Growing Our Local Economy
Cambridge has the ingredients of a city with a robust and resilient economy: a strategic location, an educated and skilled workforce, established businesses, major institutions and multiple historic downtown cores. What we have not always done is fully capitalize on these strengths. To do so, we need an approach to economic development that does not passively respond to investment but actively pursues it. That means having clear economic goals, creating the tools to achieve them, making strategic investments of our own, and actively competing for the businesses, jobs and institutions that can strengthen Cambridge. Rather than growth for growth’s sake, this is about making better use of the city we already have, strengthening our tax base, creating more opportunities for residents and ensuring that the investments we do pursue produce lasting, tangible benefits.
Create the Cambridge Economic Investment Strategy (CEIS)
Cambridge needs a clear economic strategy that tells current and prospective businesses and investors where we want to go and what we are prepared to do to get there. I would establish a Cambridge Economic Investment Strategy (CEIS) with measurable targets to increase employment, expand the tax base, attract private investment, increase housing supply, and further strengthen our downtowns.
This strategy would identify the sectors and types of investment where Cambridge has the greatest opportunity to compete, identify underused sites and infrastructure that could support additional economic activity, and establish a pipeline of priority projects and investment opportunities that could be undertaken by the City or private partners to boost employment and economic activity.
Most importantly, the CEIS would change how major municipal decisions are evaluated, as economic impact should be considered alongside other important planning objectives. When a major development, infrastructure project or policy change comes before Council, we should be asking not only “does this comply with our rules?”, but also “does this help Cambridge achieve the objectives we have set?” Where the answer is no, we should ask whether the proposal can be improved, or whether there are City -controlled policy barriers that may need to be reasonably changed or altered.
Create the Cambridge Economic Development & Investment Corporation (CEDIC)
A strategy is only useful if someone is responsible for putting it into action. I would explore establishing a Cambridge Economic Development & Investment Corporation (CEDIC) as an arms-length organization dedicated to attracting investment, supporting strategic development and pursuing major economic opportunities for Cambridge.
CEDIC would operate somewhere between a traditional economic development agency and a municipal development corporation. Rather than simply promoting Cambridge, it should actively work with businesses, builders, institutions and other levels of government to bring priority projects from an idea to reality. That could include assembling or preparing strategic sites, helping coordinate approvals, pursuing funding opportunities, marketing Cambridge to potential employers and investors, and identifying projects where a relatively small municipal contribution could unlock substantially larger private investment.
CEDIC should also be accountable for results, with its performance measured in private investment attracted, jobs created, housing enabled, tax-base growth and other measurable economic outcomes and not simply the number of meetings held or promotional materials distributed. As an initial benchmark, I would aim for $10 of economic development and private investment for every $1 invested through CEDIC within five years of the initial investment.
Make our downtowns an investment priority.
Cambridge's downtowns are some of our greatest existing economic assets. We should be making them stronger, not simply waiting for individual projects to come forward. I would make downtown investment a specific priority of the CEIS, combining public-realm improvements with policies that encourage new businesses, housing and institutions to locate in and around our downtowns. That means continuing to improve streetscapes, public spaces, pedestrian environments and amenities, while identifying specific opportunities for new housing and mixed-use development where it makes sense.
The City should also examine targeted incentives for projects that deliver substantial new downtown housing or other strategic forms of investment. The objective would not be to subsidize development indiscriminately, but to use municipal tools where they can unlock investment that produces a broader public benefit. A stronger downtown population creates a larger customer base for local businesses. More successful businesses create more employment and activity. More activity makes the downtown more attractive to residents, visitors (tourism!) and investors. The goal is to create downtowns that are economically active because people choose to spend their time there, not just because the City has subsidized them.
Compete for jobs, investment, and infrastructure.
Cambridge should not wait for major employers, institutions or infrastructure investments to find us. We should direct the City's future economic development efforts (through projects like CEIS and CEDIC) toward identifying a small number of high-impact opportunities and actively pursuing them. That means developing a targeted list of prospective employers and institutions that would complement Cambridge's existing economy, identifying what they would need to locate here, and having City representatives actively make the case for Cambridge.
The same approach should apply to infrastructure. I would work with the Region and other levels of government to advance GO rail service to Cambridge in short order, making the case for inter-city transit not only as a transportation investment but as an economic-development tool that can support new housing, employment and private investment. Cambridge should also begin planning now for future rapid transit and transportation-priority corridors so that infrastructure decisions are made before development patterns are locked in and infrastructure investments are forced to play catch-up.
A Positive Cycle of Investment
These four actions are designed to reinforce one another. Better planning and policy make investment easier. New investment creates jobs, housing and tax revenue. More jobs and residents create demand for businesses and services. Stronger businesses and downtowns make Cambridge more attractive to residents and investors. A larger tax base gives the City more capacity to invest in infrastructure and public spaces. That is the economic cycle I want Cambridge to build. We don't need to become a different city, we need to become better at making the most of the city we already have. Simply make Cambridge a place where good investment is welcomed, good ideas can become reality, and the benefits of economic growth are felt by the people who already call this city home.
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