Council President Blaine A. Griffin took a seat with local leaders at the National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC) conference in Cleveland to discuss the role of Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) in city development projects. Griffin, alongside Tyson Mitchell, Director of the City’s Office of Equal Opportunity, and Bedrock's Nadia Sesay, Chief Community Growth and Development Officer, dove into how these agreements can ensure developments pay forward their impact to the surrounding community, as reported by Cleveland City Council News.
Accountability was the keystone of the conversation as Griffin pointed out, any developer accepting $250,000 or more in aid from the City of Cleveland must ink a CBA. "Public investment must deliver a clear return for the city's residents," Griffin argued, a sentiment reflecting the aims of the city council that pushed through the CBA legislation unanimously back in June 2023.
Thanks to federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, Cleveland has allocated $10 million for workforce development and $5 million to support minority businesses. By the numbers, CBAs in Cleveland have led to $147 million being spent with diverse companies, giving rise to 58 mentor-protege programs, along with 71 apprenticeships and 100 paid internships for students in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.
Within the NAMC conference's panels and discussions, Bedrock's Sesay offered a glimpse into how developers are taking to CBAs, with a focus on constructing partnerships that benefit the broader community tissue. Developers are not just checking boxes, they're aim to integrate community priorities into every project plan from the get-go and this proactive approach was underlined by Griffin as essential for ensuring that any public finances aid in forging an inclusive future for Clevelanders.
