New York City Inclusive Growth Initiative
The New York City Inclusive Growth Initiative (IGI) is a two-year project composed of an 18-person Steering Committee representative of the diversity of New York City. Convened and facilitated by the New York City Employment and Training Coalition, the Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development, and Regional Plan Association, this Steering Committee developed the Inclusive Growth Blueprint for the future of economic development, workforce development and affordable housing. Visit inclusivegrowth.nyc to learn more about the initiative.
![NYC Inclusive Growth gray copy](https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/300x300/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=1dbd0cc13ec791bd586406fb40e0d9fb02a610b0057f56e5a4c9046b4051e9d7 171w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/600x600/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=831f2e39a89515413d60a6f8e332ae547c7d08e41d076cda2f55f6de730a39f0 343w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/900x900/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=0ed6e202de74e3e79ff196699589f67317af210f6cf5d1b4ad40c0d9bac6530f 514w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/1200x1200/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=c40a68a214799f19a7e581e139ce2816a9ab3a1d79938139599bee4dd0300f14 686w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/1500x1500/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=ff41592b0a80da96fdef2cdf1cae05ab646cfe7ad10675bb97e0a0a5e16fb301 857w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/1800x1800/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=cf9c0148b543a418b1d91c337618086f1486f1d01302acfe5c890fee4a83c2ef 1029w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/2100x2100/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=584c54edf734d2b1da46cd8cd6f1d2d748b6074affbe6a9c03d9c19653c6a812 1200w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/2400x2400/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=cbaa69c898d0c5792aef164e86225ef2acf14ab7903c3bcb6b0e5e281d5a51d8 1371w, https://img.imageboss.me/general/cover/2700x2700/fp-x:0.5,fp-y:0.5,quality:80/work/Reports/2021-reports/Immediate-Infrastructure-Priorities/NYCInclusiveGrowth_gray-copy.jpg?bossToken=93c59f5235e56b4429ad2b46e13e990422a6794fdd6daff58827c531fc7f16f2 1543w)
Three Core Pillars of Inclusive Growth
While inclusive growth encompasses many aspects of our city, we are starting with three core pillars of change:
- Economic Development
- Workforce Development
- Affordable Housing
We identify these as what people need to live well within a community. The core pillars are the key to forming a more equitable New York City, and must operate in tandem to address critical areas of daily life for the city to survive and thrive.
What New York Needs from the Next Administration
The new Mayoral administration represents a new opportunity. What is needed from it is a new vision of economic and racial equity, and the ability to implement this vision.
This vision must be bold, and must not go back to the old playbook from previous recoveries. Previous recoveries resulted in far greater growth and opportunity for those already enjoying privileged places in our city. It is clear that the people who benefit the most from the status quo cannot be the same people to determine a new direction. If we want a different direction, the new administration must take a different approach -- one that prioritizes equitable growth and is shaped by an inclusive process.
Inclusive Growth Recommendations
The specific policy changes the IGI Steering Committee recommends have been organized by the three core pillars and embody values and narratives of inclusive growth. These specific policy changes must directly benefit individuals, strengthen neighborhoods and change the overall system that produces these inequities. Recognizing the importance of scale for implementation, the recommendations have been further categorized at three levels: People, Community and Systems. This structure emphasizes a cohesive and holistic approach to policy practice and attempts to alleviate siloing the recommendations within the core pillars.
Affordable Housing Recommendations
People
- Deeply invest in city rental assistance dollars and services to address the deep affordability issue facing low and extremely low-income New Yorkers.
- Strengthen the safety net to prevent evictions.
- Increase housing-based social service provision funding to ensure more people maintain their housing.
Community
Create a housing plan focused more on outcomes than outputs, and target subsidies and tax incentives toward projects that meet the deepest needs of households within that plan.
Create more affordable housing opportunities in areas with lower share of affordable supply.
Identify barriers to points of entry to housing for specific communities, and commit funding and infrastructure towards addressing such barriers.
Improve housing quality and stability in historically disinvested neighborhoods.
Address the interplay between housing and education policies and practices that impact neighborhood-level segregation.
Invest in community connection and social tie opportunities for NYCHA residents to address inequitable amenities and community resources.
Systems
Facilitate greater coordination and accountability between agencies responsible for homelessness and housing through a streamlined entity.
Engage a broad and representative set of stakeholders in the creation of the citywide housing plan.
Streamline the engagement processes across agencies that oversee development and place-based change.
Meaningfully address the fair housing mandate and root out discrimination in the housing market.
Significantly invest in NYCHA rehab, infrastructure, and preservation.
Improve the mechanism used to apply for affordable housing.
Economic Development Recommendations
People
Connect economic development with workforce development.
Incorporate a small-business framework in Economic Development focusing on small business growth, sustainability, and M/WBE support.
Support families in order to help develop skills and opportunity.
Make health and wellness a core part of an economic development strategy.
Community
Prioritize investments in real estate and physical infrastructure that are also investments in social infrastructure.
Make more transportation choices safe, affordable, convenient, comfortable, and enjoyable options, especially at the neighborhood level.
Clean the transportation sector, starting with the communities most negatively impacted by heavy vehicle traffic and transportation emissions today.
Reform and democratize community representation in the economic development process.
Systems
Reform the Land-Use Process.
Create a Public Accountability office with the power to enforce community benefits agreements.
Understand, plan for, and fund the city’s transportation system at a citywide level, centering equity goals in the process.
Update the City’s regulatory and enforcement approaches to expand safe, clean transportation options while supporting inclusive growth goals around racial justice, job creation, and workforce development.
Coordinate land use planning, economic development, transportation, housing, and other citywide goals.
Prioritize sustainability initiatives to start with low and moderate income and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities first.
Workforce Development Recommendations
People
Increase Funding to Support Dislocated Workers.
Address structural barriers that prevent people from participating in workforce and training programs, notably caretaking/family responsibilities post-COVID.
Include health risk in determining hazard pay for essential workers.
Community
Increase funds and expand program offerings from job training funds for recovery efforts post Covid-19.
Require financial sustainability mechanisms that support ongoing talent development through opportunities created by economic development projects (sustainable infrastructure for ongoing talent development in key trades and project relevant industries).
Require major economic development projects to select first-look candidates for jobs generated by the development.
Use technology to strengthen collaboration between Community Based Organizations.
Create a Permanent Workforce Development Fund.
Systems
View Workforce Development as part of the city’s overall economic development strategy, rather than primarily for poverty reduction.
Holds city leadership, agencies, community based organizations, and institutional partners accountable to high standards of job and training quality, employability, and economic self-sufficiency.
Incorporate referral to advanced and in-demand skills training in Department of Parks and Recreation’ Parks Opportunity Program (POP) and HRA’s Job Training Program (JTP and connect clients with career pathways programming and coaching.
Revive the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development as the chief authority overseeing the workforce agenda and grant it the authority necessary to set the city’s overall workforce priorities, oversee its workforce programming and funding, and coordinate the city’s various workforce initiatives.
Increase the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development’s overall policy transparency, accountability, and stakeholder engagement.
Recommendation Process
The Steering Committee convened ten times between February to July 2021. They brought their academic and professional accomplishments, lived experiences, and general knowledge and expertise to evaluate aspects, elements and opportunities for inclusive growth in New York City. The Steering Committee examined five case studies in the continental U.S., looking at the type of development, geography, level of scale, and the immediate and/or long-term positive or negative impact of the project on the surrounding community, the city and governmental systems. This analysis, and the conclusions the Steering Committee came to about their effectiveness, served as the basis of many of the recommendations in this Blueprint and as the framework for a new Inclusive Growth agenda. For more information on the case studies, please the see the report’s Appendix.
Acknowledgements
Authored by
-
Leila Bozorg
NYC Kids RISE, Chief of Strategy & Policy
-
Carl Callender
Institute for Career Development, Veterans Coordinator
-
Jackson Collins
Prep for Prep, Executive Director
-
Nakisha (Nikki) Evans
Jeremiah Program-Brooklyn,
-
Michael Flynn
Sam Schwartz Consulting, Principal & Director of City Strategies
-
Robyn Frye
Practice of Peace Foundation, Inc., Chief Program Officer
-
Christian González-Rivera
Brookdale Center for Healthy Aging, Director of Strategic Policy Initiatives
-
Yahshaanyah Hill
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation, Vice President of Workforce Opportunity Investments
-
Sydney Kopp-Richardson
Services & Advocacy for LGBTQ Elders, Director of the National LGBT Elder Housing Initiative
-
LaToya Meaders
Collective Fare & Collective Food Works, President & CEO
-
Ken Miles
West Harlem Development Corporation,
-
Papa Ndiaye
International Rescue Committee (IRC), Career Development Coordinator
-
Michael Partis
Bronx Cooperative Development Initiative, Executive Director
-
Daphany Rose Sanchez
Kinetic Communities, Executive Director & Founder
-
Mirtha Santana
Riseboro Community Partnership, Chief Program Officer
-
Anisha Steephen
Just Economy Lab, Founder
-
Marlon Williams
Philanthropy New York, Vice President of Public Policy and Collaboration
-
Guy Yedwab
Rutgers Bloustein School of Planning, JD/MPAP Candidate
-
Jose Ortiz, Jr.
New York City Employment & Training Coalition, Chief Executive Officer
-
Angelina Garneva
New York City Employment & Training Coalition, Vice President, Policy & Special Initiatives
-
Lena Bhise
New York City Employment & Training Coalition, Senior Manager, Policy & Campaigns
-
Barika X. Williams
Association for Housing & Neighborhood Development, Executive Director
-
Lauren Nye
Association for Housing & Neighborhood Development, Director of Operations
-
Gina Lee
Association for Housing and Neighborhood Development, Small Business Services Strategic Impact Grant Coordinator
Additional Content and Support
- Vanessa Barrios
- Manager, Advocacy Programs, Regional Plan Association
- Melanie Breault
- Communications Manager, Association for Housing & Neighborhood Development
- Gloria Chin
- Communications Director, Regional Plan Association
- Mark McNulty
- Senior Associate, Communications, Regional Plan Association
- Partner & Partners
- Elana Shneyer
- Elana Shneyer Strategies
Funded By
- Ford Foundation
- JP Morgan Chase & Co.
- PNC Foundation
- Robin Hood
Produced With
- Association for Housing and Neighborhood Development
- New York City Employment and Training Coalition
Related Reports
531