Activism

Black Developers Forum Celebrates Accomplishments

“Black developers should have the same opportunities that any other developer has to build great projects that benefit the community,” said Don Gilmore, executive director of the Community Housing Development Corporation and BDF’s vice president. “But the inequities in funding and related regulations have been and continue to be a barrier, and we will no longer be silent. We’re using our collective voice and resources to demand that Black developers be provided the equitable opportunities that have eluded us for so long.”

Published

3 years ago

November 4, 2022

Oakland Post

BDF advocates for federal and state policies that have historically discriminated against and disenfranchised Black developers and Black-led organizations.

Caption: Black Developers Forum Board of Directors with State Treasurer Fiona Ma, center. Photo courtesy of the Black Developers Forum.

By Marla A. Matime

On October 3, the Black Developers Forum (BDF), held a cocktail reception at the Minna Gallery in San Francisco. A standing-room-only event, many of the state’s Black developers filled the room, to celebrate BDF’s first year as a California-based non-profit advocacy organization striving to eradicate inequities in the development of affordable housing. The event followed the 43^rd annual Non-Profit Housing (NPH) Conference also held in San Francisco.

BDF is a network of Black affordable housing developers and industry supporters committed to creating communities that provide safe, healthy living environments, educational opportunities, and housing to people of the African Diaspora.

The reception was also a means for raising money to support the work and advocacy of BDF. The funds raised go to support BDF in creating workshops and trainings for Black developers and industry professionals.

Black developers need allies in positions of influence and decision-making to receive equitable consideration for housing dollars for communities of color. The BDF Cocktail Reception provided a great opportunity to bring these critical parties together.

Keynote speaker, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, spoke about the BIPOC allocation pool, a $112 million set aside for Blacks and other minority developers which was initiated by former Deputy Treasurer Jovan Agee and created in 2021.

This set aside addresses the needs of minority developers who lacked access to capital and relationships with the major banks to provide lines of credit and other financing products. Creating this allocation pool was a significant priority for the Black Developers Forum and Treasurer Ma.

Ma also explained that without the allocation, Black developers would not only lack equitable access to funding capital, but also be left out of the loop to build affordable housing that addresses a primary goal: to reduce harmful carbon emissions. This would be accomplished through the production and logistics of delivering the materials to the development sites and use of clean energy components that would go into the final touches of building structures.

She went on to specify why these opportunities are important not just for the developers, but also for the communities that they serve. Providing affordable housing, workforce housing, and access to education and resources will help underrepresented communities of color by hopefully inspiring them to become homeowners, which in turn will help pull these families out of a cycle of poverty. Ma is up for re-election on November 8.

“Building back our sustainable communities through a lens of equity is a top priority,” said Cherene Sandidge, president of the Sandidge Urban Group, Inc and president of BDF.

Her passion and drive to ensure Black developers receive equitable opportunities is why she accepted the position to lead BDF. Sandidge also acknowledged partners who were in attendance, specifically Lourdes Castro Ramirez who is secretary of California’s Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency, who has “had our back since the beginning.”

Don Gilmore, executive director of the Community Housing Development Corporation and BDF’s vice president said “Black-led affordable housing developers have been subjected to the systemic inequities in State funding of affordable housing projects, which created barriers to us receiving the opportunity to build in our own communities. The Black Developers Forum formed to provide us with a collective voice to call out these inequities and positively impact how current and future legislation is shaped.”

He also noted that, “Black developers should have the same opportunities that any other developer has to build great projects that benefit the community, but the inequities in funding and related regulations have been and continue to be a barrier, and we will no longer be silent. We’re using our collective voice and resources to demand that Black developers be provided the equitable opportunities that have eluded us for so long.”

When asked about the responses from the state on equitable policies, practices and laws, Gilmore said, “We have received positive responses from all levels of our government and have been awarded for taking a stand and being change agents for a system of equitable policies, practices and laws. This represents forward progress and we’re happy to be a grassroots advocacy organization whose work will create a system of equitable practices that future generations can benefit from.”

BDF addresses institutional issues that have prohibited wealth-building and the continued disenfranchisement of Black developers, Black-led organizations, and Black individuals. There are over 50 members within the Forum including developers, both in the for-profit and non-profit sectors, as well as from the finance, construction, property management, and other industry professionals.

Further, BDF advocates for federal and state policies that have historically discriminated against and disenfranchised Black developers and Black-led organizations.

A goal that has not been met, and is an ongoing effort, is to ensure that practices, policies, and regulations are instated to allow Black developers and other people of color within the industry, fair and equitable scoring on development applications, equitable funding opportunities, and equitable experience requirements through the BIPOC Set Aside. Additionally, BDF was able to change the CDLAC regulations to allow more Black developers to access capital and create the BIPOC set aside.

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Activism

Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

1 week ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.