Greetings ULI Cleveland Members!

I hope you are all staying healthy and safe during this challenging time. I want to take this opportunity to share some of the steps we’ve taken over the last year to fulfill ULI’s mission to shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide. We recognize that we need leadership, membership, and programming that is more representative of and responsive to the needs of the communities we serve. We also need to address the role that our industry and land use policies and practices have played in creating and perpetuating racial disparities in every facet of daily life.

To this end, ULI Cleveland embraced diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) as a core value in 2021 and committed to advancing DE&I within our organization and the industry at large, adding DE&I as a pillar of our Strategic Plan.

Some 2021 highlights of our efforts last year include:

– Real Estate Diversity Initiative (REDI): ULI Cleveland successfully launched the Urban Land Institute Real Estate Diversity Initiative in 2021. The Real Estate Diversity Initiative (REDI) is a comprehensive real estate development training and mentorship program for people of color, women, and LGBTQ+ individuals. The curriculum covers the spectrum of the real estate development process. Thirty participants step into the role of a real estate developer, gaining direct knowledge and experience working in teams to produce a development plan,
pro-forma, and marketing plan for a real project. Participants are taught by a volunteer faculty of experienced, multi-disciplinary, top-tier practicing real estate professionals serving as instructors, mentors, and facilitators who share market-based knowledge and the wisdom from their experience. The program concludes with REDI teams presenting their proposals to a panel of real estate professionals. The application process for a second class will be available in early 2022.

-Building the 21st Century City: The Future is Now! Symposium: The City of Cleveland and the ULI Cleveland District Council presented, on March 2-3, 2021, an inclusive,
two-day symposium, Building the 21st Century City: The Future Is Now!. The purpose of this Symposium was to identify and discuss policy and programs necessary for Cleveland to compete and thrive as a 21st Century City, one that will be inclusive to all of its citizens and attract workers and businesses. With these goals in mind, the Symposium focused on three significant areas: technology, mobility and inclusive economic development. Attendees interacted with a talented and experienced group of speakers and panelist from the region and far beyond during the program. A summary report from the symposium is available online at Cleveland.ULI.org. As planned, the City and ULI proceeded with Phase 2 of this project, on Wednesday, November 10. In this virtual follow up to the Symposium, we analyzed the insights and recommendations shared during the Symposium and distilled the vital and valuable information into a discrete list of practical and impactful projects and programs that may be considered by the City, other leaders in the region and the entire community to advance the goal of Building the 21st Century City.

Looking for ways to engage? Email [email protected] to learn more.

I want to thank our members for embracing this work, especially those that have led and supported the  DE&I Steering Committee. I look forward to what we can accomplish together in 2022.

Sincerely,

Cathryn Greenwald

ULI Cleveland District Council Chair, 2020-2022