What is a Public-Private Partnership?

How public-private partnerships have been used to enhance Parker, Colorado

In the world of economic development and urban renewal, you’ll hear a lot of buzzwords. In fact, you may have read that first sentence and thought to yourself that both “economic development” and “urban renewal” could be considered buzzwords themselves. Here at P3, we work in economic development, meaning we work to enhance Parker’s economy by attracting new development, retaining existing businesses, and bringing in more customers to our local businesses. One of the ways we accomplish this is through public-private partnerships.  

So, what is a public-private partnership?  

A public-private partnership represents a long-term agreement between a government entity and a private sector company that usually involves a private company investing in a government project or development and receiving incentives through things like forgivable loans, reduced development fees, and other options.  

What does this look like in Parker? 

In Parker, we’ve benefited from multiple projects that were only possible because of public-private partnerships.  

Take King Soopers Marketplace. When Cottonwood was first established as part of the urban renewal area in Parker, P3 invested $450,000 to initiate improvements. With this investment, money went into remodeling the King Soopers storefront, which brought in 200 jobs and resulted in $50 million dollars of private investment. In short, the upgrades brought in more customers which brought in new developments and new businesses.  

 Other examples of public-private partnerships in Parker include events like the Farmers Market and Parker Days as well as projects that resulted in private investment like the Parker Flats, and the Morningstar Assisted Living facility.  

The My Mainstreet Implementation project will be another example of a government entity and private company working together to create development in the town, solve problems, and bring in more investment to the community. The Town of Parker and Confluence Companies are working on a development agreement now that will show how this partnership will work.

 For example, within the development agreement, there are plans that while Confluence will develop multi-use buildings within downtown Parker, the Town of Parker will be investing separately in a parking garage to ensure adequate parking downtown with the anticipated increased traffic.

Public-private partnerships are a beneficial way to spark development within a community. Whether it’s through an investment, forgivable loans, reduced development fees, or other strategies, these partnerships are an important piece of improving Parker’s economy to ensure Parker continues to be a great place to live for generations to come.