Our Work with Cities
Arlington
Urban is supporting the Arlington Community Foundation as a learning partner in the implementation of a guaranteed-income pilot that seeks to better position housing grant recipients for economic mobility. Our work centers on tracing the origins and motivations of the pilot and understanding its intersection with other initiatives to boost shared prosperity in Arlington County. Urban is also capturing lessons from related efforts in Chicago, Illinois, and Austin, Texas, that pair cash transfers and housing strategies to inform future policy and practice.
Chicago
Urban is supporting the Chicago Community Trust (CCT)’s efforts to advance progress on a key organizational priority to close racial and ethnic wealth gaps. Our work examines how well lending and financial institutions meet the needs of Chicago borrowers with low incomes and borrowers of color across small-business and mortgage lending. CCT is also a member of Urban’s cohort of cities working to align federal pandemic-response funds with local inclusive and equitable recovery goals. Through this partnership, CCT has developed a federal recovery funds dashboard that allows residents to track how the City of Chicago, Cook County, and the State of Illinois are spending federal recovery funds.
- Measuring Lending Gaps in Mortgage and Small Business Loans in Chicago’s Communities
- Chicago Community and Neighborhood Capital Flows (Mortgage and Small Business)
- Federal Recovery Funds Dashboard
Fresno
As part of an ongoing partnership with the Fresno DRIVE Initiative, Urban supports the design and development of innovative models by providing research and evidence, strategic policy guidance, and engagement. In support of this living laboratory for inclusive growth and equitable development, Urban is assisting the Central Valley Community Foundation and its partners in the development of a Prosperity Coaching Pilot to build wealth for neighborhoods of color in Fresno County.
- How to Elevate Resident Input and Leadership in Inclusive Growth Initiatives
- How Collective Impact Initiatives Can Use Results Frameworks to Advance Inclusive Economic Development
- How a Fresno Program Is Designing a Holistic Approach to Meeting Residents’ Diverse Wealth-Building Needs
Kansas City and Milwaukee
Urban assesses capital flows for downtown revitalization efforts in Milwaukee and analyzes small business lending ecosystems in Kansas City. Our work aims to support leaders in expanding access to capital for small business owners and entrepreneurs from communities that have historically been denied capital.
Louisville
Urban is providing the Louisville Metro Office of Planning and Design Services with strategic advice and research support to advance racial equity and environmental justice through zoning and land development code reforms. Drawing on available data and the experiences of communities around the country, Urban is delivering insights on zoning reform and evidence-informed strategies for successful implementation of reforms.