Expanding-Economic-Opportunity-Lessons-from-the-East-Baltimore-Revitalization-Initiative

“The East Baltimore Revitalization Initiative began in 2002 as a $1.8 billion effort to create biotechnology research space, new mixed-income housing, commercial development and other amenities in a rejuvenated community. Among the key partners were the city of Baltimore, state of Maryland, the Johns Hopkins University and other institutions, including the Annie E. Casey Foundation” (p.2).

“Along with the physical redevelopment, the initiative made it a priority to foster economic inclusion, which involves using various strategies to help low-income residents of the area and the entire city get jobs and to assist minority- and women-owned enterprises in obtaining contracts generated by the project” (p.2).

“This report reviews the initiative’s economic inclusion efforts, achievements and challenges. It examines the placement of local residents in construction jobs and the workforce pipeline that has trained and placed East Baltimore residents in jobs generated by the new development or elsewhere in the city, while also noting the complexity of creating project-related employment. It also reviews how EBDI and its partners connected minority-owned businesses to the project and supported their growth. For context and comparison, this report cites examples of similar initiatives around the country. Finally, it offers various lessons learned over the course of the project to date. This report serves to inform and assist a range of people and institutions, including government leaders, businesses and nonprofits interested in economic inclusion” (p.3).

(Abstractor: Author)

“The work in East Baltimore suggests that efforts focused on economic inclusion should incorporate: • collaborative leadership and accountability measures among all stakeholders and a joint commitment to the shared goal of economic inclusion; • dedicated resources to sustain necessary activities, such as workforce development and support for minority- and women-owned businesses; • transparent and effective processes for collecting information, planning, making decisions, providing oversight, reporting, ensuring continuous improvement and engaging with the broader community; and • program innovation that meets the needs of a wide range of residents and deploys effective practices from around the country. These lessons should be valuable beyond East Baltimore, as the fundamental issues of economic inclusion are similar in cities across the nation. As cities foster development projects that will generate good jobs and strengthen their economies, they will reap dividends by linking their investments in new buildings and businesses with an equally strong commitment to the futures of their residents and the health of local communities” (p.3). (Abstractor: Author)

• Last Updated:
• Created:
• Resource Publication Date: 2015
• Author(s): Rubin, Victor; Schildt, Chris; Mattiuzzi, Elizabeth; and Waldron, Tom (The Hatcher Group).
• Organizational Author(s): PolicyLink; The Hatcher Group
• Funding Source: Annie E. Casey Foundation
• Resource Availability: Publicly available
• Posted by: Laura Aron
• Posted in: Workforce System Strategies