Abstract

Problem, research strategy, and findings

In 2016, Detroiters (MI) voted to pass the first-ever community benefits ordinance (CBO), a law that requires developers to negotiate with a council of local residents to agree on a set of community benefits. Drawing from the goals and the structure of community benefits agreements that have become popular since the 1990s, this ordinance has won Detroit communities benefits like locally sourced jobs, affordable housing, green space, and streetscape improvements. Scholars have evaluated many cases of community benefits agreements, and some authors claim that codifying community benefits agreements through policy is the next step to ensuring their political viability and stability. Using Detroit’s CBO as a case, I aim to uncover the successes and challenges of implementing the ordinance. I answer this question through a qualitative analysis of policies and interviews with residents, planners, developers, and activists (n = 45). I find that the ordinance is successful in its establishment of agreements for 10 projects where communities have secured more than 160 distinct benefits. However, just as with traditional community benefits agreements, the formalization of community benefits through planning policy is still subject to several shortcomings. These include a negotiation timeline that often favors developers and uneven access to development and policy knowledge.

Takeaway for practice

CBOs can be opportunities for inclusion in development decisions and can bring important resources to communities. However, cities should note the need to provide training to neighborhood advisory council members and allocate the resources to do so. They should also reconcile the timeline for negotiations preferred by communities with the often hurried timelines of developers.

中文翻译：

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底特律《社区福利条例》的早期教训

摘要

问题，研究策略和发现

2016年，底特律（MI）投票通过了有史以来第一份社区福利法令（CBO），该法令要求开发商与当地居民委员会进行谈判，以商定一系列社区福利。从1990年代开始流行的社区福利协议的目标和结构中，该法令已赢得了底特律社区的福利，例如本地采购的工作，可负担的住房，绿色空间和街道景观的改善。学者们评估了许多社区福利协议案例，一些作者声称，通过政策编纂社区福利协议是确保其政治可行性和稳定性的下一步。以底特律的CBO为例，我旨在揭示实施该条例的成功与挑战。n  = 45）。我发现该法令成功地为10个项目建立了协议，在这些项目中，社区获得了160多个独特的利益。但是，就像传统的社区福利协议一样，通过规划政策使社区福利正式化仍存在一些缺陷。其中包括谈判时间表，该时间表通常有利于开发人员，并且获取开发和政策知识的机会不均。

外卖练习

社区组织可以成为参与发展决策的机会，并可以为社区带来重要资源。但是，城市应注意有必要为邻里咨询委员会成员提供培训，并分配资源来这样做。他们还应将社区首选的谈判时间表与开发人员通常匆忙的时间表进行协调。