The STL Vacancy Collaborative is guided by a racial equity framework that shapes every aspect of our work, recognizing that vacancy disproportionately affects communities of color. This framework drives our efforts to address the root causes of vacancy, such as discriminatory practices, historical disinvestment, and harmful public policies.
This framework is not just a guiding principle, but a call to action. We are dedicated to continuously evaluating our work, measuring its impact, and making adjustments as needed to ensure racial equity remains at the core of everything we do.
This framework is not just a guiding principle, but a call to action. We are dedicated to continuously evaluating our work, measuring its impact, and making adjustments as needed to ensure racial equity remains at the core of everything we do.
Guiding Principles
Collaboration: Foster a culture of collaboration by aligning efforts and building a shared vision. Advocate for strong, coordinated leadership across public and private sectors to tackle the challenge effectively.
Transparency: Ensure transparency by sharing information in clear and accessible ways. Proactively assess potential unintended consequences of new policies and programs within existing structures and systems.
Data-Driven Decision Making: Base decisions on verifiable data and community insights. Prioritize accurate, comprehensive, and current information to shape adaptive policies and programs for addressing vacancy effectively.
Community-Centered: Elevate community voices by promoting engagement and supporting community-driven solutions. Empower residents to take meaningful action.
Systems-Focused and Policy-Driven: Focus on systemic and policy-level change alongside individual property interventions. Address vacancy as a citywide and regional issue shaped by larger forces, such as irresponsible investments, harmful policies, population decline, sprawl, and lack of economic and educational opportunities.
Transparency: Ensure transparency by sharing information in clear and accessible ways. Proactively assess potential unintended consequences of new policies and programs within existing structures and systems.
Data-Driven Decision Making: Base decisions on verifiable data and community insights. Prioritize accurate, comprehensive, and current information to shape adaptive policies and programs for addressing vacancy effectively.
Community-Centered: Elevate community voices by promoting engagement and supporting community-driven solutions. Empower residents to take meaningful action.
Systems-Focused and Policy-Driven: Focus on systemic and policy-level change alongside individual property interventions. Address vacancy as a citywide and regional issue shaped by larger forces, such as irresponsible investments, harmful policies, population decline, sprawl, and lack of economic and educational opportunities.
