Culver City Parks Task 8.1 Final Plan - Flipbook - Page 236
Non-Profit Partner Strategy
A primary concern that has been raised by members
of the community is the need for improved
maintenance and stewardship of park lands in
Culver City. Given the ever increasing pressures
on government agencies to design, build, and
maintain park and infrastructural landscapes,
it is recommended that a parks non-profit be
formed with the sole purpose of supporting the
physical landscape of the parks through ongoing
stewardship, fundraising, and investment. An
endowment and conservancy could work in
parallel with the PRCS budget to better support
the maintenance needed.
Conservancy and Non-Profit Precedents
There are successful examples of non-profits and
conservancies that support public parks and
municipalities with both capital improvements
and to support equitable park programming.
An example in Southern California is in Long
Beach where the Partners of Parks (POP) 501 (c)
(3) receives donations specifically designated for
park programming and community services.82 POP
was established in 1985 and is run by a board
of volunteers from across various neighborhoods
in the city to represent the different community
needs and priorities with special focus on youth,
seniors, and families who lack services or are
underrepresented. They hold regular fundraising
events as well as solicit funds from foundations,
corporations, associations, and individuals to
support their efforts throughout the city.
Another example of a successful partnership
between a municipal park system and a nonprofit is the Pittsburgh Park Conservancy which
was founded in 1996 with the focus of improving
physical conditions throughout the city’s park
system.83 Since its founding, the Parks Conservancy
has raised $145 million dollars and completed 23
major park improvement projects. In the 2022 fiscal
year they were funded just over 50% through grants
and donations but have a diverse portfolio that also
include program and rental fees through corporate
partnerships.84 They employ approximately 30 staff
members across horticulture, education, finance,
accounting, and administrative staff.
236 IMPLEMENTATION // PRIORITIZATION, COSTS, AND FUNDING
Other conservancies exist in the United States to
support specific parks and their missions in parallel
to public agencies.
It could be possible to form a non-profit in Culver
City supported by an endowment where the interest
from the endowment funds the conservancy staff,
capital projects, and maintenance.
Based on comparable models, it is recommended
that an initial investment be established to
create the endowment. Fundraising and revenue
generating programs by the conservancy can
continue to build this endowment.
Endowment investments historically return about
3-4% of the total value of the endowment to cover
expenses, or to bridge the gap between available
and required annual operating and maintenance
budgets. That 3-4% revenue spin-off needs to cover
management of the endowment and must take
into account the erosion of the purchasing power
of the endowment due to inflation. These calibrated
regular investments over time will direct what the
long-term size benchmarks for the endowment
will be.
It is recommended that an annual maintenance
budget as a percentage of the capital investment
be established. From this number, a recommended
initial investment for the endowment can be
established. In addition to the initial investment
and non-profit fundraising, as capital projects
are developed it could be possible to designate
a percent of each construction budget to go into
the non-profit.
