Coalition for a Better Acre (CBA)

Mission Statement

The Coalition for a Better Acre is a membership based community development corporation dedicated to resident empowerment and sustainable community revitalization for current and future residents of Lowell. We promote healthy, vibrant neighborhoods by developing resident leaders, affordable housing and economic opportunities, and by responding to community needs through collective action.

Vision for CBA

We strive for Lowell's neighborhoods to be affordable, vibrant and diverse, places of choice where residents are engaged leaders, and where local stakeholders work in partnership to build family and community assets.

Our Values and Beliefs

• We believe in respect and dignity for everyone.
• We value openness, honesty, and genuine trust between people.
• We value listening to others and being responsive to the community's needs.
• We believe in the importance of leadership development and building resident engagement across a diverse spectrum of people.
• We value collaboration, partnership, and teamwork within our organization and between our organization and others.

Our Approach

• Our approach to community revitalization is to set ambitious, yet realistic and measurable goals that will help us produce quality results.
• We will be strategic, creative and flexible in carrying out our work.
• Our actions will be guided by our desired outcomes. We intend to evaluate our progress based on our ability to achieve these outcomes.
• To ensure that we are continually improving, we will instill the practice of reflection and evaluation.
• We will develop an organization that is sustainable and managed with integrity.
• We will invest in board of directors and resident leadership development, ensuring that we represent the community and are accountable to it.

The Coalition for a Better Acre (CBA) is a membership based community development corporation dedicated to resident empowerment and sustainable community revitalization for current and future residents of Lowell. We promote healthy, vibrant neighborhoods by developing resident leaders, affordable housing and economic opportunities, and by responding to community needs through collective action.

Local residents, small business owners and church leaders formed CBA in 1982, in response to a city-sponsored plan to raze and rebuild the Acre's Triangle neighborhood. The plan would have displaced low-income families and replaced affordable housing with market-rate housing and commercial spaces. CBA successfully opposed the city-sponsored plan and went on to launch many other successful organizing campaigns and programs. We strive for Lowell's neighborhoods to be affordable, vibrant and diverse, places of choice where residents are engaged leaders, and where local stakeholders work in partnership to build family and community assets.