Academic Activity and ULI UK.

We have raised our profile with both academics and the professional ULI community this past year. In conjunction with Oxford University Press ULI initiated a prize for the best original research paper published in the Journal of Economic Geography each year. This is one of the most respected international journals publishing research in the areas of interest to ULI. The prize is not restricted to just ULI subjects (the journal does publish papers which might be of only peripheral interest to most ULI members) because the selection is left to an initial sifting of high class papers by the editors and then to the review and judgement of a panel of three senior academics. One, Professor Paul Cheshire, is a member of the ULI executive committee but the other two – leading urban economist Professor Vernon Henderson and economic geographer Professor Meric Gertler – are wholly independent. Nevertheless the winner – a very high quality study by a Dutch team of urban economists entitled “Is the sky the limit? High-rise buildings and office rents” – turned out to be absolutely central to the interests of ULI members. As one of the judges summed it up:

“(The study) looks at the rent premium on offices in taller buildings trying to disentangle the effects of view, internal agglomeration economies and landmark premiums. (The authors) pay careful attention to identification issues and have a good identification strategy, for which they understand the limits.”

The paper’s conclusion was that the evidence pretty strongly supported the interpretation that the rent premium commanded by space in taller buildings in The Netherlands significantly reflected pure agglomeration economies generated by those taller buildings: that is workers in offices in taller buildings were more productive just because of the productivity enhancing nature of such buildings. Taller is more productive, so tenants are willing to pay a rent premium. One of the authors presented the findings at the annual conference in June and there was a lively discussion. There will be another prize awarded shortly for the best paper published during 2015.

The point of the prize is not just to raise the profile of ULI in the academic world (or vice versa) but also to try to help professionals’ access useful academic research. We are hoping to push that agenda forward in 2016 by arranging a series of events where researchers will present their current research results at workshops open to all ULI members.

The Young Leaders continued to build academic and private sector collaboration also organised a highly successful outreach event for students on courses embracing the interests of the ULI. Students from Cambridge, CASS, LBS, LSE, Reading, UCL and UEA attended and we recruited three new members.

Paul Cheshire, Emeritus Professor of Economic Geography, LSE and Nick Mansley, Executive Director-Cambridge Real Estate Research Centre, University of Cambridge