. http://escholarship.org/uc/item/6099j2wr

Woodward, P. Historic preservation and revitalization in working-class communities. M.S. dissertation. Clemson University, Clemson, South 

Carolina. 2007. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink?Ver=1&Exp=04-11-2016&FMT=7&DID=1296119531&RQT=309&attempt=1&cfc=1

“Affordable Housing and Historic Preservation.” The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. Washington, DC. 2007. 

http://www.huduser.org/portal/publications/pdf/historic_preserv.pdf

“Comments from NCSHPO on the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation 2005 Policy Statement on Affordable Housing and Historic 

Preservation.” National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers. 2005.

“Making Affordable Housing in Historic Buildings.” Heritage Consulting, Inc. Sponsored by Preservation New Jersey. 2011. 

http://www.heritageconsultinginc.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Making-affordable-housing-in-historic-buildings-report-

.pdf

“The ACHP Task Force on Affordable Housing and Historic Preservation: Final

Report.” The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. Washington, DC. 2005.

P. Urbanization and Historic Preservation

Chan, E.H.W. and G.K.L. Lee. "Critical Factors for Improving Social Sustainability of Urban Renewal Projects." Social Indicators Research 85.2 

(2008): 243-256. 
86

Grodach, C. "Cultural Development Strategies and Urban Revitalization." International Journal of Cultural Policy 13.4 (2007): 349-370. 

Szold, Terry S. "True Urbanism: Living in and Near the Center." Journal of the American Planning Association 74.2 (2008): 261-262. 

Q. Tax Issues and Historic Preservation

Pickard, Rob. "A Review of Fiscal Measures to Benefit Heritage Conservation." RICS Research Paper Series 7.6, July 10, 2007. 

(http://www.rics.org/site/download_feed.aspx?fileID=3508&fileExtension=PDF)

R. Tourism and Historic Preservation

Campbell, George Adrian, Thomas James Straka, Robert M. Franklin, and Ernie P. Wiggers. “Ecotourism as a revenue-generating activity in 

South Carolina Low country plantations.” Journal of Ecotourism, 1747-7638, First published on 30 March 2011.

Cela, Ariana, Sam Lankford, and Jill Knowles-Lankford. "Visitor Spending and Economic Impacts of Heritage Tourism: a Case Study of the Silos 

and Smokestacks National Heritage Area." Journal of Heritage Tourism 4.3 (2009): 245-56.

Burr, Steven W. and Jascha M. Zeitlin. “A Heritage Tourism Overview.” Utah Recreation and Tourism Matters. Utah State University Institute 

for Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, January 2010. 

Cerina, Fabio, Anil Markandya, and Michael McAleer. Economics of Sustainable Tourism (Routledge Critical Studies in Tourism, Business and 

Management). New York: Routledge, 2010. 

Cuccia, T. and R. Cellini. “Is Cultural Heritage Really Important for Tourists? A Contingent Rating Study.” Applied Economics 39.2 (February 

2007): 261-271. 

Hampton, M.P. "Heritage, Local Communities and Economic Development." Annals of Tourism Research 32.3 (2005): 735-759. 

Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, B. "World Heritage and Cultural Economics." Museum Frictions: Public Cultures/Global Transformations. Eds. Ivan 

Karp, et al. North Carolina: Duke University Press, 2006. 161-203. 
87

Gelbman, Alon and Amos S. Ron. "Heritage and Cultural Tourism: The Present and Future of the Past." Tourism Geographies 11.1 (2009): 

127-129.

Mandala, Laura. “The Cultural and Heritage Traveler,” Mandala Research. 2009. http://mandalaresearch.com/index.php/purchasereports/view_document/1-the-cultural-a-heritage-traveler-study?tmpl=component

Morris, Christine Ballengee and James H. Sanders III. "Culture, identity, representation: the economic policies of heritage 

tourism." International Journal of Education through Art 5, no. 2/3(December 2009): 129-42. Education Full Text, WilsonWeb.

Plaza, B. “Valuing museums as economic engines: Willingness to pay or discounting of cash-flows?” Journal of Cultural Heritage 11. 2 

(2010):155-162.

Xie, Philip Fiefan. “Developing industrial heritage tourism: A case study of the proposed Jeep museum in Toledo, Ohio.” Tourism

Management 27. 6 (2006): 1321-1333. 

“Heritage Tourism Handbook: A How-to Guide for Georgia.” Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Historic Preservation Division. March 

2010. 

http://www.georgia.org/SiteCollectionDocuments/Industries/Tourism/Product%20Development/GA%20Heritage%20Tourism%20Ha

ndbook.pdf

“The Impact of Travel on State Economies.” U.S. Travel Association. June 2009. 

http://commerce.idaho.gov/assets/content/docs/Research/Impact%20of%20Travel%20on%20State%20Economies%2009.pdf

“Exploring Authentic Oregon: The Importance of Cultural Tourism.” Oregon Arts Commission. September 2006. 

http://www.oregonartscommission.org/pdf/oac_connections_tourism_1.pdf

S. Preservation Advocacy

Kirk, Patricia L. “Changing Places.” Urban Land, November/December 2007.

The author details the role historic buildings can play in responding to the growing demand for housing. Residential construction has 

seen a trend in conversions of historic buildings to residential spaces due to scarcity in vacant land and difficult entitlement 
88

processes. The value and use of federal and state tax credits is explored. Conversion of historic high-rises is generally more cost 

effective than building new ones. 

Kirk, Patricia L. “Capturing the Spirit.” Urban Land, November/December 2007.

Developers are responding to pressure to develop inner-city neighborhoods and are finding that reusing existing historic buildings is 

both aesthetically and financially appealing. 

Ford, L.R. "Historic Preservation and the Sense of Place." Growth and Change 5.2 (2006): 33-37. 

Loulanski, Tolina. "Revising the Concept for Cultural Heritage: The Argument for a Functional Approach." International Journal of Cultural 

Property 13.02 (2006): 207-233. 

Nyron, Ron. “Historic Main Street Revivals.” Urban Land, November/December 2007.

Rypkema, Donovan. “Globalization, Urban Heritage, and the 21st Century Economy.” Global Urban Development 1.1 (May 2005).

--"The American Contrast." Journal of Architectural Conservation 12.3 (November 2006).

Throsby, David. "The Value of Cultural Heritage: What Can Economics Tell Us?" Capturing the Value of Heritage, The Proceedings of the 

London Conference, January 25-26, 2006, Swindon, London. Ed. Kate Clark. Swindon: English Heritage, 2006. 40-43. 
89

Appendix H: Data and Programs Included in Economic Impact Studies

State General Reports 

State Study name

RESULT PROGRAM

Link

Jobs Household 

Income

Leveraging 

Private 

Funds

Property 

Values

Affordable 

Housing

Historic 

Rehab

Tax 

Credits

Main 

Street

Heritage 

Tourism

Other

Arkansas

Economic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Arkansas (2006)

X X X X X X X X Grants

Historic

 designation

http://www.arkansaspreservation.or

g/economic-benefits/

Colorado The Economic Benefits of 

Historic Preservation in 

Colorado (2002)

X X X X X X X X X Rural preservation

Preservation

 indicators

www.coloradohistoryoahp.org/publications/1620.htm

The Economic Benefits of 

Historic Preservation in 

Colorado (2005)

X X X X X X X X X http://www.blm.gov/heritage/adventu

res/HT_Resources/Colorado%20His

torical%20Foundation/ECONOMIC

%20BENEFITS%20OF%20HISTOR

IC%20PRESERVATION%20IN%20

COLORADO%20.pdf

Florida Economic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Florida (2002)

X X X X X X X Museums http://www.law.ufl.edu/cgr/pdf/execu

tive_summary_2010.pdf

www.law.ufl.edu/cgr/technicalreport.shtml

Contributions of Historic 

Preservation to the Quality 

of Life of Floridians (2006)

X X X X X X Museums http://www.flheritage.com/qualityoflif

e.pdf

Georgia Profiting From the Past: The 

Economic Impact of Historic 

Preservation in Georgia 

(1999)

X X X X X X X http://www.gashpo.org/assets/docu

ments/profiting_from_the_past.pdf

Good News in Tough 

Times: Historic Preservation 

and the Georgia Economy 

(2011)

X X X X X X X X X

http://www.gashpo.org/content/displ

aycontent.asp?txtDocument=148

Kentucky Historic Preservation and 

the Economy of the 

Commonwealth: Kentucky's 

Past at Work for Kentucky's 

Future (1996)

www.preservationbooks.org/
90

State Study name

RESULT PROGRAM

Link

Jobs Household 

Income

Leveraging 

Private 

Funds

Property 

Values

Affordable 

Housing

Historic 

Rehab

Tax 

Credits

Main 

Street

Heritage 

Tourism

Other

Historic Preservation in 

Kentucky (2008)

X X X X X X X X X Demographics http://sun.louisville.edu/preservation/

PreservationinKentucky201-29-

08.pdf

Maryland The Value of Historic 

Preservation in Maryland 

(2000)

X X X X X X X Museums and the

 arts

Film production

Sustainable

 communities

Transportation 

 enhancements

Smart Growth

http://www.preservationmaryland.or

g/pdf/PM_Value_scn.pdf

Investing in Our 

Communities: Maryland's 

Heritage Areas Program 

(2003)

X X X X X Grants http://mht.maryland.gov/documents/

pdf/mhaa_economicimpact_2003.pd

f

MassachusettsEconomic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Massachusetts (2002)

X X X X X X http://www.sec.state.ma.us/mhc/mh

cpdf/Economic_Impacts_2002.pdf

Maine The Economic and Fiscal 

Impact on Maine of Historic 

Preservation and the State 

Historic Preservation Tax 

Credit (2011)

X X X X X X X http://www.novoco.com/historic/reso

urce_files/research/me_htc_impact_

042111.pdf

Michigan Investing in Michigan's 

Future: The Economic 

Benefits of Historic 

Preservation (2002)

X X X X X X X X www.michigan.gov/documents/hal_

mhc_shpo_econ_benies_115616_7.

pdf

Report Card: The Economic 

Impacts of Historic 

Preservation in Michigan

(2006)

X X X X X X X http://www.preservationnation.org/is

sues/rehabilitation-taxcredits/addtionalresources/Michigan-Report-on-TaxCredit.pdf

Missouri Economic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Missouri (2001-2002)

X X X X X X X www.dnr.mo.gov/shpo/RutgersStud

y.pdf

Nebraska Economic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Nebraska (2007)

X X X X X X X X X Historic sites and 

 museums

http://www.nebraskahistory.org/histp

res/publications/Nebraska_Hist_Pre

s_Econ.pdf
91

State Study name

RESULT PROGRAM

Link

Jobs Household 

Income

Leveraging 

Private 

Funds

Property 

Values

Affordable 

Housing

Historic 

Rehab

Tax 

Credits

Main 

Street

Heritage 

Tourism

Other

New Jersey Partners in Prosperity: The 

Economic Benefits of 

Historic Preservation in New 

Jersey (1998)

X X X X X X X Historic sites and 

 organizations

http://www.njht.org/dca/njht/publ/do

wnloading_partners_prosperity.html

New York New York: Profiting 

Through Preservation 

(2000)

X X X X X X Arts and culture http://www.placeeconomics.com/pu

b/PlaceEconomicsPUB2001.pdf

North Carolina Profiting from the Past: The 

Impact of Historic 

Preservation on the North 

Carolina Economy (1998)

www.preservationbooks.org/

Oklahoma Economic Impacts of 

Historic Preservation in 

Oklahoma (2008)

X X X X X X X X X www.okhistory.org/shpo/econimpact

.pdf

Pennsylvania The Economic Impact of 

Historic Preservation in 

Philadelphia (2010)

X X X X X X http://www.preservephiladelphia.org/

wpcontent/uploads/Econ_Report_Final.

pdf

The Statewide Economic 

Impact of Federal Historic 

Preservation Investment 

Tax Credit Projects in 

Southeastern Pennsylvania

X X X X X X http://www.preservationnation.org/is

sues/rehabilitation-taxcredits/additionalresources/Study_20100428_HistPre

sSoutheastern.pdf

Rhode Island Economic Effects of Historic 

Preservation in Rhode 

Island (1996)

X X www.preservationbooks.org/

South 

Carolina

Smiling Faces Historic 

Places: The Economic 

Benefits of Historic 

Preservation in South 

Carolina (2003)

X X X X X X X

http://shpo.sc.gov/NR/rdonlyres/AA

B5C630-95E3-408E-8694-

08C8A382DA70/0/hpEconomicsboo

klet.pdf

Tennessee Banking on Tennessee’s 

History: The Economic 

Value of Historic 

Preservation to the People 

of Tennessee (2005)

X X X X X X X Public private 

partnerships

http://www.sitemason.com/files/evP

V1C/Banking%20on%20Tennessee

%20History.pdf

Texas Historic Preservation at 

Work for the Texas 

Economy (1999)

X X X X X www.thc.state.tx.us/publications/rep

orts/EconImpact.pdf
92

State Study name

RESULT PROGRAM

Link

Jobs Household 

Income

Leveraging 

Private 

Funds

Property 

Values

Affordable 

Housing

Historic 

Rehab

Tax 

Credits

Main 

Street

Heritage 

Tourism

Other

Virginia Virginia's Economy and 

Historic Preservation: The 

Impact of Preservation on 

Jobs, Business, and 

Community (1995)

www.preservationbooks.org/

Washington The Economic Benefits of 

Historic Preservation in 

Washington State (2007)

X X X X X X X http://www.dahp.wa.gov/pages/Histo

ricSites/documents/FinalTechnicalR

eport_January30.pdf

West Virginia Economic Impact of Historic 

Preservation in West 

Virginia (1997)

X X X X X X X Grants www.pawv.org/econimpact.htm
93

State Tax Credit Reports

State Name

Jobs Tax 

Base

Affordable 

Housing

Household 

income

Smart Growth/Environmental 

Impact

Leveraging 

of Private 

Funds

ConstructionOther

Link

Delaware The Delaware Historic Preservation Tax 

Credit Program: Good for the Economy, 

Good for the Environment, Good for 

Delaware's Future (2009)

X X X X X X http://history.delaw

are.gov/pdfs/rypke

maReport.pdf

Iowa Iowa's Historic Preservation and Cultural 

and Entertainment District Tax Credit 

Program Evaluation Study (2009)

Primarily reporting tax 

credit activity –

number of tax 

credits/year and 

geography

http://www.iowa.go

v/tax/taxlaw/Histori

cPreservationCred

itStudyMar09.pdf

Kansas

Economic Impact of Historic Rehabilitation 

Tax Credits in Kansas (2010)

X X X X X Comparison of activity 

before and after state 

tax credit

http://www.kshs.or

g/preserve/docum

ents/Kansas_40_P

age_Report_for_

Web.pdf

Maryland

State of Maryland Heritage Structure 

Rehabilitation Tax Credits: Economic and 

Fiscal Impacts (2002)

X X X X X

http://www.preserv

emd.org/html/reso

urces.html 

Maryland Heritage Structure Tax Credit 

Program Economic and Fiscal Impacts

(2003)

X X Forecast of eligible 

properties, high cost 

rehab projects, rehab 

expenditures and 

environmental impact

Final Report of the Governor’s Task Force 

on Maryland’s Heritage Structure 

Rehabilitation Tax Credit Program (2004)

X X X X X

Economic and Fiscal Analysis of Changes 

to the Historic Preservation Tax Credit 

Program in Maryland (2006)

X X X

The Abell Report: March 2009 – Heritage 

Tax Credits: Maryland's Own Stimulus to 

Renovate Buildings for Productive Use 

and Create Jobs, an $8.53 Return on 

Every State Dollar Invested (2009)

X X X X X Revitalization http://www.abell.or

g/pubsitems/arn30

9.pdf
94

State Name

Jobs Tax 

Base

Affordable 

Housing

Household 

income

Smart Growth/Environmental 

Impact

Leveraging 

of Private 

Funds

ConstructionOther

Link

The Environmental and Energy 

Conservation Benefits of the Maryland 

Historic Tax Credit Program (2009)

X X X http://www.preserv

ationnation.org/iss

ues/rehabilitationtaxcredits/additionalresources/EnvEne

rgyImpactsMDHist

TaxCredit.pdf

Missouri An Evaluation of the Missouri Historic 

Preservation Tax Credit Program’s Impact 

on Job Creation and Economic Activity 

Across the State (2010)

X X X X X http://www.novoco

.com/historic/resou

rce_files/research/

slu_mo_hptc_031

0.pdf

North 

Carolina

A Profitable Past, A Priceless Future: The 

Economic Impact of North Carolina’s 

Historic Tax Credit (2008)

X X X X New economic activity http://www.presnc.

org/index.php?opti

on=com_docman&

task=doc_downloa

d&gid=94&Itemid=

103

Rhode 

Island

Rhode Island Historic Preservation 

Investment Tax Credit Economic and 

Fiscal Impact Analysis (2005)

X X X X X X http://www.ncshpo

.org/current/pdfiniti

atives/RhodeIslan

d.pdf

Virginia Prosperity Through Preservation: 

Virginia’s Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit 

Program (2008)

X X X X X Revitalization http://www.dhr.virg

inia.gov/pdf_files/P

rosperity%20throu

gh%20Preservatio

n.pdf

National First Annual Report on the Economic 

Impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit

(2010)

X X X X X X http://www.preserv

ationnation.org/iss

ues/communityrevitalization/jobs/

RutgersReport.pdf

National Second Annual Report on the Economic 

Impact of the Federal Historic Tax Credit

(2011)

X X X X X X http://www.preserv

ationnation.org/iss

ues/communityrevitalization/jobs/

2nd_Annual_Rutg

ers_Report.pdf

Other
95

State Name

Jobs Tax 

Base

Affordable 

Housing

Household 

income

Smart Growth/Environmental 

Impact

Leveraging 

of Private 

Funds

ConstructionOther

Link

Hawaii The Economic Benefits of State Historic 

Preservation Investment Tax Credits

This report does not focus on tax credits in Hawaii, but rather provides a summary of study results from other states to 

encourage the creation of a Hawaii state credit. 

LINK?

http://www.historic

hawaii.org/WhyPre

serve/State_Tax_

Credit_Rept_Jan2

0_2008.pdf