Jobs & Economic Development

Committee Chair: Mr. Ayderus Ali

Based on Minnesota Economic Policy Institute (EPI), 2011 report

• In 2010, 37.2 percent of Blacks were living in poverty, income disparities also continue to persist in the state. In 2010, the median household income for Black communities fell significantly below the statewide median household income for whites. And those gaps are growing. Black households experienced a 16 percent drop in median income and in 2010, the median household income for Blacks stood near $27,000, less than half the statewide median of $55,459.

COBM’s Minnesota Full Employment Initiative in Targeted Labor Surplus Communities which will include the following:

1. Establishes and implements redevelopment plans for labor surplus areas in cities with a population of 60,000 residents,
2. Establishes a formal Community Council with the City approved authority to oversee the planning, implementation, and enforcement of the initiative,
3. Develops a fund to finance the initiative using existing state, county, and city financing and grant programs, and pre-designates them in proportion to the percentage (city, county and state) of housing units in the labor surplus area targeted for the initiative. The remaining funding will come from banks and encouraged with a commitment of city, county, and state deposits in participating banks,
4. Designate the State.s Targeted Vendor Utilization programs in the labor surplus areas, and
5. Establishes and implements community benefit components for use of funds to implement the redevelopment plans and vendor program in the labor surplus areas that requires:
   • Jobs to go to target area (TA) veterans, residents who are participants in Workforce Training Centers, and those who have the skills and experience to perform the work,
   • All development projects should be joint-ventures with a qualified development entity based in the TA,
   • To the greatest extent possible, all development projects use construction contractors (sub and prime) located in the TA,
   • To the greatest extent possible, purchases for development/construction projects should be made from businesses located in the TA,
   • All projects train and hire residents for jobs created from projects (infrastructure, commercial and industrial) in the TA,
   • To the greatest extent possible, new and redeveloped commercial and industrial space should be made available to entrepreneurs from the TA,
   • To the greatest extent possible, all housing types should be made available to residents in the TA, and
   • All projects must include green development principles.
6. Implement redevelopment plan production goals that do the following:
   • Creates a quantifiable number of temporary construction and permanent jobs for residents in the TA,
   • Develops a quantifiable number of housing units to be developed (affordable rental, homeownership, permanent supportive),
   • Develops a quantifiable number of commercial space to be developed,
   • Develops a quantifiable number manufacturing/industrial space to be developed, and
   • Builds a quantifiable amount of infrastructure including parks and safe agriculture space in the target area.