The L.E.E.P. InitiativE
Leadership in Engineering Equitable Participation
The Leadership in Engineering Equitable Participation (LEEP) Initiative seeks to address multiple aspects of sustainable real estate development, including economic and community development, in ways that are socially responsible and responsive to local needs. The goal of LEEP is to help foster a more equitable and socially responsible real estate development landscape, one where local communities can benefit from and shape how their regions feel. Creating a trusted standard of practice and certification platform will allow us all to do good while doing well.
LEEP Promotes
Employment and Career Development Small Business Utilization Workforce Housing and Affordability Ownership & Intergenerational Wealth Creation Environmental Justice and Sustainability Mental Health, Physical Health, and Well-Being
Our Approach
Industry Standards. We utilize current and proposed best practices to develop Standards of Practice for industry-wide real estate development from an equity and economically just lens. This will include early community engagement and outreach, training and education, funding support, transactional structuring, and state of the art technology deployment.
Project Certification. An equitability-rating system featuring a scorecard to rank the voluntary adoption of specific measures to achieve socially just outcomes. Developed with reliable feedback mechanisms for relevancy and effectiveness, our certification considers all stakeholders, including policy makers, developers, owners, tenants, community leaders, and others. Our certification is similarly structured to the environmental sustainability building certification, LEED.
Mission-Driven Guidance. Some developers will be able to adhere to the LEEP Initiative Standards of Practice guidelines without assistance, but many may require guidance on the implementation of LEEP’s Standards and applying for project certification. We can help, and will consult developers so they can reach the program standards.
Current Projects
To showcase how LEEP principles and standards were initially developed, two preconception case studies, centered in Oakland, CA, are highlighted. Both projects began with, and strongly encouraged participation by, community engagement through open meetings with community leaders and stakeholders. The authentic and collaborative planning process allows these projects to bring equity to the forefront of the design of each project, ensuring that the community would be not only receptive to development but would benefit from the development in their neighborhoods, providing for business and economic opportunities.
The Mandela Station Project, which is a West Oakland BART Transit Oriented Development, will encompass over 3 million square feet of upcoming Oakland and will serve as a National Model of Socially Responsible Development. There are 240 affordable housing units, and is 7 minutes from San Francisco’s financial district
The Eastline Project is expected to create 4,600 permanent jobs, community spaces and retail storefronts. Nearly 31,000 square feet of open spaces, along with 800,000 square feet of office, large and small retail spaces, will be used to further local economic growth and development.
LEEP will incentivize the economic potential of large and small-scale developments to generate maximum levels of diversity and economic participation. LEEP will convene industry experts to identify and adopt community-oriented best practices from the wide array of existing initiatives. These best practices will be cataloged, and well-defined, to inform project sponsors of available options integral to all aspects of the real estate development process.
MAILING LIST
LEEP will incentivize the economic potential of large and small-scale developments to generate maximum levels of diversity and economic participation. LEEP will convene industry experts to identify and adopt community-oriented best practices from the wide array of existing initiatives. These best practices will be cataloged, and well-defined, to inform project sponsors of available options integral to all aspects of the real estate development process.
To learn more about LEEP, and receive upcoming opportunities to get involved, join our mailing list.