Strategic Plan & Advisory Group

2023 Strategic Plan

The 2023 Strategic Plan for the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority (CRA) builds upon the organization’s 2014 Strategic Plan to provide an expanded vision of the organization’s potential positive impact for the Cambridge community. When the CRA prepared its 2014 Strategic Plan, it was essentially a “new” organization with a new board, a new executive director, and the opportunity to re-envision its future. At that time, the Board established a mission, operating principles, and priority projects to direct its work over the near and mid-term future. To carry out the work, the plan outlined future staff needs, financial considerations, and how the organization could engage in continuous learning through outreach and other professional development. 

The CRA has proactively worked to shape a more equitable and sustainable City over the past nine years, generating ideas for projects, partnering with more organizations, conducting research, influencing policy, participating in streetscape design, retrofitting space for new programs, and implementing parks and building developments. The CRA’s staff capacity, resources, and projects and programs have grown significantly. In 2023, the world looks very different, in part because of the pandemic, but also because Cambridge, its neighborhoods, and its communities continue to change. 

Against this backdrop, the CRA has worked with our Strategic Advisory Group (SAG), the City of Cambridge, and other stakeholders and partners to prepare our new Strategic Plan. This updated Strategic Plan offers a chance to reflect on the work to date and the organizational operation, while taking stock of current and future needs in the community and specifying how the CRA intends to work with its many partners to achieve its mission. 

Forward Fund & Havard Community Development Program (HCDP) Research Collaborative

As part of the CRA’s mission to continually improve its grant-making process, and adding the strategic planning goal of sustainability and resilience, the Forward Fund partnered with the Harvard Community Development Project (HCDP). Over the course of six months, the Forward Fund worked closely with a collaborative of Public Policy and Urban Planning Masters Students to provide research and strategic support for developing a Forward Fund grant program that can more directly target energy-efficiency retrofits for community-based organizations and more directly target the needs of legacy businesses in Cambridge.

Deliverables included:

• Comparative Review – A comparative study of other municipal-level grant programs in the U.S. that are targeted toward providing funding for energy-retrofits for small businesses, non-profits, and other community-based organizations.

• Stakeholder Engagement- A report sharing feedback from community non-profits and small business representatives to better understand how the Forward Fund grant can be more nimble, effective, and inclusive of climate friendly initiatives and development.

• Strategy Report – A document outlining the proposed strategy for enhancing the Forward Fund program, including timeline, administrative logistics, and any additional ongoing coordination.

CRA Mission 

The Cambridge Redevelopment Authority is committed to implementing creative development projects and initiatives that promote social equity and environmental sustainability. As a real estate entity that works in the public interest, we offer distinctive public investment tools and a human dimension to our projects and partnerships throughout the city. 

For more information, contact:

Kyle Vangel, Director of Projects and Planning

kvangel@cambridgeredevelopment.org

617-492-6800

255 Main Street, 8th floor, Cambridge, MA 02142