Thomas MacMillan Photo
After she was burned the last time, Helen Martin-Dawson said she’s prepared to work to make sure new developments in town come with an enforceable promise of good jobs for her neighbors in the Hill..
Martin-Dawson (at right in photo) said as much Tuesday evening as she helped officially release a new report from Connecticut Center For A New Economy (CCNE), a grassroots coalition of labor, clergy, and community activists.
The report, entitled “A Renaissance For All Of Us: Building an Inclusive Prosperity for New Haven,” comes just over a week after an “grassroots agenda”-setting CCNE meeting that laid out its main points. And it comes just three weeks before a raft of new union-backed aldermen are set to take office, many of whom are affiliated with CCNE and Yale’s unions.
The document, the result of years of community data collection by CCNE, presents a problem that faces New Haven, and points the way to possible solutions. Read it here.
The problem: While parts of New Haven have experienced a “renaissance” in recent years — downtown, medical and education sectors — the benefits have not been shared equally. Several parts of New Haven — mostly African-American and Latino neighborhoods — have still not recovered from the departure of manufacturing jobs, and the new investments in the city have not helped lift them up, the report argues.
The solution: “Connecting people to good jobs, and giving residents a voice in development.” Specifically, the report suggests that new development projects should feature Community Impact Reports and Community Benefits Agreements and help to create a “jobs pipeline program” linking neighbors to employment opportunities when new companies come to town.
Martin-Dawson said she pursued those goals when the Smilow cancer center opened at Yale-New Haven Hospital several years ago. At that time, she worked with an organization called Community Organized for Responsible Development (CORD) to have the hospital sign a 2006 agreement to hire local workers.
Martin-Dawson said while the hospital did live up to certain parts of the agreement, like putting money towards youth employment, other aspects never materialized. She said she belonged to a committee that never met as it was required to do under the agreement. Martin-Dawson held herself partially responsible for not being vigilant and not following up when promises weren’t met.
It won’t happen again, she said.
With the Rt. 34 re-do/ Downtown Crossing project in the works and an overhaul of Church Street South not far behind, the Hill has a couple of opportunities to ensure that new developments bring benefits to the neighborhood, Martin-Dawson said. “People have a right to have a say in that,” she said. “The community should have a say in what goes into their community.”
Jissette Chona (pictured), who said she’s lived in Church Street South for 15 years, said she and her neighbors aren’t opposed to redevelopment — they just want a piece of the “renaissance” too. She said she envisions a transformation of the development into a strong middle-class community.
It’s not enough to simply create jobs or job training programs, said Renae Reese, CCNE’s executive director. The jobs and training have to be connected to the neighborhood, she said.
“There needs to be a commitment to hire on the part of employers,” said Mandi Isaacs Jackson (pictured), the author of the report. The growing local company Higher One, for example, is getting over $30 million in public money, including $18.5 million fro “job creation,” Jackson said. “Between now and 2015, you can find, educate, and train people in Newhallville to do those jobs.”
“We have to be more vigilant,” said Martin-Dawson. She said that people have leverage when projects are funded with taxpayer dollars. “If they want the taxpayers’ money, they’re going to have to sign something,” she said. “We’ll hold up your money so you’ve got to deal with us.”
Any point where a development needs public permission in some way — like building permits or zoning variances — is a point where the community can apply pressure, said Jackson.
Rev. Scott Marks, Rev. Abraham Hernandez, Renae Reese.
Rev. Scott Marks, a founder of CCNE, predicted that the new crop of aldermen will be on the same page as the organization. In order to get elected, they had to knock on the same doors CCNE did, he said. They’ve heard the same message from the community, he said.
While I agree with the intent behind this report (who doesn't want stronger neighborhoods and more jobs?), some of the points here are legally flawed.
Zoning applications cannot be hijacked for political leverage. Either the zoning variance meets the legal standards, or it doesn't. If it does, and the Board of Aldermen or the Board of Zoning Appeals rejects it because they want more community benefits (or as one alderwoman once put it to Carter Winstanley, "a slush fund") the City is likely to end up in a costly lawsuit.
Also, I think Helen Martin-Dawson's comments regarding her own committee are telling. Groups like CCNE are all gung-ho during the public process, but once it gets to the actual daily work of improving neighborhoods and getting stuff done, no one shows up. What is Helen doing right now to make sure her committee is meeting its obligations to residents? You're on the committee. It's up to YOU to make it work.