ATTACHMENT B
KEY LESSONS LEARNED AND BEST PRACTICES
Through the course of this project, from scoping through finalization, the project team (Department of Transportation and its consultants) learned many lessons and created recommendations from them. Below are some of the key takeaways from this process, noted as lessons learned and recommendations for future equity-centered work.
Lessons Learned Recommendations for Future-Equity Work Scoping and Setting Expectations
• Expectations from community members and
City partners around the project outcomes
were not initially aligned. Task Force
members felt the issues their communities
were struggling with were much larger
than transportation.
• The grant was written without community
involvement, which made it difficult to
make substantive changes that reflected
community input.
• Integrate considerations beyond the
primary topic of the plan. For example, this
plan addresses issues beyond emerging
mobility such as housing, personal and
community safety, transit, land use,
and economic opportunities.
• Be transparent about the expectations and
constraints at the onset and conclusion of
every project.
• Identify ways to work with community leaders
and organizations, whether through an
advisory group or informal collaboration, to
gather input during project conceptualization.
• Encourage grant administrators to require City
agencies to partner directly with community-
based organizations on grant applications.
Data Analysis
• Quantitative data is not always
comprehensive or intuitive.
• Many datasets generalize people’s
experiences and ignore the nuances between
communities.
• Data may misconstrue the reality experienced
by community members on the ground.
• Challenge conventional forms of analysis
and integrate people’s stories shared
through interviews, focus groups, online
surveys, and virtual meetings as part of
existing conditions analysis.
• Gather community insights at the outset of
a project in partnership with or delegated
to community-based organizations who
have established relationships with their
community and a deep understanding of
their experiences.
Lessons Learned Recommendations for Future-Equity Work Equity Task Force Engagement
• Not all Task Force members knew each other
and as a result they did feel comfortable
being vulnerable with each other at the
project outset.
• Not all Task Force members were familiar
with the plan subject matter.
• Expectations and accountability were outlined
on a high-level, but this was not enough.
• Task Force members’ preferences for
materials review and meeting facilitation
varied.
• Task Force members said it was difficult to
absorb and respond to the volume of
information at the pace at which it was
presented, particularly after a long day at
work.
• Task Force members wanted to know where
and how their feedback was integrated into
stakeholder conversations and project
deliverables.
• Prioritize relationships building from the
outset and integrate throughout the process.
• Dedicate time for capacity building.
• Clarify expectations and establish project
team accountability measures.
• Tailor facilitation and content to different
learning styles.
• Identify ways to break material down into
digestible chunks and accessible language.
Use breakout groups to review and discuss
the material wherever possible.
• Formalize a feedback loop between the Task
Force, City, and project team.
• Encourage regular self-assessment.
Communitywide Engagement
• Community leaders are in the best position to
gauge how project content will be received.
• People engage in the community in different
ways.
• Task Force members were not representative
of the full spectrum of diverse community
members.
• Lean on community leaders to vet content
and ensure it is digestible and culturally
sensitive.
• Use a variety of engagement methods for
different forms of feedback.
• Extend outreach and engagement beyond
the Task Force network.
1 ATTACHMENT C
SUMMARY OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
The project team (City staff and consultant team) sought to collaborate with the City’s communities, particularly its Black, Indigenous, Latino/a/x, Asian, Pacific Islander and other marginalized communities, in developing the Emerging Mobility Action Plan. One way the team did this was by creating an Equity Task Force (Task Force). The Task Force was composed of nine community leaders representing organizations serving San José’s diverse communities.
Task Force members were key thought partners who provided insight into the concerns and priorities of their communities; facilitated and led community engagement in their communities; and helped set the direction and goals of the plan. More information on the Task Force selection process is provided on page 5.
The EMAP community engagement plan was divided into three phases. Each phase had a particular focus and used a different set of community engagement tactics. The COVID-19 pandemic and the project team’s commitment to centering racial equity necessitated innovation. The result was greater diversity in the community members engaged and the resulting learnings.
Community Engagement Phase 1 Activities (Spring 2021)
During phase 1, the project team sought to gather information on the transportation needs of community members, share information about the vision and purpose of the EMAP, and glean insights on community members’ perceptions of emerging mobility services. • Citywide Needs Assessment. The survey was made available in five languages: English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Farsi, and Tagalog. The Task Force took a lead role in getting word out about the survey in their communities and larger networks. The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) promoted the survey to its riders; the link was included in Council newsletters, posted on the Emerging Mobility Action Plan website (movesanjose.org) and circulated through San José’s social media accounts. • Community Leader Interviews: As a starting point, the project team interviewed eight community leaders representing San Jose’s Black, Latino/a/x, Asian, and Pacific Islander communities to gain their perspective on their community’s assets, resources, and challenges. The leaders were chosen on the basis of their leadership and deep involvement in their communities.
• Website: Throughout the project, the San Jose Department of Transportation’s (DOT) website hosted general project information, presentations, and plan documents. A second website, movesanjose.org, was used for more interactive surveying and project updates.
• Workshops: The project team collaborated with the Task Force to create the agenda, content, and conduct three digital workshops in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese. The 2 workshops served as an opportunity for community members to comment on the purpose of the plan and its goals as well as share their transportation challenges and ideas for how to improve their experience.
• Community Focus Groups: Task Force members organized two focus groups, one with PARS Equity Center clients, the other LEAD Filipino members. • Task Force Engagement: During this phase of the work, the Task Force worked with the project team to establish the plan’s goals and vision, define its engagement strategy, and identify measurable outcomes. The Task Force also collaborated on the development of the plan’s community needs assessment survey, ensuring that its language was inclusive and culturally appropriate.
Community Engagement Phase 2 Activities (Summer 2021)
During this phase, the project team sought feedback on its analysis of existing conditions and preliminary recommendations.
• Community Pop-Ups: The project team collaborated with Task Force members to plan and carry out several “pop-ups”– tabling in high-traffic areas – at community events at Veggielution in East San Jose and the Capitol Flea Market in South San Jose. • Community Resource Fair: The Task Force planned a community resource fair at Parque de Los Pobladores in Downtown San Jose that included information booths staffed by approximately a dozen non-profit and social service agencies. Several private companies provided information about their electric shared scooter and shared bike services and offered attendees the opportunity to test drive their devices. The EMAP project team also had a table at the event.
• Community Focus Groups: The project team organized four focus groups in partnership with Task Force members and other community organizations. The focus groups included members of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, Latinos United for a New America (LUNA) volunteers, LGBTQ Youth Space participants, and Silicon Valley Independent Living Center members.
● Task Force Engagement: The Task Force worked with the project team to evaluate the first round of community engagement and modify the strategy for round two, develop preliminary recommendations based on community input, and prioritize those preliminary recommendations.
Community Engagement Phase 3 Activities (Winter 2021-2022) In this final round of engagement, the project team sought community input on a more refined set of recommendations to determine if anything important was missed and which were most important to them.
• Community Focus Groups: A second round of focus groups were organized with the same four groups that participated in round two: the Muwekma Ohlone tribe, LUNA, Silicon Valley Independent Living Center members, and the LGBTQ Youth Space. 3 • One-to-One Conversations: Similar to the focus groups, the project team met individually with 15 community leaders for in-depth conversation and discussion about the plan, its approach, and its recommendations. The leaders were identified by the Task Force to ensure the project team was hearing from as diverse a cross section of the City’s communities as possible, including groups not represented on the Task Force.
No NEIGHBORHOOD RACIAL/ETHNIC
IDENTITY
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
1 Alviso, North San Jose Latinx CBO Staff, Service Provider 2 Downtown African American CBO Staff, Student Leader
3 Santee - East Side Latinx Community Activist, Neighborhood Leader 4 Almaden Valley Vietnamese CBO Staff, Housing Activist/Organizer 5 Downtown Vietnamese Immigration Activist, Attorney
6 Cambrian Caucasian Transit Advocate, Neighborhood Leader 7 East Side Vietnamese Tech Worker, Community Activist
8 Downtown African American Tech Worker, Housing Activist 9 Downtown African American Formerly Unhoused, Community Activist 10 Downtown Caucasian Formerly Unhoused, Community Activist 11 Downtown Latinx Retired, Neighborhood Leader
12 Downtown Caucasian Housing and Labor Attorney
13 East Side Latinx Housing Attorney, Neighborhood Leader 14 West SJ Latinx CBO Staff - Service Provider
15 West SJ Latinx Immigration Activist
• Website and Social Media: Throughout the project, DOT’s website and movesanjose.org were used to post summaries of Task Force meetings and to promote upcoming community engagement opportunities. The first draft of the full report was published on the City’s website in mid-January 2022. The project team invited comment on the plan via social media posts and emails to a list of community organizations, including neighborhood associations.
4 • Community Readers: Nine community leaders were recruited to read and provide a detailed critique of the draft EMAP. Community members were compensated on an hourly basis for their time and effort. These readers submitted more than 200 substantive comments on the plan, which informed EMAP’s final version.
No. NEIGHBORHOOD RACIAL/ETHNIC
IDENTITY
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
1 Alviso, North San Jose Latinx CBO Staff – Service Provider 2 Downtown Filipino Artist, Community Activist
3 Almaden Valley Vietnamese CBO Staff, Housing Activist/Organizer 4 Downtown Vietnamese Immigration Activist, Attorney
5 Cambrian Caucasian Transit Advocate, Neighborhood
Leader
6 Downtown Latinx Youth Activist, Attorney
7 Downtown African American Tech Worker, Housing Activist 8 Downtown African American Formerly Unhoused, Community Activist
9 Downtown Caucasian Formerly Unhoused, Community
Activist
• Online Webinar: In January 2022, the project team hosted a public webinar where the recommendations were presented and space was provided for questions from the public.
● Task Force Engagement: The Task Force worked with the project team to develop final recommendations based on community input, participated in the design and execution of the third and final round of community engagement, and participated in an evaluation of the EMAP community engagement, including the project team’s work with the Task Force.
Equity Task Force Selection Process
As noted above, one strategy used to center racial and social equity in this planning process was creating a task force comprising community leaders and organizations representing the City’s marginalized communities. Below is a summary of how the task force members were recruited and selected.
5 Recruiting for the Equity Task Force
The announcement seeking applicants for the Task Force was sent to all of the Council offices and posted on MoveSanJose.org. Social media posts linking to those pages were circulated numerous times via DOT and MoveSanJose channels (Facebook, Nextdoor, Twitter). More than four hundred emails were sent to community organizations and community leaders. Thirty additional organizations were direct messaged on Facebook. The engagement team reached out to local media including San Jose Spotlight, the Mercury News, Silicon Valley Business Journal, four Spanish media channels, and six Vietnamese media channels. Promotional information was included in Sal Pizzaro’s column on January 26, 2021. All promotional content was shared in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
Below are the eight questions applicants were asked to answer.
1. Why are you interested in partnering with the City to advance transportation equity?
2. How are you currently involved in serving your community? Which community is that?
3. In what ways are you or your organization dedicated to racial and/or social equity?
4. If you are an individual, what is your availability to contribute to the project? If you are from an organization, does your organization have full-time staff? How many? What is their availability to contribute to this project?
5. List the top three skills/strengths you/your organization would bring to the team.
6. What else would you like us to know about you/your organization?
7. For organizations only, how would you describe your values, mission, or key objectives?
8. Can you attend the initial meeting on Thursday, February 18th from 4 to 5pm?
Reviewing and Selecting Applicants
The City received 60 applications for the Task Force. DOT’s project manager (PM), Winter Consulting’s community engagement team (engagement team) and Nelson Nygaard’s equity consultant reviewed and scored each application. Applications were scored based on the following criteria:
1. Diversity: CBOs and community leaders must represent and/or have connections with racially and/or ethnically diverse communities and potential intersectionality with:
• Low-income populations
• Limited English proficiency (LEP) populations
• People with disabilities
• Older adults and/or youth population
2. Reputation and/or experience: Existing strong reputation in the communities they serve or prior experience in transportation, land use, homelessness, tenants’ rights issues, and/or other social causes.
3. Reach: Ability to reach a wide audience in their community. 6 The engagement team, City PM, and equity consultant selected applicants to interview based on their individual applications as well as the diversity of the Task Force as a whole.
Interviews
Interviews were conducted by the consultant engagement team. These were the primary questions:
1. What are you most interested in contributing to the Task Force, this planning effort, and the City‘s efforts to more effectively partner with its communities? What outcomes are you most hoping the Task Force will accomplish? What problems does this process need to help correct?
2. Do you have a relationship with City staff, and if so, what is it like? Any challenges? Would you need any support in resolving past conflicts with the City or other potential partners?
3. What are the different channels/mediums you use to reach your community members? Are you willing to leverage those channels to help the Task Force reach your base?
4. What languages can you or your staff communicate in (spoken and written translation)?
5. Anything else you would like to share with us, or any other question or concerns?