Talking points: The arts and economic development

In these dire times, there are plenty of things the state of New Jersey and our municipalities can do to save money.  We could stop taking care of roads. Or shut off the electricity in our business districts after dark.  Maybe we can fire half the teachers in our schools.

Doesn’t sound good – or smart – does it? We know that if we ignore our infrastructure and cut off a critical resource for our economy, we will lose businesses, jobs and prosperity.  We know that if we don’t provide the resources to help our children get quality education, they won’t do as well in their lives and their careers.

Overspending is not good, but starving good investments is worse.  The arts are an excellent investment for New Jersey’s economy in the 21^st century.  Every dollar spent by an organization supported in 2006 by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts generated more than $7 into the state’s economy, according to a Council report. Nonprofits arts organizations alone generated around $718 million dollars, 6,600 full-time jobs and $18 million in state income and sales taxes in 2007, according to a recent economic impact report from ArtPride New Jersey. Visitor spending at arts events led to $502 million more in New Jersey’s economy that year. Tens of thousands of New Jersey residents work in arts-related organizations.  More work in the restaurants, stores and main street businesses that depend on the arts to attract shoppers and employees, the same way small shops in malls depend on anchor stores.  It’s likely that at least one of your neighbors or friends depends in some way on the arts for their job.

And there are some other good reasons to support the arts. Research by the Arts Build Communities initiative of Rutgers University shows that:

• The arts are becoming a bigger and more important part of our economy.  The creative sector in New Jersey– including theaters, art studios, architecture firms, and galleries – is one of the fastest growing parts of New Jersey’s economy.  The number of creative sector establishments studied by Arts Build Communities grew by more than 31% from 1998 to 2007.  That far outpaces overall growth in New Jersey, which was 20% in that time.   This is not a quirk – it is a long-term trend.
  
  
• The creative sector is growing everywhere in New Jersey.  While the greatest share of the creative sector is in North and Central Jersey, it is growing rapidly in South Jersey and the Skylands. The arts are all over New Jersey’s cities, suburbs, towns, villages and neighborhoods.
  
  
• The arts are infrastructure for the Experience Economy.  Today, you can buy almost anything on the Internet – except an experience.  You can buy books online, but not the experience of being in a bookstore – flipping through a lot of books or magazines, meeting friends for a cup of coffee, or sitting in a comfortable chair feeling connected with other people who share your interests.  In New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware, few people need to drive more than 10 minutes to get to a store or restaurant.  But they are willing to travel 20 minutes or more for an interesting experience.  Based on the experiences of other states, we can expect those who go to a theater or gallery to spend and average $20 to $40 somewhere else in town.  That money is being circulated in New Jersey’s communities, not going into the pocket of an eBay retailer in Montana.
  
  
• The arts help young people develop a critical job skill for the 21^st century: Creativity.  Creativity helps people solve difficult problems, adapt to change and find new opportunities.  Entrepreneurship is creative business development.  That’s why a focus now in leading management publications like Harvard Business Review is on creativity.  Good math and language skills are important.  They can help a young person manage a cash register.  Creativity can help that person manage the store.
  
  
• Cultural tourism.  It is the golden goose of economic development today.  Cultural tourists – those who enjoy arts, history, and distinctive places – spend more money, stay longer, and are more likely to spend their money in different places than traditional visitors.  According to the Americans for the Arts, visitors who take part in cultural or heritage activities spend about 36% more per trip, and are more likely to spend more than $1,000 per trip. Cultural tourists put no added burden – none at all – on schools.  Cultural tourists take memories and leave dollars. States like New Mexico and North Carolina depend on tourists from other states for a lot of their cultural tourism dollars.  We don’t have to.  New Jersey residents had $384 billion of buying power in 2008, according to the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth.  But it also helps that New Jersey does attract a lot of out-of-state tourists. Visitors to New Jersey in 2008 spent nearly $39 billion here, according to figures from the Secretary of State’s office.
  
  
• The arts attract other economic goldmines, such as life sciences and high technology firms.  In an age where businesses can be anywhere in the world, why do you think more of the businesses we want to see are willing to pay higher leases in more interesting communities? Because the people they want to hire want to be in places that are more interesting and culturally rich.
  
  
• Compared to other economic development ventures, the arts have low risk and costs and potentially high rewards.  If you want to attract a large biotechnology firm to your town, you better have a lot of land available, attractive tax package, and extremely business-friendly municipal staff -- from the mayor to the intern who helps the town clerk.  If you want to attract cultural professionals, hold some meetings.  Let them know you’re interested.  Maybe buy them lunch.  The arts can happen anywhere, but they are more likely to happen in places that welcome them.

Even if you would rather go to the dentist than a museum, there are a lot of good reasons to support the arts.  Let’s keep our roads in good shape, the lights on along Main Street, and support one of the best investments for our economy and communities.

Leonardo Vazquez, AICP/PP