At the end of the day, support for a project often comes down to, “great idea, but how much will it cost?!” In the early phases of project development, it may be beneficial to shy away from giving precise cost estimates because these numbers are likely to change as the project is modified in response to feedback from the public. In the beginning, take general ranges from other similar projects and share these with your audience and let them know that in the future more formal estimates will be made. Once the design of your project has progressed, reach out to a professional in your field for guidance. For example, for a trail project contact state or local parks and recreation departments and they can provide ideas on how to develop the next stage of your cost estimate. When the project progresses to concept level design, it is time to contact a construction/engineering firm, landscape architecture firm, or similarly qualified outside group to help you with developing a cost estimate. Even at this level, stress to your audience that costs and assumptions can change and focus on the idea, rather than the exact cost, which will be refined once the project is approved for construction.

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