Equitable Development and p4

Equitable Development is a positive development strategy that ensures everyone participates in and benefits from the region’s economic transformation—especially low-income residents, communities of color, immigrants, and others at risk of being left behind.

A model based around a central unifying framework of: People, Planet, Place and Performance, p4 is a major effort, sponsored by the City of Pittsburgh, Mayor’s Office and The Heinz Endowments, to forge a new model of urban growth and development that is innovative, inclusive and sustainable.

Neighborhood Allies is playing a critical role in this initiative–with our partners, PolicyLink, and Urban Innovation21. Over the past year and a half, we have convened Pittsburgh community leaders to create a shared definition of equitable development and craft an agenda to make it the reality. In September 2016, we unveiled Equitable Development: The Path to an All-In Pittsburgh, a report outlining a roadmap to ensure everyone participates in and benefits from the region’s economic transformation. Achieving equitable development in Pittsburgh requires an intentional focus on eliminating racial inequities and barriers, and making accountable and catalytic investments. Together, we have set a five-point agenda that was set to achieve an All-In Pittsburgh:

1. Raise the bar for new development—growth must happen in a way that benefits and does not displace longtime lower-income residents and neighborhood entrepreneurs.
2. Make all neighborhoods healthy communities of opportunity—the region needs a comprehensive strategy to increase housing affordability and stability and to unlock opportunity in its highest poverty neighborhoods.
3. Expand employment and ownership opportunities—connecting lower-wealth residents to good, family-sustaining jobs and asset-building opportunities is critical to ensuring they participate in and contribute to the region’s resurgence.
4. Embed racial equity throughout Pittsburgh’s institutions and businesses—To eliminate wide racial inequities and uproot bias, the region’s institutions, organizations, and businesses need to adopt racial equity-focused approaches
5. Build community power, voice, and capacity—High-capacity community-rooted organizations and multiracial, multisector coalitions are essential to advancing equitable development policies and practices over the long term

Neighborhood Allies is also on the project team and helped launch the p4 Performance Measures Project which aims to create a quantifiable system of metrics that would inform and improve decision-making on public investments in development projects. The project team created 12 priority focus areas for improvement, that together, provide a comprehensive evaluation tool for the consistent assessment of real estate development projects in the city of Pittsburgh to advance sustainable and equitable development practices.

Related News:

• In Pittsburgh, Community is the Key to Advancing Racial Equity
• The URA is All-In On Equitable Development
• Equitable Development Implementation Update!
• Where’s Pittsburgh Equitable Development Plan Months After Debut?
• Equitable Development Implementation Session Prioritizes Promising Strategies
• p4 Focuses on Making Equitable Development a Reality in Pittsburgh
• Is it too late for equitable development in some parts of Pittsburgh?
• Why Pittsburgh should go all-in on equitable development
• New Report Sets Equitable Development Agenda for Pittsburgh
• PolicyLink Returns to Pittsburgh to Continue the Local Equitable Development Conversation
• Neighborhood Allies and Urban Innovation21 Engage National Experts to Help Create Equitable Development Strategy for Pittsburgh