COUNCILMEMBER GAUTHIER INTRODUCES BILL TO HELP COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONS BUILD AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND DEFY DISPLACEMENT

PHILADELPHIA – “Today I introduced legislation that builds our capacity for equitable community transformation by creating a new, flexible funding program to support the work of our Community Development Corporations (CDCs). We rely on Philly’s network of more than 60 CDCs to stabilize and revitalize neighborhoods, repair the fabric of our communities, and provide critical services that promote affordable housing support and economic opportunity,” said Councilmember Jamie Gauthier (3rd District), Chair of the Committee on Housing, Neighborhood Development, and the Homeless. “CDCs are community leaders that create affordable housing, keep tenants and homeowners from being displaced, manage our commercial corridors, and turn neighborhood blight into community assets.”

The need for these new resources is urgent: worsening inequality has made the demand for CDC services higher than ever while the gains we’ve made in housing affordability and neighborhood stability are seriously threatened. “The chaos and uncertainty unleashed by the Trump administration have added new challenges to meeting the needs of marginalized residents and communities on the brink. Now more than ever we need strong CDCs with the ability to respond rapidly to a changing landscape,” said Councilmember Gauthier.

To be successful the Community Capacity Building fund will:

• Support the general operations of CDCs which will enhance organizational stability.
• Be flexible enough to allow CDCs to be responsive to changing conditions or create innovative solutions to community problems.
• Provide sustained, multi-year funding enabling thoughtful forward-planning

“Our CDCs are committed to our communities and now it’s time for Philly to show we are committed to them. My bill will create a new Community Capacity Building fund which will provide multi-year, flexible support of $125,000 per year to qualified CDCs who are doing the hard work of making Philadelphia a better place to live and work,” said Councilmember Gauthier.

“This flexible, multi-year support will enable CDCs to continue to deliver core services in a way that advances equity, including enabling local residents and businesses to create generational wealth, build and preserve affordable homes to advance self-sufficiency, advance economic opportunity by supporting and growing local businesses and commercial corridors, create safe, clean and green streetscapes, and elevate community voices,” said Rick Sauer, Executive Director of Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations (PACDC). 

“We applaud Councilmember Gauthier and co-sponsors for stepping up and meeting the moment to help stabilize these essential organizations. This continues the strong, reliable leadership from City Council in building a more equitable Philadelphia,” said Rick Sauer of PACDC.

In the past decade, Philadelphia lost 37,000 homes renting for under $800 per month while adding 26,000 that rent for at least $2,000 per month. We need at least 55,000 more homes that rent for less than $750 per month to house our most vulnerable residents, but on average we are only constructing 250 a year. To solve our housing crisis, we need to help CDCs create the type of genuinely affordable housing that the private market has proven it cannot.

Council President Kenyatta Johnson will assign this bill to a committee for consideration.

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