Economic Development Publications
2008 Publications
Brownfield Financing: Propelling Brownfield Projects Through Local Governments and Tools
Summer 2008. Redeveloping brownfield sites can be a costly proposition. In many situations, the private development and financial sectors are not able or willing to act on their own to ensure that the full economic potential of site reuse will be achieved. Critical funding gaps are, in fact, the primary deterrent to site and facility reuse. For decades, local governments have used or sponsored public finance mechanisms to stimulate economic activity in certain geographic areas or industries. Now, publicly driven economic development initiatives are reaching into new sectors and incorporating new concerns, such as environmental improvement. Local brownfield reuse strategies and financing techniques are rapidly evolving across the country.
Building San Francisco's Cleantech Economy: Analysis and Strategy Options
September 2008. A market profile and understanding of relevant workforce is critical to supporting the growth of any industry, particularly one as nescient as the Clean Technology economy. ICF International conducted an analysis to develop a Clean Technology cluster strategy for the San Francisco Bay area. The analysis focused on the potential for clean technology industry and green businesses in the City of San Francisco compared to the broader San Francisco Bay Area by identifying competitive challenges facing different segments of the industry. Specifically, it identified the relative strengths and weaknesses of different geographic centers around the Bay area relative to enabling and sustaining the clean technology industry. The project identified shared challenges and specific actions that would enhance cluster development, particularly in San Francisco, and concluded with initial specifications for a clean technology partnership to implement priority actions.
Hawai'i Cruise Industry Study: Module 7—Cost-Benefit Analysis
December 2008. This report by ICF International contains analyses evaluating the economic impacts incurred on the State of Hawaii by the cruise industry. These impacts can be benefits, such as increased consumer spending and regional economic activity, or costs, such as the degradation of air quality from cruise ship pollution and automobile use. The study incorporates impacts on the economy, the transportation infrastructure, the port infrastructure, utilities, community services, the environment, and cultural heritage sites. Over the next ten years, the cruise industry is expected to create significant net economic benefits to the State of Hawaii. The net benefits vary among the different islands in the Hawaii archipelago due to different rates of land-based tourism and time spent by visitors on each island. The study also examines the taxes and fees generated by the cruise industry and how they compare to the costs the cruise industry imposes.
NSP: Stabilizing and Revitalizing Neighborhoods
ICF analyzed the $3.92 billion
Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) created under Title III of Division B of the 2008 Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) and developed this side-by-side comparison of NSP requirements. The document highlights several key program design or implementation questions that grantees will need to consider. NSP grantees are required to submit Action Plans by December 1, 2008, and will need to quickly develop innovative solutions to the foreclosure crisis in their communities, evaluate potential roles for a variety of partners and stakeholders, and complete the Action Plan submission.
2004 Publications
Clusters 2.0: The Local Reality of Globalization
This white paper, written by ICF International's James Gollub, was produced for the Economic Development Coalition (EDIC) Partners and funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA). A condensed version was published in the Fall 2004 issue of
Economic Development America . The white paper brings together perspectives from Gollub’s experience with over 50 national, state, and regional cluster strategies worldwide and discusses why local communities in the United States must compete globally to be economically successful. To build and sustain jobs, all public agencies and institutions as well as businesses in American states and regions must understand their role as "suppliers" in the global economy and be prepared to adapt to market demand. This means learning and adapting, using existing resources in new ways, and making new investments where needed in education, innovation, infrastructure, governance, and quality of life.
2003 Publications
California's Future: It Starts Here—University of California's Contributions to Economic Growth, Health, and Culture
May 2003. The University of California (UC) drew on ICF International's comprehensive report to create a series of fact sheets communicating the importance of UC's contributions to California's economic growth, health, and community resources. The fact sheets outline specifics of the study (broken out by major campus locations), including investment values, spending impacts, 10-year forecast, and research and development productivity gains. The
impact analysis underscores the importance of the University to the state's economic recovery, through direct economic impacts and research that will help generate new businesses and industries. The study also demonstrates the significant return on investment that the state receives for every public dollar invested in the University's mission of teaching, research, and public service.
2000 Publications
Redeveloping Brownfields with Federal Transportation Funds
Prepared for the U.S. EPA Development, Commmunity, and Environment Division, in the Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation. November 2000. The guide is intended to assist brownfield developers, transportation planners, economic development professionals, policy analysts, and others interested in achieving better transportation, environmental, and community outcomes.
These articles represent a selection of our perspectives on Economic Development.
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