FAQs – Community Benefits

Dina Graser December 4, 2018 community benefit agreements

What are community benefits?

Community benefits are additional physical, social and economic benefits for the local community that are leveraged by dollars already being spent, often on major infrastructure and land development projects.
Benefits commonly include jobs, training and apprenticeships for targeted groups and opportunities for local businesses and social enterprises, but additional benefits can range from affordable housing to energy reduction projects and public realm improvements.
Typically, community benefits are achieved either through private agreement or through tenders for public projects.
Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) are legally binding, enforceable contracts that set forth specific benefits for an infrastructure or development project. Common in the U.S., CBAs are usually negotiated between a developer or infrastructure builder and a community group or coalition. Benefits are defined through an inclusive community engagement process.
Social procurement or “community benefits clauses” refers to provisions found in a tender for a publicly funded project which require the contractor to deliver certain additional benefits for a project. This approach is common in the UK and was followed by Metrolinx in its recent procurement for the Eglinton Crosstown LRT project.

Yes. In Vancouver, Millenium Developments signed a CBA with the City of Vancouver and BOB, a nonprofit representing the community, to ensure jobs, training, and procurement directed to inner-city businesses for the construction of the Vancouver Olympic Village.
In Toronto, the Regent Park redevelopment used community benefits clauses to ensure jobs and training opportunities, as well as public amenities.
Currently in Toronto, Metrolinx is incorporating community benefits as it builds the Crosstown and Finch LRT projects.

Community benefits maximize dollars already being spent with very little additional investment, and help foster a more equitable approach to economic development.
By targeting jobs and training opportunities for those who have difficulty accessing the labour market (e.g., veterans, youth, indigenous peoples), community benefits help to reduce poverty and increase social inclusion.
By ensuring there are opportunities for local suppliers, in particular small, medium-sized and social enterprises (SMEs/SEs), community benefits build the local economy and encourage economic growth.
For governments, community benefits help meet a range of other policy objectives, from poverty reduction to social inclusion and carbon reduction.
For private developers, negotiating a CBA with local community groups can ensure any concerns with the project are addressed up front, preventing delay and litigation down the road; build political buy-in and allies; and help reinforce their brand as good corporate citizens.