Cleveland has executed 52 Community Benefits Agreements since 2023, according to Tyson Mitchell, director of the Office of Equal Opportunity. The pacts are legally binding and attach to projects receiving city assistance. Mitchell said the agreements involve more than $1.3 billion in total project cost. City incentives for those projects total $259 million, according to the office's website. Such assistance can include tax abatements, tax increment financing, grants, loans, and infrastructure work.
A 2023 ordinance strengthened the program, adding measures and penalties intended to hold developers to goals for Cleveland residents and businesses. In the spring, Signal Cleveland requested all executed agreements. The office provided 45, leaving seven outstanding. Mitchell said documents for additional projects would be provided that week, including Project Scarlet, the ArtCraft Building project, and early phases of Bedrock's The Riverfront Cleveland.
The ArtCraft project is described as a $90 million conversion of a century-old Superior Avenue building into police headquarters; the riverfront development is a $3.5 billion, 35-acre mixed-use plan near Tower City and the Cuyahoga River. The records received included signed final agreements, amendments or expanded agreements, and some with unclear status; they date to 2024 or 2025.
The 2023 law requires quarterly workforce and community benefits compliance data to be sent to City Council's finance, diversity and inclusion committee. Mitchell acknowledged that has not occurred. He cited waiting for more completed projects and an unfinished reporting framework. Mitchell said no closeouts have been issued but some are expected soon, and that his team monitors more than $1.3 billion in CBA projects.
The ordinance also requires a public dashboard; the office is working with Urban Analytics and Innovation on it. Cleveland requires CBAs for projects with at least $250,000 in city assistance, with a two-tier system for projects of $20 million or more. The Community Equity Fund holds $491,107.16, Mitchell said.