Local governments in the U.S. have at their fingertips a wealth of real estate assets that are underutilized – dormant parking lots, empty plots of land, vacant buildings in downtown, and more. What could happen if governments could make better use of those assets? What if governments could generate revenue from those assets – without losing ownership? And use that new money, earned without raising taxes on a single person, and return it to the local community in the form of concrete benefits for residents?

Under various names, this approach has been adopted in several cities worldwide – notably in Hong Kong; Singapore; Hamburg, Germany; and Copenhagen, Denmark, with great success. At a simplified, high level, the concept is straight-forward:

• The government identifies the budgetary goal, including infrastructure investment, social or environmental benefit, or other needs it wants to fund with additional revenue.
• In partnership with experts specializing in this work, the government inventories all publicly owned assets in a jurisdiction. Typically, the value of publicly owned assets far exceeds estimates, which are usually developed using the historical cost of purchase, not current market value.
• The government identifies one or more underutilized assets to be developed to their highest and best use within parameters set by policymakers.
• The government uses internal or external expertise to improve, manage and maintain the asset.
• The additional value/revenue that is created is transferred to the public in the form of concrete benefits, identified in the first step.
• Government and outside entities provide oversight throughout the process.

This GFOA webinar will highlight government and nonprofit leaders implementing these ideas to create new opportunities in their communities.