Community Development Corporation of Cambridge (CDCC)
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| Community Development Corporation of Cambridge (CDCC) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Community Development Corporation of Cambridge |
| Abbreviation | CDCC |
| Formation | 1970s |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Region served | Cambridge metropolitan area |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
Community Development Corporation of Cambridge (CDCC) is a nonprofit community development organization based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, focused on affordable housing, neighborhood revitalization, small business support, and workforce development. Founded amid urban renewal debates in the late 20th century, the CDCC has engaged with municipal, philanthropic, and grassroots actors to shape land use, housing policy, and economic opportunity in Greater Boston. The organization operates through project-based development, technical assistance, and collaborative partnerships with local institutions.
History
The organization emerged during a period of civic mobilization alongside entities such as Community Action Program of Cambridge, Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, Harvard University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Early milestones paralleled national initiatives like the Model Cities Program and local responses to the Cambridge eviction crisis and neighborhood displacement debates. Over decades the CDCC has interacted with municipal administrations in Cambridge, Massachusetts, engaged with state initiatives such as the Massachusetts Affordable Housing Act (Ch. 40B), and participated in regional coalitions including the Metropolitan Area Planning Council and Boston Foundation-funded collaboratives. Leadership changes reflected trends in community development: directors with experience from Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Enterprise Community Partners, and NeighborWorks America brought policy, finance, and legal expertise. The CDCC's archives record interactions with neighborhood associations like the Port neighborhood, preservation advocates linked to Cambridge Historical Commission, and tenant organizing informed by campaigns in Somerville, Massachusetts.
Mission and Programs
The CDCC's mission emphasizes affordable housing preservation, equitable development, and community-driven planning in partnership with organizations such as MassHousing, Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, Citizens' Housing and Planning Association, Cambridge Housing Authority, and philanthropic funders including The Kresge Foundation. Program portfolios include pre-development services, tenant organizing support, workforce training collaborations with Cambridge Center for Adult Education, and small business technical assistance modeled on practices from Local Initiatives Support Corporation and Enterprise Community Partners. Programmatic work often aligns with federal initiatives administered by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, collaborations with Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, and neighborhood planning efforts involving Cambridge Planning Department.
Housing and Community Development Projects
The CDCC has sponsored, financed, or managed multiple housing projects in collaboration with developers, lenders, and public agencies such as MassDevelopment, Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation, WinnCompanies, and Corcoran Jennison. Projects include preservation of affordable units through mechanisms used by Low-Income Housing Tax Credit syndicators, project-based vouchers in coordination with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and adaptive reuse of historic structures under guidance from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Cambridge Historical Commission. Neighborhood-scale initiatives have involved parks and public realm improvements modeled on efforts in Central Square, Cambridge, transit-oriented development near Kendall Square, and inclusionary zoning negotiations with the Cambridge City Council. The CDCC has also engaged in land trust discussions informed by models from the Burlington Community Land Trust and statewide community land trust networks.
Economic Development and Small Business Support
Economic development activities focus on small business retention, commercial corridor revitalization, and microenterprise support drawing on partnerships with Small Business Administration, SCORE, MassDevelopment's Small Business Technical Assistance, and local chambers like the Greater Cambridge Chamber of Commerce. The CDCC provides storefront improvement grants, leasing mediation during redevelopment projects such as those influenced by MIT Kendall Square expansion, and workforce pipelines linked to institutions including Cambridge Innovation Center and Biogen. Initiatives often coordinate with neighborhood-specific business associations, echoing models used by Downtown Boston Business Improvement District and programming supported by the Boston Main Streets Foundation.
Governance and Funding
Governance follows a nonprofit board structure with stakeholders drawn from neighborhood leaders, representatives of institutions such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, community advocates from Cambridge Residents Alliance, and funders from organizations like Boston Foundation and Citizens Energy. Funding streams combine grants from state agencies including Massachusetts Cultural Council when engaged in public realm projects, philanthropic grants from private foundations, program service fees, Low-Income Housing Tax Credit equity, and debt financing from regional lenders including Arlington Cooperative Bank and Eastern Bank. The CDCC has adopted compliance practices reflecting reporting standards of Community Development Financial Institutions Fund when participating in credit-related activities.
Partnerships and Impact Evaluation
Partnerships span municipal departments such as the Cambridge Economic Development Division, statewide entities like MassHire, nonprofit intermediaries including Enterprise Community Partners and NeighborWorks America, academic partners at Harvard Kennedy School and MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and philanthropic partners including Surdna Foundation. Impact evaluation has relied on metrics used in urban policy research at Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, independent evaluations by consultants with ties to Urban Institute, and data-sharing agreements with institutions such as MassGIS and the U.S. Census Bureau. Assessments focus on metrics like affordable units preserved, jobs retained or created, small business survival rates, and displacement mitigation outcomes, informing iterative program design and policy advocacy in Cambridge and the broader Greater Boston region.