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Throughout these discussions, several key themes emerged that provided guidance toward the development of the Financial Empowerment Blueprint to address the issue of disenfranchisement of Black South Bend residents and to better serve the needs of all residents. Summarized below are broad themes that inform our Financial Empowerment Blueprint: Neighborhoods: Equitable and Flourishing A frequently discussed topic was the inequity in the development, maintenance, and perception of the neighborhoods in South Bend, particularly the inequity of South Bend’s West Side compared to other areas. Residents discussed the need for all neighborhoods to be vibrant and flourishing for South Bend to truly thrive. Working to create equitable and flourishing neighborhoods addresses the issue of disenfranchisement of many Black South Bend residents to ensure South Bend progresses with a core of equality. Ownership and Generational Wealth Residents discussed the importance of asset ownership, specifically home ownership, as a primary tool for wealth building. However, initiatives around ownership expand beyond the simple ownership of a home. Initiatives need to include ownership education, asset acquisition assistance, asset maintenance and preservation, and asset growth opportunities to truly build wealth. Such asset ownership also creates the ability to build generational wealth, increasing a family’s and neighborhood’s wealth position over time. Existing Resources: Access and Enhancement While many current City initiatives relate—directly or indirectly—to financial empowerment, residents expressed the lack of awareness and visibility for many of these programs. Moreover, many discussed how these City initiatives could be improved or enhanced to better serve the needs of residents. Doing so allows more residents to access strengthened programs, better aligning City services with the current needs of residents. Financial Harm Reduction Black residents expressed difficulty with wealth-building due to the historic financial harm. Opportunities to build wealth for Black residents of South Bend have largely been prevented or impaired. While the City has reduced the occurrence of punitive fines and fees, additional support will be needed to mitigate predatory practices which may cause future wealth-extraction. Current efforts to reduce financial harm include: the Pathways program which provides access to livable wages through workforce development, utility forgiveness program which assisted by reducing utility-based cost burdens incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, the enactment of the Rental Safety Verification Program to ensure quality of place for residents, and addressed environmental justice through lead safety initiatives. COMMUNITY AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT THEMES 18 FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT BLUEPRINT