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Economic Development

Economic activity is a crucial part of a healthy community, whether it’s access to quality jobs for residents, business support, or a functioning, diverse range of retail options.

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On a lawn in front of a brick building with large glass panels that look as if they might have been garage bays at one point, stands a welcome sign made of mosaic tile. The underlying structure is invisible but may be concrete and forms a boxy semi-circle with a peak. The mosaic tiles are small and spell out "Welcome to Binghampton" in varied colors on a background of tiny black tiles. There are two stars over the letters B and I, and near the bottom is a band of freeform mosaics depicting faces. They're very small and hard to discern individually.

Memphis Is Shrinking. Here’s Why We Need to Change That

Memphis is struggling with a dwindling population, driven in part by a high crime rate and disinvestment in low-income areas of the city. What are local organizations doing to turn this around?

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A panoramic photograph of Austin, Texas.

More Bang for the Buck?

Austin, with prodding from advocates, pushes its economic development policy to go beyond big deal chasing.

A retail saleswoman at a counter.

When Work Creates Insecurity

Many of us think that any employment, even part time, provides a measure of security. This is not the case for the millions of low-wage workers who are subject to […]

A Response to ‘A New Gospel of Wealth,’ Part Two

In my last blog post, I responded to Ford Foundation president Darren Walker’s essay in which he outlines a new direction for the foundation  and considers an important question about […]

Disinvestment

Filling Commercial Vacancies with Food Pantries

When I tell people that food pantries can be a new and innovative way to help lift up communities, they look at me as if I’m a bit out of […]

Front of Wanda's Hair Salon in DC's Shaw neighborhood
Communities

Equitable Development in Shaw

A recent New York Times article on the revitalization of Washington, DC’s Shaw neighborhood highlighted how real estate developers have rebranded the area to attract mainly white Millennials to this […]

Anchoring “The Community” to the Community Building Movement

Community building has many definitions [Note: archived discussions in Shelterforce can be found here, here, and here] all of which capture an integrated approach to addressing poverty. For me, community […]

Can Community Wealth Building Redefine City Economic Development?

Last month, Good Jobs First released a report titled Shortchanging Small Business, in which researchers found that large companies (defined as companies with over 100 employees and/or operating in more […]

Uber-noxious

At the PolicyLink Equity Summit the last week of October, Orson Aguilar of the Greenlining Institute was taking a poll of the room at the workshop on the “Gig Economy.” […]

Response to Darren Walker’s New Gospel of Wealth

Ford Foundation President Darren Walker recently circulated a thought-provoking piece declaring the foundation’s commitment to tackling the worldwide problem of inequality. In the piece, Walker invited comment as he and […]

Building the Cars of the Future . . . in Detroit

How the nonprofit Focus: HOPE is helping to bring manufacturing jobs back to Detroit, and the Detroiters who need them.

Why CDFIs Should Go To College

                        During three decades of working to close the financial gaps that confront a disproportionate number of low-income, minority and […]

Community Control

It’s Not Actually About Ownership

Private Property and Public Power: Eminent Domain in Philadelphia,
by Debbie Becher. Oxford University Press, 2014. 334pp. $30.50 (paper)
Purchase here.