More than five years of work by Urban Habitat and our partners in the Richmond Equitable Development Initiative (REDI) bore fruit in April 2012 when the City Council approved a new General Plan. The plan is one of the first in the country to include a stand-alone health element and incorporate principles of social equity throughout.

REDI priorities in the General Plan include support for:

• Living-wage jobs and job training, with a focus on people who face barriers to employment.
• Healthy food stores and urban gardens.
• Stronger requirements for affordable housing in proposed development projects.
• Policies ensuring that new development takes into account residents’ needs and does not result in displacement.
• Safer streets and more affordable, reliable transit.
• Stronger controls and monitoring of toxic polluters.