Public-private partnerships emerge as an essential tool for cities and transit agencies

CHICAGO, Oct. 17, 2025 – Cities and transit agencies are increasingly turning to public-private partnerships (P3s) as traditional procurement methods can often prove inadequate for today's complex challenges. Leading municipal experts gathered for JLL’s webinar – P3s Put Plainly: Unlocking Value in Public-Private Partnerships for Municipal Leaders – to discuss innovative approaches that are transforming how public entities deliver housing, infrastructure and positive community outcomes.

In collaboration with The National League of Cities (NLC), the webinar was moderated by Kameshia Freeman, Senior Vice President, Government and Education Advisory at JLL. “This webinar is about breaking down the fundamentals of P3s in plain terms, what they are, when they make sense and how you as city leaders can use them as a tool to advance your community’s priorities,” explained Freeman as she began. The discussion focused on real-world examples from two of JLL's clients – the City of San Diego and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro).

The panel featured expertise from Christina Bibler, Economic Development Director for the City of San Diego; Nia Rubin, Acting Vice President of Real Estate and Development at Metro; and James Birkey, Senior Vice President, Lead for JLL’s Civic Reinvestment & Housing Advisory Practice. Together, they highlighted two distinct but complementary P3 approaches that are delivering measurable results.

Two Models Addressing Different Public Sector Challenges

The City of San Diego’s community-outcome model and Metro’s market-readiness model, demonstrate the flexibility of P3s as solutions to address diverse municipal challenges.

San Diego’s approach focuses on community-defined outcomes, exemplified by the Midway Rising redevelopment project. The 48-acre initiative will deliver 4,250 new housing units including 2,000 affordable homes, a 16,000-seat entertainment venue, 15 acres of public parks and mixed-use retail and civic facilities.

“The city has been working diligently on maximizing this site and selected a developer that is going to deliver the largest affordable housing development in the state of California with 2,000 units onsite,” said Bibler. “The site fully redeveloped will prioritize public parks, housing and mixed-use development along with an entertainment arena that drives value as a destination-location instead of the single-use parking lot, today.”

Metro has shifted from reactive to proactive site preparation for transit-oriented developments, focusing on creating market-ready, de-risked opportunities through upfront rezoning, due diligence and standardized agreements. This approach expands the number of potential investors while ensuring projects align with both transit improvements and community goals.

“We went directly to developers and asked, ‘what do we need to do?’ so we could expand the pool of developers and grow competition,” added Rubin. “Throughout our region, we are facing similar challenges, from high construction costs and high financing costs to more demand for housing and affordable housing. So, to prioritize Metro’s development opportunities, we issued a strategic plan that identifies locations that are most market ready and why, and noting which locations need more economic development strategy.”

Addressing Converging Municipal Pressures

Municipal leaders face unprecedented challenges including rising housing demand, deteriorating infrastructure, climate resiliency requirements and stretched budgets. Traditional lowest-bid contracts and piecemeal project delivery are increasingly proving too slow and inflexible to properly address current needs.

The expert group agreed with Birkey that successful P3s require three critical elements:

1)    Clear problem definition that attracts stronger partners

2)    Studied balance between public benefit and private return

3)    Competitive bidding processes that deliver optimal outcomes.

“Three key things to know before diving into P3s: Number one is to define the problem clearly and then find the solution; second is there is no free lunch; and third, competition is king,” said Birkey, sharing JLL’s process for so many successful P3s. “Planning ahead creates a really great, long-term P3 project that will be successful.”

As fiscal pressures mount and community needs accelerate, both models from the City of San Diego and Metro demonstrate that P3s are no longer experimental, but essential tools for municipal success. Cities and agencies must translate vision into action through site identification and clear objectives, focusing on replicable frameworks that reduce risk and broaden competition.

With more than $4 billion in P3 projects delivered, JLL’s Civic Reinvestment & Housing Advisory Practice has established itself as a national leader in public-private partnerships. Mission-driven projects that balance public-private returns with a competitive process can deliver strong outcomes for communities, allowing municipalities to move from experimental ideation to systematic implementation.

JLL is the premier provider of strategic real estate advisory for local, state, national and federal governments as well as public and education institutions. Its national team is helping governments transform their real estate and office portfolios for the future of work and create more housing. JLL’s practice employs experts that cover the entire real estate lifecycle from strategy, public-private partnerships, facilities management and sustainability services to transaction and project management. JLL brings both the experience and expertise to convert real estate portfolios into financially-sound, working assets that help communities thrive. Visit jll.com/en-us/industries/government.

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