Participate in Commercial Real Estate Disparity Study

Photo Courtesy of NYCEDC

Building on City’s Back-to-Back Record-Breaking Years for Supporting Minority-and-Women-Owned Businesses and Awarding $6.4 Billion in Total M/WBE Contracts During Fiscal Year 2024

Study to Evaluate Opportunities for M/WBEs in Commercial Real Estate Development Industry, Building Upon New York City’s Previous Study Findings and Recommendations

New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) has selected MGT Impact Solutions (MGT) to immediately begin analyzing the utilization of minority-owned and women-owned businesses and enterprises (M/WBEs) within New York City’s commercial real estate development industry. The disparity study’s findings will provide a critical update to previous findings, allowing the City to make program and policy improvements to more precisely address gaps and barriers M/WBEs are facing in the market. As industries evolve and population demographics shift, it is imperative to capture new trends and update programs and policies to meet the needs of the city’s economy. MGT’s analysis is central to ensuring that New York City’s workforce is representative of its population and that it will support the city’s needs through diverse businesses opportunities.

In November 2024, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Chief Business Diversity Officer Michael J. Garner, Mayor’s Office of Contract Services, and the New York City Department of Small Business Services celebrated a multi-agency effort to deliver back-to-back record-breaking years for spending on, and supporting M/WBEs. In Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24), the city awarded $6.4 billion in M/WBE contracts and continued to make meaningful progress towards Mayor Adams’ OneNYC goal of awarding $25 billion in M/WBE city contracts by FY26.

Under Local Law 1 (LL1), which governs the city’s M/WBE program, the utilization rate was 31.2 percent—the highest ever in the program’s history. The city also set a record-high in total contract value awarded to M/WBEs under LL1 at $1.59 billion, a 15 percent increase since FY22, the first fiscal year of the Adams administration.

MGT led the most recent City of New York Disparity Study, published in 2018, and will work in tandem with NYCEDC to develop a first-of-its-kind study focusing on the barriers and entry points for M/WBEs in the commercial real estate development industry to grow. The study will consider commercial real estate transaction data, access to capital, market participation, procurement opportunities, and anecdotal evidence from developers to provide a thorough understanding of the breadth of available opportunities, as well as challenges faced by M/WBEs in the industry. A combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis will determine if there is any significant disparity between the use of M/WBE developers based on their availability in the marketplace.

NYCEDC’s ongoing commitment to creating opportunities and supportive services for underutilized business owners has manifested itself in several programs across several industries. This includes Construct NYC, Waterfront Pathways, Venture Access Alliance, Emerging Developer Loan Fund, and the Founder Fellowship, all of which aim to improve opportunities for M/WBE firms in the construction, offshore wind, and technology sectors. In addition to industry-specific efforts, NYCEDC’s Women.NYC initiative has built a network of female leaders, entrepreneurs, and rising workforce through networking, mentorship, and training and development cohorts.

To build upon existing programs, NYCEDC routinely launches requests for proposal (RFPs) to ensure capacity building programs, training and networks continue to thrive for M/WBEs across the city. Current RFPs include:

• Waterfront Pathways: NYCEDC is seeking a new operator to lead the Waterfront Pathways capacity building program. This program aims to proactively increase M/WBE participation in marine construction, waterfront development and offshore wind industries. Read the full RFP.
• Economic Mobility Network: NYCEDC also released an RFP seeking one or two operators to launch an economic mobility network in Hunts Point, Bronx and Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Read the full RFP.

Real estate developers are strongly encouraged to provide their experience engaging in real estate transactions with NYCEDC by completing the Online Developer Survey which is open through April 30th, 2025. Real Estate Developers are invited to participate in our virtual public information sessions on February 4th, 2025. NYCEDC expects to share results in late 2025 along with potential next steps. MGT will continue to gather qualitative input from businesses throughout the study. General questions about the study can be directed to NYCEDCdisparitystudy@edc.nyc.

About NYCEDC
New York City Economic Development Corporation is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization that works for a vibrant, inclusive, and globally competitive economy for all New Yorkers. We take a comprehensive approach, through four main strategies: strengthen confidence in NYC as a great place to do business; grow innovative sectors with a focus on equity; build neighborhoods as places to live, learn, work, and play; and deliver sustainable infrastructure for communities and the city’s future economy. To learn more about what we do, visit us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

About MGT
MGT is a leading provider of social impact and performance improvement solutions for public agencies, philanthropic organizations, and Fortune 500 companies across the U.S. and abroad. Leveraging a half-century track record and reputation, MGT’s industry experts provide highly specialized solutions addressing mission-critical client priorities that improve outcomes and help organizations and communities thrive.