This morning, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan transmitted $30 million in investments recommended by the Equitable Communities Initiative Task Force (ECITF), which is comprised by 26 community leaders, to improve disparate outcomes for Seattle’s Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities to the Seattle City Council.
According to officials, the investments are designed as a starting point to correct disparities caused by government-sanctioned and racist policies which negatively-effect the Black and Indigenous communities at disproportionate rates. The legislation was developed after Task Force members and city departments developed implementation plans for each recommended strategy.
In 2020, Durkan requested that the City for the first time build the budget around $100 million in investments to communities of color. The Mayor used all of the City’s resources to balance the budget during a historic shortfall, including: $73 million from the City’s emergency reserves, $20 million in reductions to the Seattle Police Department, a wage freeze for non-represented employees, redirecting voter-approved levy dollars to support basic city operations, federal relief assistance, and new City revenues. The Equitable Communities Initiative Task Force is one element of the overall $100 million investment.
“Today, Seattle is delivering on its commitment to address generational wrongs that have had a devastating impact on communities of color,” said Durkan. “These impactful community leaders have fought for justice within their communities, volunteered their time, and expertise to make recommendations that are the first step towards righting past wrongs. The best ideas come from the community, and their work underscores that fact. By working together, they’ve show what’s possible when government steps out of the way so that community can step forward with real solutions. I look forward to seeing these investments serving the urgent needs of communities that have for far too long been grossly under-funded.”
“The ECI Task Force focused on targeting investments to the most significant and pervasive systemic challenges facing communities of color in our city. Their recommendations focus on equity in business development, education, homeownership and healthcare. I applaud the members of the task force for their diligence and determination to find the best path to improve outcomes for generations to come,” said Councilmember Debora Juarez, ex-officio Task Force member.
The Task Force developed 9 recommendations with 18 strategies to strengthen communities of color so that they can thrive. The recommendations fall under the following four pillars:
$7.5 Million – Building Opportunity through Small Business Support
• Provide Equitable Small and Micro Business Capital
• Offer Small Business Technical Assistance on Financial Health, Digital Tools, and Construction Support
$7.5 Million – Developing Diverse and Culturally Competent Educators and Education Opportunities
• Fund Culturally Supportive Re-entry Programs for Formerly Incarcerated BIPOC
• Support Equity in Education with Students
• Provide Cultural Education for BIPOC youth
$8.8 Million – Accessing Affordable Housing, Land Acquisition and Generational Wealth
• Establish a Generational Wealth Education Program and Resource Portal
• Identify Housing Strategies for Low- and Middle-Income Apprentices and Pre-Apprentices
• Broaden Priority Hire and WMBE Support
• Create Homeownership Supports and Development Opportunities
• Study the Feasibility of a Lease to Own Program
• Provide Ownership Retention Resources for BIPOC Families to Remain in Their Homes
$6.2 Million – Improving Positive Health Outcomes
• Provide Holistic Culturally Responsive & Inclusive Healthcare
• Improve Access to Culturally Responsive & Inclusive Healthcare
• Sustain a Healthy Food Fund for Community-Led Projects Focused on Food Security
• Increase Farm to Table Access with a BIPOC Emphasis
• Support an Environmental Justice Fund for Community-Led Projects
• Address Barriers to BIPOC Professionals Entering the Healthcare Workforce
• Enhance Youth Career Exploration in the Healthcare Industry
Recognizing it will take years of investment to address generations of disinvestment, Durkan has committed to including another $100 million in her proposed 2022 budget, to further address systemic inequities facing BIPOC communities.
“As we closely examined generational wealth, we found that many [minority] communities not only don’t have access to housing, but they also don’t have access to the same financial support that many White-led businesses do,” said Task Force member Donna Moodie, owner of Marjorie. “We wanted to create opportunities for [minority] business owners to work with colleagues who resemble those they serve. Through Technical Assistance we are providing a deeper level of support while they are at the table applying for funding, helping them analyze how much they need, and assist in completing applications. We can invite them to turn a loan into a forgivable loan simply by attending Technical Assistance classes that would improve their business acumen. This is a win-win create esteemed people in our communities whose business behavior and success can be modeled.”
Task Force member Sharon Williams, Executive Director of CD Forum, says that the task force took a serious look at quality of life issues like housing, employment and education.
“As housing prices continue to rise across Seattle, the Task Force used this opportunity to recommend steps to help address this crisis. Strategies like developing a lease to purchase program will help shift the mindset away from the thought that living in Seattle means that you can’t own,” says Williams. “But we also took a broader approach because we know that access to good jobs and access to apprenticeships are also strategies to keep people housed. The City must also take an active role in developing educational programs that encourage longer-term strategies for families and individuals to create generational wealth. It is our hope that with these recommendations, over time, we will see more people on the path to ownership and remaining stably housed within our City.”
Following the announcement of their recommendations last month, the Task Force began convening weekly with City departments to help inform on the creation of implementation strategies that can be quickly launched so that millions in investments will begin landing in the community by the end of 2021. Task Force members thought deeply about systemic barriers to BIPOC organizations in accessing City funds and worked with the City to define ways to lower barriers that have blocked communities of color in the Requests for Proposals (RFP) process. Some of the strategies include:
• Being intentional about who the investments were targeting by giving priority to organizations led by people of color, and serving communities furthest from equity.
• Providing language access to reduce language barriers for potential applicants.
• Including technical support for prospective applicants and continued support throughout the process.
• Launching a simplified low-barrier RFP specifically targeting small organizations.
Although the $30 million investment was allocated in the 2021 budget, the funding is currently under Council proviso, meaning that recommendations cannot be implemented and money disbursed to the community until the proviso is lifted. The Task Force will present their spend plan with 18 investment strategies to the Seattle City Council Finance and Housing Committee on Tuesday, July 20 at 9:30 a.m. and request that the legislation is passed on to the full Council to lift the proviso. If swiftly approved by the Council, City departments expect to begin developing RFP’s in the\ coming weeks with a surge of investments to landing in the community by the end of 2021.
