Economic Development Impacts of Hudson Business Improvement District

To understand the economic impacts of The Hudson Business Improvement District (BID), an organization established in 2018 working to improve and support the transformation of downtown Hudson making it an attractive place to live, with vibrant businesses and attractions, Cambridge Econometrics developed a Theory of Change Impact Framework to quantify the outputs and impacts of the BID’s activities on key metrics such as vacancy rates, property values, public perception, and commercial/retail rents in Downtown.

Cambridge Econometrics led the quantitative impact assessment for the Massachusetts Downtown Initiative Program, in collaboration with Ann McFarland Burke Consultant, to demonstrate the benefits to property owners who pay into the BID, support the organization’s recertification process, and gain a better understanding of the effectiveness of this work to inform more impactful future plans.

This Impact Assessment is the fist of its kind study for a Massachusetts BID and is a piloting methodology and analysis that could be applied to other BID areas and in subsequent years in Hudson when additional data is available.

Our Approach

The ‘Theory of Change’ Framework (shown below) shows the direct outcomes and impacts as a direct result of the BID activities, such as beautification initiatives and grants to support downtown artists.

To quantify the outputs and impacts of the BID’s activities identified by the framework, Cambridge Econometrics also developed a business survey distributed in March 2024 to over 100 business and property owners within the BID area as well as analysing existing employment data and property values for the Hudson BID, the rest of Hudson, and similar areas.

Key findings: Analysing and quantifying the outcomes and impacts

• Businesses in the BID have an overwhelmingly positive view of the impact the BID has had on their business performance: 83 percent of businesses reported that the BID had either ‘some positive impact’ or ‘significant positive impact’ on their business
• Business owners report a wide-range of improvements in downtown Hudson since the inception of the BID: the curb appeal of the downtown area, the number of visitors, the storefront appearances, and the support for arts and cultural events are several of the downtown performance measures that the majority of survey respondents reported as improving either ‘somewhat’ or ‘significantly’ due to the BID’s initiatives
• More people are visiting downtown Hudson now compared to before the BID was established: the number of visitors has increased by 12 percent and the number of visits has increased by 13 percent. In addition, there is a younger demographic visiting downtown Hudson with the average age falling from 37 to 34 since the BID was established.
• While property value impacts were not evident, employment growth was evidenced: analysis of survey data collected by CE identified an increase in jobs in Hudson a year after the BID’s establishment, compared to no job increase in the comparator area, suggesting that the BID had a positive impact in job creation in downtown Hudson.