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David Key, Director of Business Development, Tempe Chamber of Commerce  On May 16, 2024, the Western Association of Chamber Executives (WACE) hosted a pivotal workshop in Austin, Texas, focusing on workforce development. There were three focus areas around workforce development: housing & homelessness, transportation & childcare. Chambers of Commerce across the country have the opportunity to create solutions and make a meaningful impact in each of these areas and can make significant strides in their progress by learning how other communities are addressing these challenges. Housing & Homelessness
Brittany Quick-Warner, President & CEO of the Eugene Chamber of Commerce, led the opening session with a presentation focused on how her community is overcoming the housing & homelessness crisis. Lane County, with 4,595 homeless individuals as of April 2024, has one of the highest per capita homelessness rates in the country. The increasing crime rates and unmanaged camps have led to a pervasive sense of apathy within communities. Rebuilding community trust through enforcement and accountability is a vital part of the process and the goal should be to build a community where homelessness is rare, brief and non-recurring. There is an urgent need for chambers to take an active role in addressing challenges with housing & homelessness through five key roles: research, convening, educating, innovation and advocacy. Research Research is a foundational step, and it is important to make data-focused arguments, rather than emotional arguments, especially when it comes to funding. Point-in-time counts can be used to track the severity of the situation and the progress over time. Chambers can facilitate unbiased, third-party research to understand the local context of homelessness and find best practices from around the country. Participating Chambers were encouraged to conduct economic studies to track spending and analyze home prices, operational expenditures, and the impact of funding cuts post-pandemic. Data-driven approaches, like those from the national organization Built for Zero, emphasize using quality data and shared goals to drive collective impact. Prevention efforts, though impactful, require more recurring funding. The Eugene Chamber's efforts included raising significant funds from local businesses and grants to hire a homeless strategist and support homeless initiatives. Investment in both emergency shelter and permanent housing is necessary, along with outreach, case management, and wrap-around service. Convene Another suitable role for Chambers of Commerce is convening. Existing partners addressing homelessness may be too burdened with their day-to-day responsibilities to also take the responsibility of convening both public and private partners. Successful strategies require the involvement of various community sectors, including faith groups, city officials, law enforcement, businesses, philanthropies, and health organizations. The Eugene Chamber convened a Business Leader Task Force aimed at educating and informing stakeholders about homelessness and potential solutions. Educate Through the Business Leader Task Force Chambers can be effective in educating the community, fostering understanding and support through clear, consistent communication - sometimes more effective than government partners who would traditionally be expected to fulfill this role. Innovation Beyond convening, there is a need for innovation by collaborating with public sectors, nonprofits, and community partners. This collaboration is essential for innovation, which requires deep knowledge and a shared vision for success. Initiatives like connecting the unhoused to training and job opportunities are crucial. Programs that support mental health and provide transitional employment, such as partnerships with food banks, demonstrate practical steps forward. Advocacy Chambers possess the political capital necessary to advocate for new solutions, which many service providers lack the capacity or board support to pursue. Policymakers can influence contributing factors such as the cost & availability of housing, the quality of jobs and the economic development in a city or state. In areas like Eugene, strict land-use policies have hindered housing expansion. The workshop discussed the importance of understanding vacancy rates and construction costs and exploring the feasibility of introducing duplexes and quadplexes into residential areas. Transportation Demand Management & Mobility Lonny Stern, Executive Director of Movability, presented at the WACE workshop to highlight the organization's efforts to tackle transportation issues in Central Texas. Movability, a transportation management association, was founded to address parking and congestion problems faced by downtown employers. The challenges cited were increased populations, sales tax revenue decreasing with reduced time spent in the office, and the combination of lost productivity and increased costs for employees to community. In addition to increased productivity and cost savings, the benefits of transportation demand management and increased mobility were increased employee satisfaction & retention as well a healthier environment. Key Challenges and Solutions Central Texas faces significant transportation challenges. Population growth has strained roadways, leading to high parking costs and congestion. For instance, downtown parking costs exceed $250 per month, prompting employers to offer $180 monthly commuter stipends. These stipends can cover transit passes and parking, encouraging alternative commuting methods. Congestion has economic impacts, with the average Austin commuter wasting 53 hours in traffic in 2022, costing $1 billion in lost productivity. Reducing car use can alleviate this issue, cutting carbon emissions and saving commuters money. TDM Strategies Movability implements several TDM strategies:
Movability's programs aim to improve commuter behavior and employer engagement. Their mobility camps host events to familiarize participants with walking, biking, and scooting. Their Schoolpool Program reduces school-related congestion by encouraging carpooling, biking, and walking pools. They grow this program by removing barriers to entry such as startup costs by supporting schools with grants, and giving concerned parents an app for tracking vehicle location of their children as they carpool. Movability offers financial support through the GoGrant program, providing up to $7,500 to organizations. They also recognize employers meeting national commuter benefit standards with the Best Workplaces for Commuters award. Future initiatives include a construction partnership program, a 2024 commuter survey, and developing landing pages with transportation and parking information. Childcare as an Economic Imperative Kelsey Erickson Streufert, Chief Public Affairs Officer of the Texas Restaurant Association, discussed the critical role of childcare in workforce development. Inadequate childcare is costing the US economy $122 billion a year. One dollar invested in childcare can yield four to nine dollars in benefits, including health outcomes, educational attainment and employment, as well as lower truancy and criminality. Childcare costs and access present significant barriers to workforce participation. In Texas, the high cost of infant care and widespread childcare deserts hinder workforce participation and as many as 60% of nonworking parents cite childcare as a primary barrier. Subsidy waitlists and struggling childcare centers further exacerbate the problem. Key Challenges to Address The primary federal grant program to help fund childcare assistance for low-income working families is called the Child Care & Development Block Grant. In Texas, only 2,500 quality rated centers can accept these subsidies – in a state with two million children under the age of five. To put this into perspective, Arizona has a 500,000+ children under the age of six and about the same number of centers that accept these subsidies, leaving 88% of children who are not served due to insufficient funding. Federal funding can’t be used for capital investment and funding to improve quality is capped and limited. Chambers of Commerce have the opportunity to help childcare centers that are underfunded to make capital improvements. They also are positioned to help the industry address challenges such as meeting the needs of businesses with nontraditional hours (ex. Restaurants and hotels) and competing for labor. A unique challenge is that the CHIPS act is moving childcare on-site for manufacturers, leaving them inaccessible to those outside the company and still competing for the same regional labor. Policy Development and Employer Engagement The Employers for Childcare Task Force (E4C) is a nonpartisan organization comprised of a diverse group of business leaders working to develop and advocate for policy reforms to address the economic challenges posed by inadequate childcare. Employer partnerships are a focus of E4C, advocating for employer-driven childcare solutions that focus on giving employers and their families options to decide what is best for their family. Learning journeys and policy development efforts aim to educate employers and legislators about the childcare system's challenges and best practices. A strategic policy agenda is established by the E4C between legislative sessions. Key policy themes include funding, regulatory hurdles, and the sustainability of the childcare workforce. Three key questions were cited for addressing policy:
David Key is the Director of Business Development at the Tempe Chamber of Commerce in Tempe, Arizona. With a focus on fostering economic growth and supporting small businesses, David works with entrepreneurs and business leaders to address key challenges like workforce development. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management & Entrepreneurship from Arizona State University.
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