"For decades, many civic leaders have treated parks, trails, libraries, community centers and other public spaces as “nice to have” amenities, pleasant features of a community but secondary to the real work of economic development. We believe that framing has the issue backwards. A growing body of research shows that vibrant public spaces are not amenities for people to use after a city becomes prosperous, but central to making that prosperity possible in the first place." [...]

"Libraries and community centers play an analogous role in neighborhoods where private amenities are scarce. The Urban Libraries Council has documented how public libraries function as hubs of small business development, workforce training, and civic engagement, making them downtown activation tools as much as cultural institutions. Community centers, particularly in lower-income areas, activate local streets and provide the civic infrastructure that private markets won’t deliver on their own. These spaces don’t just serve residents; they support and retain them."

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