Building Inclusive and Healthy Neighborhoods, Block by Block: Findings from 11 Neighborhoods Nationwide

LISC + Brookings Metro

A new report from Brookings Metro examines LISC’s community-centered economic inclusion initiative, which centers neighborhoods as the key setting for driving strong regional economies. The lessons in this report make one thing clear: To truly transform the prosperity and well-being of entire cities and regions, it’s past time to abandon top-down or “trickle-down” approaches and embrace the actionable, community-rooted models that have demonstrated impact in cities and neighborhoods nationwide.  Image courtesy of Jana River Medlock Photography

The Entrepreneurs of Color Fund (EOCF) is designed to get much-needed capital directly into the hands of small business owners serving communities of color, and has over twenty CDFI partners in local markets across the country, with LISC as national manager. Inclusive Action for the City (IAC) is a community development financial institution and an EOCF partner in Los Angeles providing micro-loans to businesses, with a focus on food vendors. IAC’s Rudy Espinoza explains why protecting street vendors must not be a passing trend but a sustained cultural shift that creates a more inclusive economy.

This holiday season, support LISC small business borrowers and find the perfect gift for everyone on your list! All of the businesses featured here have received LISC capital to acquire their location, hire new staff, or increase inventory to help their business grow.

By Destiny Allen & Michelle Harati

This Small Business Week, we are highlighting how the Community Navigator Pilot Program, administered by the Small Business Administration, is investing in local and national partnerships with trusted organizations to reduce the barriers entrepreneurs face in accessing critical support. Partners work with small business owners across the country, including veterans, women, people with disabilities, and those from rural places and communities of color.

Meet three entrepreneurs of color who have made meaningful and dream-fulfilling strides on their small business journeys, thanks in part to the SBA's Community Navigator Pilot Program which LISC is helping implement. Each business person has connected with a CBO or community business organization that has connected them with invaluable know-how and access to flexible growth capital - the support system that no small enterprise can go without.

Latina-led organization New Economics for Women (NEW) purchases a building with support from a $5.5 million LISC acquisition loan. In doing so, NEW nullified this deed’s original racist directive, taking ownership of this property to create a new vision that centers people of color. NEW will improve the acquired property to build mixed-use space for commercial use and affordable housing. When complete, the site will be home to 60 housing units, with inclusion of LA Unified School District (LAUSD) staff in mind.