In partnership with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Streetsense, an experience-focused strategy and design collective based in Washington D.C., designed and supported one of the largest COVID recovery planning programs in the nation, the Rapid Recovery Program. The $10 million-dollar comprehensive program uses Streetsense's award-winning methodology to support Massachusetts businesses impacted by COVID-19.
The program is the first of its kind and was launched on a statewide scale in December 2020, with 124 rapid recovery plans that together identify over 1,100 discrete "shovel ready" projects that will assist businesses to recover from the effects of COVID-19 and that reflect community input and support. These plans enable communities to apply for additional competitive federal funding and resources and ensure the Commonwealth has the depth of understanding needed to inform future resource allocation.
Streetsense's process and award-winning methodology provided the framework for 124 plans and an interactive and public database with aggregate data of all the projects. The results provide Massachusetts policymakers with the first publicly available dashboard that offers sufficient standardized information such as vacancies, business closures, business owner sentiment and other data to inform policy and future capital investment decisions. Streetsense's approach also lends itself to designing statewide or federal programs that can be executed across broader geographies.
"The replicability of the Rapid Recovery Program is incredibly powerful. The ability for a state to collect standardized information on the direct business impacts of COVID is difficult," said Larisa Ortiz, managing director of public non-profit solutions at Streetsense. "The ability to compare town against town on a statewide scale helps the Commonwealth make more informed policy recommendations. We now have easily accessible community plans, a blueprint for investment and hopefully a pathway forward for helping business districts rebound to better support small businesses, minority owners and those that are undercapitalized and suffering from the impacts of COVID-19."
For more information about the Rapid Recovery Program, visit https://www.mass.gov/info-details/rapid-recovery-plan-rrp-program.
ABOUT STREETSENSE
Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Washington D.C., Streetsense is an experience-focused strategy and design collective that creates brands people love and places people love to be. Powered by in-depth insights and an interdisciplinary approach, the 180+ professionals at Streetsense are experts at creating, transforming, and driving consumer demand to brands and places. Visit Streetsense at www.streetsense.com or in person in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Madrid, Spain. Follow Streetsense on Twitter and Instagram at @realstreetsense and on Facebook via facebook.com/realstreetsense.
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