Mayor Durkan Announces $9.8 Million to BIPOC- Led Community Organizations Through the Equitable Development Initiative
SEATTLE (September 10, 2021) -- Mayor Jenny A. Durkan announced $9.8 million in awards through the Equitable Development Initiative (EDI), the largest annual total since EDI’s first awards in 2017, to support the purchase of additional properties to house BIPOC organizations at risk of displacement. EDI is a central component of the City’s effort to support Seattle’s existing residents, businesses and organizations in high displacement risk neighborhoods. This year, the City is awarding $9.1 million to community organizations for site acquisition and major capital projects and another $750,000 for capacity-building support for organizations seeking to advance anti-displacement projects.
“The Equitable Development Initiative has helped community-based organizations in our city tackle the challenges of displacement and helped strengthen underserved communities and create economic vitality. The Equitable Development Initiative has a strong record of creating generational change by investing in affordable homes and community spaces for our City’s residents and non-profits,“ said Mayor Durkan. “We know that the COVID-19 pandemic has been especially devastating for our Black, Indigenous, and communities of color – that why we are growing our investments in this critical program as we build back better and more equitably.”
The EDI fund, administered by the Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD), was created to respond to the needs of marginalized populations, reduce disparities, and support access to opportunity in healthy, vibrant communities. The initiative is championed by community organizations concerned about displacement pressures and the historical lack of investment that has occurred in communities of color in Seattle. All 46 EDI partner organizations who have received $49 million in EDI funding to date are led by and serve people of color. OPCD and partner departments, including Office of Economic Development (OED), Office of Housing (OH), Department of Neighborhoods (DON), Office of Arts & Culture (ARTS), and Office for Civil Rights (OCR), have coordinated the administration of the EDI Fund. The program was established in November 2016, using one-time funding. Mayor Durkan proposed a sustained funding source for the program in 2019 and has continued to grow the program.