City Council
MEETING DATE: 1/25/2017
TITLE:
Title
Contract to Present a Stakeholder Workshop on Community Benefits Agreements
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FROM:
Charlie McClendon, City Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends the City Council approve a contract with Estolano LeSar Perez Advisors (ELP Advisors) in an amount not to exceed $7,500 to present a Stakeholder Workshop on Community Benefits Agreements and approve an amendment to the FY16-17 budget of $7,500.
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BACKGROUND:
On June 10, 2016 Council participated in a community discussion held at the St. Louis Church in Cathedral City. The Church's committee on Social Justice made a presentation on Community Benefit Agreements, which are designed to help insure that new development in a community benefits all segments of the community. As a result of that discussion Council subsequently appointed Mayor Pro Tem Greg Pettis and Councilmember John Aguilar to a subcommittee to explore how CBA's might work to the benefit of the people of Cathedral City. The Subcommittee provided an update to the full Council in study session on January 11, 2017 and received direction to proceed with a stakeholder workshop.
DISCUSSION:
PHASE 1 - STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT WORKSHOP
ELP Advisors will facilitate a stakeholder engagement workshop to lay the groundwork for the development of an equitable economic development strategy for Cathedral City. We propose to split a 3-hour session into two parts.
The first part will focus understanding the community’s goals and vision for the City. The discussion will include questions such as the following:
What are the community’s aspirations and goals?
What is the community’s vision for the City and economic prosperity?
What are the City’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities?
This discussion will help ELP Advisors and the City refine community priorities, glean the equitable economic development aspirations of key stakeholders, and inform the City’s goals and vision for its economic prosperity.
For the second part of the session, ELP Advisors will use a workshop format to provide an overview of the range of economic and community development tools available to the City and key stakeholders to advance the vision of broadly shared prosperity. ELP Advisors will describe economic development policies, programs, and levers that can help to leverage Cathedral City’s economic activity for broader community benefits. Together the stakeholder group will evaluate how tools such as community benefits agreements (CBAs), targeted hire policy and practices, career pathways programs, job quality standards, and equity criteria for public subsidy and investment might be used in Cathedral City.
ELP Advisors proposes to conduct up to three (3) informational interviews in preparation for the working session. The interviews will be critical to understanding the context for the session, and stakeholder and City staff’s perspectives. ELP Advisors would work with the City’s committee to identify interviewees. ELP Advisors will combine research on the local economic development context with the team’s existing knowledge of best practices in equitable economic development to prepare an informative and engaging presentation. Cecilia Estolano, will draw on her experiences as former CEO of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles to facilitate the discussion.
Following the stakeholder workshop, ELP Advisors and the City will have a debrief call to answer any remaining questions and discuss next steps.
Deliverables: Up to three (3) informational interviews; plan and facilitate the stakeholder engagement workshop; accompanying handout or PowerPoint.
Phase 1 Budget: Labor costs for the stakeholder engagement workshop not to exceed $7,500.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Phase 1 of the proposal, the stakeholder workshop, will cost $7,500, which will be covered through a budget amendment.
ATTACHMENTS:
None