Case Study Site Visit: Inclusive Action for the City

Inclusive Action for the City (IAC) is a community development organization that works with Los Angeles communities who have mobilized to confront gentrification by controlling land and preserving local culture, including small businesses. IAC is combating displacement through strategic commercial real estate acquisition in gentrifying and transitioning neighborhoods. 

IAC’s case study focuses on its Community Owned Real Estate (CORE) program in three rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods that are predominantly Latinx and renter-occupied: Boyle Heights, El Sereno, and East LA. Established in 2018 in partnership with community-based organizations Little Tokyo Service Center and East LA Community Corporation, CORE seeks to preserve locally-owned small businesses by acquiring and removing commercial properties from the speculative market, stabilizing rents, and offering tenants pathways to property ownership.

The CORE portfolio currently provides 23 retail units and encompasses five commercial properties, which are leased to locally-owned small businesses and community-serving nonprofits at below-market rates with capped rent increases. Tenants, which include a tattoo parlor, plant nursery, indigenous healthy food cafe, restaurants, dance studio, and convenience shops, can obtain wrap-around services, such as one-on-one business technical support and training. CORE also provides tenants an opportunity to build equity and/or take minority ownership in the CORE real estate portfolio.

The SBAN site visit will feature walking and bus tours to CORE properties and neighborhoods, focusing on community history and the stories of BIPOC, women, and immigrant-owned small businesses. Panel discussions will focus on finance strategy and funding, program organizational structure and operations, and strategic partnerships, with input from a range of stakeholders, including city and county policymakers, commercial real estate financers, CORE partners, sidewalk vendors, and policy advocacy coalition leaders. As a community development financial institution (CDFI), IAC will also discuss their approach to financial inclusion and equitable underwriting practices for small businesses.