Stories of Philanthropic Leadership in Advancing Regional and ...

I. A. BUILDING POWER AND GIVINGVOICE TO COMMUNITYCONCERNS: COMMUNITYBENEFITS AGREEMENTSFoundations Highlighted:Ford FoundationThe New World FoundationUnitarian Universalist Veatch Program at Shelter Rock“When it comes to major developments, thepowerful and wealthy weigh in; but poor peoplehave no avenue to become engaged. CommunityBenefits Agreements create a voice to gainmeasurable benefits.”— Carl Anthony, Ford FoundationWhen executed before development agreements aresigned with governmental officials, a CommunityBenefits Agreement (CBA) brings to thedecisionmaking process vocal and visible communityadvocates instead of adversaries. With a CBA, thecommunity to be impacted by a developmentproposal and the developers stand united beforegovernmental officials in support of major proposeddevelopments. This profile demonstrates the benefitsof CBAs, which provide the legal means for projectfunders to ensure that prosperity doesn’t go past thedoors of residents, but provides them with animproved quality of life.Project ProfileA Community Benefits Agreement, or CBA, is thelegally enforceable and negotiated result ofagreements reached by community-basedorganizations and developers that often representwin-win solutions for the community and thedeveloper. In CBA negotiations, a developer agrees toprovide specific and measurable community benefitsthat the community has a role in identifying throughup-front dialogues. In return, residents andcommunity-based organizations agree to support aproposed project when it comes before governmentalbodies entrusted with authority to make decisions onzoning, infrastructure, or subsidies.In June 2004, the Ford Foundation convened aCommunity Benefits Roundtable, bringing togetherkey CBA leaders and public policy advocatesthroughout the country to share and learn from theircollective experiences. “Even with the bestintentions,” observes Carl Anthony, acting directorof the Ford Foundation’s Community and ResourceDevelopment Unit, “the table is unbalanced on largescaleprojects. When it comes to majordevelopments, the powerful and wealthy weigh in.But poor people have no avenue to become engaged.Community Benefits Agreements create a voice togain measurable benefits.”“Without CBAs,” continues Anthony, “electedofficials are in a dilemma. The poor have no say andtheir quality of life goes down while that of theregion goes up. But with them, we create a voice andtechnical competence to gain measurable benefits.”Adding his support to CBAs, Chad Jones, programassociate for The New World Foundation’s PhoenixFund, declares, “This is a major area of activismbased on our belief that organizations of the workingpoor should be led by leaders indigenous to theircommunities.”“We focus on two levels of democratic processes:democratic conditions and democratic practices,”explains Jones. “In the first area, we’re concernedwith racial and gender equality and leadershiptransmission. In thesecond area, we’reconcerned withstructures ofaccountability,indigenousleadership,participatoryplanning, politicaladvocacy, andcollaborative styles ofwork. The [CBA]process isparticipatory and soexpands the pool of beneficiaries of economicredevelopment projects that are heavily subsidized.”“Without CBAs electedofficials are in a dilemma.The poor have no say andtheir quality of life goesdown while that of the regiongoes up. But with them,we create a voice andtechnical competence togain measurable benefits.”— Carl AnthonyThe following examples highlight the capacity thatCBAs have to exert influence and forge inclusion indifferent locales, as demonstrated by the FigueroaCorridor Coalition for Economic Justice in LosAngeles, the Good Jobs and Livable NeighborhoodsCoalition in Milwaukee, Wis., and the Alliance forGood Jobs and Housing for Everyone in Seattle.EQUITABLE PUBLIC INVESTMENTPart III: Section 1: Promoting Equitable Public Investment 18