Synopsis
PIDC recently selected the development team of Ensemble/Mosaic to co-develop 109 acres of Philadelphia’s historic Navy Yard, establishing the site’s first residential neighborhood along with commercial uses to anchor the city’s life science sector and support small business and workforce development. PIDC and Ensemble/Mosaic tasked a team of consultants led by James Corner Field Operations to update a master plan for the Navy Yard and shape the development to come. Urbane’s purpose on this team was to create a crowdfunding strategy and retail plan, providing a roadmap for the Navy Yard to become an engine for equitable economic development in Philadelphia.
A key portion of Urbane’s role was to develop a strategy for Ensemble/Mosaic to crowdfund 5% of the development’s $140 million first phase from Philadelphia residents, particularly those who are typically left out of investment opportunities. We conducted interviews with 17 stakeholders who represent various segments of the city’s population; launched a survey of 250 residents that explored investment understanding and preferences; and held four focus groups with 23 total participants to delve into perspectives on ideal investment outcomes and resonant marketing messages. We supplemented rich primary data with secondary research on financial behavior, spending patterns, and media usage among various demographics in Philadelphia zip codes. We built the synthesized data into a collection of investor segments, which provided an in-depth picture of experiences, perspectives, and impactful outreach methods that characterize key groups of potential investors. Examples of highlighted investor segments include immigrants in Philadelphia, with a focus profile of African immigrants in Southwest Philadelphia; and South Philly residents who live near the Navy Yard, with a deep dive on recent college graduates in South Philly zip codes. Our research learnings informed a detailed roadmap for Ensemble/Mosaic to share the Navy Yard opportunity with these segments of potential investors, address barriers to participation, hit the right marketing notes, and ensure continued engagement.
Additionally, Urbane created a retail and programming plan designed to support small business start-up and growth and inclusive workforce development. For this portion of our research, we interviewed an additional 15+ small business and cultural stakeholders, built case studies of state-of-the-art business development facilities, and conducted market research on retail space sizing and pricing. Our recommendations formed an equity-centered plan for attracting and supporting entrepreneurs and workers from across Philadelphia.
DELIVERABLES:
- A report on existing conditions, including citywide market research, asset mapping, and definition setting related to equitable economic development goals
- A comprehensive engagement strategy for Ensemble/Mosaic’s crowdfunding initiative, containing detailed data on target segments of Philadelphia residents tailored to support effective outreach
- A final equitable economic development plan for the Navy Yard, including a retail and programming strategy, recommendations for partnerships and program designs, and a catalog of potential funding sources
