In this pivotal moment for downtown revitalization, I’m thrilled that our State Representatives have embraced the need to focus on downtown recovery. At the start of the legislative calendar, Assemblymember Matt Haney established the Downtown Recovery Select Committee with the backing of California State Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas. This committee presents a critical opportunity to address the challenges facing our urban cores post-pandemic.
The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has left our downtowns grappling with various challenges, such as vacant storefronts, remote and hybrid work, and public safety issues. Assemblymember Haney's proposed legislative solutions offer a beacon of hope for a vibrant recovery, including tax incentives to incentivize in-person work and streamlined permitting for repurposing vacant office spaces into housing.
Because of the leadership of the CDA Board and Legislative Committee, I’m thrilled to announce that CDA will host our inaugural lobby day on Capitol Hill in Sacramento on Monday, April 8. This landmark event will empower CDA members to directly engage with our state representatives and Select Committee on Downtown Recovery members. As we know, place management professionals can provide firsthand testimony and insights into our downtown communities' issues and opportunities.
The following are the CDA Committee opportunities:
Program / West Coast Urban District Forum (WCUDF) Committee
This committee members will define, create, and implement valuable programming for the entire membership. In addition, along with IDA/CDA and the host city, Committee members will define the theme for the WCUDF conference and create content for the conference. This committee meets regularly between July and March.
Membership Committee
This committee ensures that member benefits are fulfilled, and manages membership dues and administration. In addition, committee members assist with new member outreach, membership campaigns, and membership programming.
Legislative Committee
This committee works, with guidance from CDA’s government affairs professional, to determine the policy agenda for CDA. The committee reviews each year’s proposed bills and identifies the ones that the CDA Board considers. Every member of this committee must commit to contributing double their organization’s membership dues. For example, if your organization's CDA dues is $500, and you sit on the legislative committee, you agree to contribute an additional $500. The committee meets a minimum of 2x per month from January through September.
DEI Taskforce:
This taskforce was developed to help guide CDA's response to racial reconciliation during 2020 and 2021. The task force has developed programming to push the conversation forward on the intersection of place management organizations and diversity, equity, inclusion, and access.
Committee Member Requirements:
- Must be a CDA Member in good standing.
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We encourage all levels of staff as committee members, but only one staff person per organization can sit on each committee.
- Each committee meets approximately once a month; however, both WCUDF and Legislative have schedules based on their own timelines.
- In an effort to maintain committee balance, each committee seeks its best effort to include representation from the various regions within the state.
If you are interested, please send an email by March 11, 2023, to Austinm@dlba.org. In the email, please include your interest in which committee and why you are interested.
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