CBAs (or Community Benefit Agreements) are unofficial agreements between a real estate developer and a community. When a developer proposes a large scale project, sometimes people from the affected neighborhood try to negotiate some sort of benefit to make up for the trouble they think the new development might cause.
Do communities actually benefit from these things? If not, who does? And how do they work anyway? To find out a crew of students from College Now at Hostos Community College, along with CUP, and CUP teaching artist Hatuey Ramos-Fermín interviewed people involved with the Bronx’s Kingsbridge Armory CBA to find out how it worked (or didn’t work.) They talked to lawyers, government officials, and community advocates to learn the steps in the CBA process.
Who Benefits from Community Benefit Agreements is a poster that breaks down the events of the Kingsbridge Armory CBA into a timeline you can follow, and includes helpful pointers for other communities that are offered CBAs.