What is the value of a social or faith-based community group in our city? In a time when we measure most things by how profitable it could be, it is hard to say that a faith group might be of any value at all. It used to be, not that long ago, that neighbourhood developers would leave space for community centres, churches, and associations. In fact, many of the earliest cities placed markets, places of worship, and courts for civic engagement right at the heart of a city along a street they would call the ‘cardo.’ The ‘cardo’ was the heartbeat of the city and the value of these community spaces was immeasurable.
Today the value of community groups, non-profits, and places of worship have often been relegated to the outlying industrial sections of a city. Times have changed and surely these outdated institutions no longer serve any purpose a modern city laid out with box stores, parking lots, and cul-de-sacs.
However researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have been rethinking the value of places of worship in city planning and neighbourhood vitality. They asked, “If this congregation disappeared tomorrow and we had to replace everything, including all of the social supports, programs, care, and so on, what would that cost?” They discovered something surprising. The real value of community groups like these is upwards of 4-5 times their annual budgets. These researchers have since applied their findings to other cities and in one landmark study they found that just 10 church communities in Toronto provided an astonishing $45 million in value to the city.
The Halo Project Calculator, born out of this research, functions to continue assessing the real value that faith communities and other social groups bring to the fabric of our Canadian society. Instead of being a layover of a bygone era, church communities are in fact measurably vital contributors to the care and community wellbeing of the cities where they are found.
In the case of Chestermere, there is one surprising discovery. Our city has one of the lowest Halo Scores of any comparably-sized city in Alberta. Faith communities in Camrose, Cochrane, and Stony Plain, for example, provide an average of about $20 million dollars annually of real value to their cities. Chestermere by comparison, which has far fewer faith communities, only experiences less than $8 million dollars annually of economic benefit, among the lowest in the province for our size.
Faith communities and other service groups provide time, care, resources, community connection, and often facilities for the benefit of the cities where they are found. While Chestermere may have among the fewest churches per capita in Alberta, the few we have are not insignificant. In fact, we need all kinds of community groups to thrive and find a home in our midst if we are to grow as a healthy community. For those who count the financial benefits, the Halo Project makes a solid case for including churches in big-picture planning. And for those who have had a faith community to turn to in crisis or celebration, you know the value of being able to worship where you live, work, and play.
Our hope is that Chestermere will be a home for all, and that we will find ways to make space for our neighbours to worship here with our thanks and support. A community is always more than a row of homes, it is a place for the heart, too.
To learn more, visit haloproject.ca
