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Q&A
Evaluation metrics for EDC projects beyond economic impact
0:36:42
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150 sec
Andrew Kimball discusses additional metrics used to evaluate EDC projects beyond traditional economic impact measures. He emphasizes the importance of diverse entrepreneurship and creating local employment networks.
- Diverse entrepreneurship is identified as a key challenge and focus area for EDC
- EDC is implementing programs to support diverse entrepreneurs in New York City
- Local employment networks are being created to connect residents with job opportunities in their communities
- An analysis of the Brooklyn Army Terminal showed that about one-third of workers come from surrounding communities
- EDC aims to create job pathways for local residents, which is seen as both beneficial for communities and smart economic development
Amanda Farías
0:36:42
And are there any metrics that you include in the evaluations beyond the economic impact?
Andrew Kimball
0:36:50
I certainly think that the the those metrics, jobs, economic impact, long term tax return, really important.
0:37:01
Another one I would say, another couple, and I talked to it a little bit in my testimony, is diverse entrepreneurship.
0:37:08
When I people ask me what are the biggest challenges the city face right now, by far it is the housing crisis.
0:37:14
I would put, as second is diverse entrepreneurship.
0:37:18
One of the reasons young people wanna be here is not just for the industry options, but for the rich cultural diversity of the city.
0:37:25
And if we lose young people of color because they wanna be entrepreneurs in some other city, that is a massive loss.
0:37:32
Cities like Atlanta are doing great on diverse entrepreneurship.
0:37:36
We are doing much better, think, in part because of the programs that we're putting in place at EDC.
0:37:41
That's one.
0:37:42
The second I would say, and EDC hasn't done as much on until the last couple of years, is creating these local employment networks.
0:37:50
So council member Aviles has been a fervent advocate for her community and making wanting to see more direct lines for impact for local residents.
0:38:02
And so part of the economic mobility network that we've introduced there or we are in the process of introducing there and in Hunts Point we also have a significant number of assets in East New York is developing a network of local not for profits that will work with us on pre screening and placement from the local community.
0:38:20
Even even without that, and we recently did an analysis that we'll be preparing to share with you soon on a with a Sunset Park annual report that we plan to put out now on an annual basis, it'll show that a very significant portion, close to one third of all of the workers at the Brooklyn Army Terminal as an example, our highest employment site in Sunset Park come from the surrounding communities.
0:38:46
So where the people are getting the jobs don't always come in those return from city investments, and we want to make sure that we are doing the best job we possibly can to create job pathways for local residents.
0:39:03
It's not just the right thing to do for the communities we serve, but it's smart economic development because people who have a short commute or walk to work are much more likely to stay in those jobs.