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Social infrastructure partnerships: a firm rock in a storm?

Tony Gilmour (City Futures Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)
Ilan Wiesel (City Futures Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)
Simon Pinnegar (City Futures Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)
Martin Loosemore (Faculty of the Built Environment, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)

Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction

ISSN: 1366-4387

Article publication date: 9 November 2010

674

Abstract

Purpose

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The purpose of this paper is to use the example of public housing renewal public‐private partnerships (PPPs) to build knowledge on whether social infrastructure PPPs may appeal to the private sector as a less risky investment in a time of global financial uncertainty.

Design/methodology/approach

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The research is based on an international literature review and a limited number of semi‐structured interviews with social housing PPP participants in England, the USA and Australia. These interviews were conducted by Dr Gilmour as part of his doctoral research in 2008.

Findings

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The familiar distinction between social and other forms of infrastructure PPPs has been found to be unhelpful in the case of public housing renewal. This type of PPPs, through their cross‐subsidisation model, face relatively high revenue risk during a recession. However, the commitment of the public sector to the social goals of such projects suggests contract negotiation rather than default is likely if problems occur. PPP risks need to be understood by studying their detailed contract terms, rather than by broad categorisations.

Research limitations/implications

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This paper provides a grounded discussion rather than detailed research findings. Only a small number of projects are included and they are not necessarily representative. Cross‐national comparison is challenging because of different housing policies and economic conditions.

Originality/value

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This paper fills a gap in the literature by both contrasting approaches to a particular type of social infrastructure PPP in different countries, and by making an early assessment of the likely impact of recent turbulence in financial and property markets.

Keywords

Citation

Gilmour, T., Wiesel, I., Pinnegar, S. and Loosemore, M. (2010), "Social infrastructure partnerships: a firm rock in a storm?", Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, Vol. 15 No. 3, pp. 247-259. https://doi.org/10.1108/13664381011087506

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2010, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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