| This dissertation examines the expanding role that public-private partnerships play in financing and facilitating the development of cultural facilities. In recent decades, as declining government funds have created the need for alternative financing mechanisms, public-private partnerships have become increasingly common in usage and complex in their structure. During approximately the same time period, cultural development, whether that term is understood as the construction and rehabilitation of facilities or some other form of arts promotion, has become more closely tied to the broader theme of urban development. Culture is widely perceived as giving cities or city districts a competitive advantage in attracting new businesses, residents, and tourists.;This study explores both public-private partnership and cultural development by focusing on four separate cultural facility projects that were implemented by private developers and their investors in cooperation with government agencies. Using a qualitative approach, this research employed an exploratory line of inquiry based on four research questions that concern the basic issues of project leadership, government incentives, partnership terms, and private-sector contributions to the cultural aspect of the selected redevelopment projects. The study combined archival data review with semi-structured interviews and observation.;The research shows that these projects benefited significantly from strong, sustained advocacy from public officials, most notably mayors, together with numerous government incentives and other forms of economic assistance. The most substantive of these financing tools were historic tax credits, New Markets tax credits, and tax-increment financing, along with other bonds, loans, and grants. In addition, three of the four selected cultural projects received private-sector financial support, variously provided as a philanthropic contribution, a business investment, or a mixture of the two. The research also shows that these projects were subjected to continuous local press coverage and community scrutiny, which were sometimes difficult to manage and, in two of the four case studies, were impediments to progress. |
