Urban Habitat Program

Programs: Leadership developmenturban habitat's boards and commissions leadership institute (bcli) trains and supports low-income people of color to serve on local and regional boards and commissions in the bay area. We convened our eighth bcli cohort in 2017 with 14 fellows from oakland, san mateo county, fremont, and san francisco. We also piloted a five-part pre-bcil training series with 26 resident leaders, in partnerships with the east bay housing organizations and provided technical assistance to several organizations replicating the bcli, such as the texas organizing project in houston, the center for policy initiatives in san diego, and the california endowment's building healthy communities hub in sacramento.

policy advocacyurban habitat provides a critical race and class analysis of transportation, housing, and land use planning and investments to create a just and connected bay area for low-income communities of color. Through research, policy advocacy, and coalition building, we link local advocacy and organizing efforts to the broader movements for social, economic, and environmental justice. In 2017 our regional policy advocacy was coordinated through our leadership in the 6 wins for social equity network. As co-conveners of 6 wins we developed and advocated for policies and investments to ensure that the bay area's regional climate, transportation, and land use plan and implementation strategy (plan bay area and plan bay area action plan, respectively) provide equitable benefits for low-income communities of color while reducing the risk of displacement from market-rate housing development and transit investments. In addition, 6 wins also anchored the equity and anti-displacement strategy for a regional housing process, known as casa. Our tenant protections work included leadership on the steering committee of the regional tenant organizing network (rto). Rto is a coalition of over 20 organizations from seven bay area counties, the majority of whom directly organize renters to advance tenant protection policies. In 2017, rto played a critical role in supporting ballot campaigns, such has the measure in pacifica for rent control, and coordinating advocacy campaigns across the region. Rto also helped to support a statewide convening of tenant organizations attended by over 400 people. In 2017, our transportation justice advocacy and local campaign support included leadership on the san francisco mayor's transportation task force where we helped develop a proposal for transportation revenue. We monitored the implementation of the san francisco muni equity strategy to ensure that the needs of transit dependent communities were prioritized in the budget process. Finally, we continued to provide technical assistance and capacity building for our partners in an emerging san mateo county transportation equity coalition. As part of our democratizing power in the suburbs project, we held a convening to discuss our newly released discussion paper, regional resegregation: reflections on race, class, and power in bay area suburbs. The paper was a follow-up to the policy brief we released in 2016, race, inequality, and the resegregation of the bay area, and summarized our findings from stakeholder interviews in three sub-regions: southern santa clara county, eastern contra costa county, and south central solano county.

urban habitat staff engaged in the following lobbying activities: met with the san francisco board of supervisors to advocate for a progressive transportation tax and equitable allocations of that tax. Met with the samtrans board of directors to advocate for equitable allocations in transportation expenditures plans in san mateo county. Advocated for the passage of just-cause for eviction ordinance with the city council in union city.