A Profitable Past: The Economic
Impact of
Historic Preservation in Arkansas
Historic Preservation adds $970 million and 23,321
jobs
to Arkansas’s economy each year!
(http://www.arkansaspreservation.com/pdf/publications/Revised%20Rutgers%20bullets%20for%20Web.pdf)
The results of a two-year study 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 find that historic
preservation has a tremendous impact on Arkansas’s economy. The study
looked into the economic impact of the federal Historic Rehabilitation
Tax Credit, the anticipated effect of a proposed state tax credit,
heritage tourism, rehabilitation of historic properties, state historic
preservation grants and the Main Street Arkansas program. All of the
figures cited are in 2006 dollars.
The federal Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit creates a
strong incentive to invest in historic properties.
-
The
federal HRTC leveraged $54.3 million of historic rehabilitation
in Arkansas from 2000 to 2006.
-
Federal HRTC investment supported 767
Arkansas jobs from 2000 to
2006.
-
Federal HRTC investment added $22.4 million
to the income of
Arkansas families from 2000 to 2006.
-
Federal HRTC investment generated $1.1
million
in state and
local tax revenue from 2000 to 2006.
The proposal for a 25 percent Arkansas state historic
rehabilitation tax credit would attract strong investment in Arkansas’s economy.
$12,000-$12,500
of
state investment in the proposed tax credit.
(For comparison, it
takes $67,600 of new highway construction to induce one Arkansas job.)
Each $1 of state investment in the proposed tax credit
would return
$2.19-$2.22
in income to Arkansas families.
(For comparison,
each $1 of state investment in new highway construction returns
46 cents in income to Arkansas families.)
Each $1 of state investment in the proposed tax credit
would return
17.7-18.5 cents
in state and local taxes,
partially offsetting the program’s short-term
cost to state revenue.
(For comparison,
each dollar of state investment in new highway construction
returns 1.1 cents to state and local taxes.)
Heritage tourists are those tourists who visit a site of
historical or cultural value.
16 percent
of all
Arkansas tourists.
Heritage tourists spend about 30 percent
more
than the average
tourist.
Heritage tourists are more likely to come from
out of state, adding
new dollars to Arkansas’s economy.
Heritage tourism generates $890.6 million in Arkansas
each year.
21,552
Arkansas jobs yearly.
Heritage tourism adds $318.8 million
to the yearly income of
Arkansas families.
Heritage tourism generates $73.8 million
in state and local tax
revenue each year.
Arkansans spend $74.5 million each year rehabilitating
historic properties.
1,523
Arkansas jobs yearly.
Historic rehabilitation adds $40.9 million
to the yearly income of
Arkansas families.
Historic rehabilitation generates $3.3
million
in state and
local tax revenue each year.
Historic properties are those properties that are listed
on, or eligible for listing on, the National Register of Historic Places, the Arkansas Register of Historic
Places, and local historic registers.
The state of Arkansas offers several grant programs for
historic rehabilitation.
-
These
include grants from the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resource Council
and the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program’s Historic Preservation
Restoration Grants, County Courthouse Restoration Grants, and
Main Street Model Business Grants,
many of which
are funded through the Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT).
Average investment by the state of Arkansas in
preservation grants is $4.1 million annually.
-
State
preservation grants support 85
Arkansas jobs yearly.
-
State preservation grants add $2.3
million
to the yearly
income of Arkansas families
-
State preservation grants return $100,000
in state and local
taxes each year.
Main Street Arkansas assists local downtown programs in
their preservation-based revitalization efforts.
- Main Street Arkansas is funded by the
Real Estate Transfer
Tax (RETT).
Main Street Arkansas’s
activities result in
$7 million dollars
per year rehabilitating historic downtown buildings and 187
downtown retail/service
jobs.
-
Main Street Arkansas’s efforts result in a total of
246
Arkansas
jobs each year.
-
Main Street Arkansas’s activities add $3.8
million
to the yearly
income of Arkansas families.
-
Main Street Arkansas’s activities return $1
million
in state and
local taxes each year.
Updated: January 16, 2007
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