Welcome back to The Weekly Wrap, our Friday roundup of stories that explain the problems oppressing people in cities and elevate the solutions that bring us closer to economic, environmental, and social justice. If you enjoy this newsletter, share it with a friend or colleague and tell them to subscribe.
East Oakland Nonprofit Acquires Vacant Lot To Build Affordable Housing
A Black-led nonprofit community development corporation in East Oakland has acquired a long-vacant lot for just $10, with plans to build affordable housing there, The Oaklandside reports.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved the transfer of the blighted corner property to the Black Cultural Zone for a nominal amount, using a rarely-used tool under the state tax code. Called a Chapter 8 tax sale, it allows public agencies to acquire tax-defaulted properties for public use if the money owed on a property exceeds its value. The lot had sat empty for more than 30 years – after its previous owner, Oakland Community Housing Inc., dissolved in 2013 — racking up $1.7 million in back taxes and fines, and failed to sell at multiple auctions.
Alameda County Treasurer-Tax Collector Henry Levy says he has identified at least 10 more abandoned, tax-defaulted lots that can be transferred to nonprofits through Chapter 8 tax sales.
Report: ICE Arrests Lead to Decline in Jobs
A new report from Immigration Research Initiative found that ICE raids have decreased job rates for immigrants and U.S.-born workers alike, findings that are in line with the results of multiple studies published even before Trump returned to office.
Researchers looked at employment statistics between January and November 2025 and found a 2.5% decline in employment for immigrant men for every 1,000 arrests by ICE. For U.S.-born citizens, there was an employment decline of .5% for every 1,000 arrests. The report attributes this to other immigrants staying home to avoid arrests, leading to decreased foot traffic on businesses and a cascading impact on the economy. These are larger decreases than those found in previous studies, likely because of the indiscriminate nature of ICE arrests in the second Trump term, the report said.
Wrongful Death Climate Lawsuit Moves Forward
A landmark lawsuit alleging that fossil fuel companies are responsible for a woman’s heat-related death in Washington state in June 2021, during the state’s hottest-ever day, is poised to move forward, according to Grist.
Misti Leon, the deceased woman’s daughter, has sued Exxon Mobil, BP, Shell, Chevron, and other companies on the testimony of scientists that the heat dome effect that killed her mother would never have occurred without climate change. About 1,200 people in the region died of heat-related deaths the same week as Leon’s mother, according to Grist.
Earlier this month, a judge ruled against a motion from the oil companies to dismiss the lawsuit. There are close to 40 similar lawsuits that have been filed across the country, including five that are in discovery, according to Grist. They build on revelations that Exxon Mobil knew about fossil fuels’ impact on the climate since the 1970s.
100 Tenant Associations Organized Through City Program
As of Tuesday, 100 tenant associations across New York City have joined a city-run program that organizes and supports tenant groups as they attempt to get their landlords to make repairs, according to BK Reader. The city’s Partners in Preservation program began under the De Blasio administration and funds 20 different community organizations that organize tenants. It is funded by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and NYC Housing Development Corproation.
The new tenant association in the Bath Beach neighborhood was formed in a building first canvassed in late 2025 by the nonprofit Fifth Avenue Committee. Since sending their landlord a letter in March 2026, tenants have secured a commitment to repair issues that have plagued the building for more than a decade, according to Michelle de la Uz of Neighbors Helping Neighbors, a subsidiary of Fifth Avenue Committee.
Report: Data Centers Keeping Coal Alive
According to a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, C02 emissions in the U.S. increased by 2% in 2025; in the electric power sector they increased by 4%. The report attributes this to “growth in electricity demand from data centers and manufacturing facilities,” as well as above-average summer temperatures.
While emissions increased in all sectors, the largest share of that increase was from an increased use of coal power. According to Grist, this marks a shift from the past few decades in which power generation in the U.S. was mostly flat. Data centers are expected to account for 10% of U.S. energy generation by 2030. In Louisiana alone, Meta is pushing for 10 new gas-fired plants to power its enormous data centers.
MORE NEWS
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Vancouver City Council kills densification plan after fierce public backlash. Daily Hive
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$530M from state millionaire tax will go to Boston’s MBTA transit agency. Smart Cities Dive
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Street homelessness went up in Los Angeles. In Nithya Raman’s district, it was nearly cut in half. LA Times
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Congress budgeted billions for big transit projects. Trump isn’t spending it. The New York Times
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Missouri library defiantly holds LGBTQ story hour despite funding and legal state threats. Erin in the Morning
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Wealthy Bay Area cities are making progress on housing goals — but they’re almost all ADUs. San Francisco Chronicle
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Employers stall labor contracts for years. A new bill could change that. The American Prospect
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Why are Durham’s breweries drying up? IndyWeek
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New Orleans ‘crime cameras’ spark fears of construction worker surveillance. Prism
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As 7 Save A Lot stores close, South and West Siders increasingly worry about grocery options. Block Club Chicago
OPPORTUNITIES & RESOURCES
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DEADLINE TODAY: The University of Pennsylvania’s Lipman Family Prize is accepting applications from nonprofits around the world that are showing leadership and innovation in the social sector. Awards range from $150,000 to $300,000. Apply by July 31.
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Borealis Philanthropy’s new Just Futures Initiative is accepting funding applications on a rolling basis from organizations advancing community safety, reform, justice, and belonging. Fill out an eligibility quiz to receive access to the Letter of Interest form.
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The Pratt Center for Community Development’s new Community Planning & Research Accelerator will support four community-based organizations working on housing, climate, economic justice, planning, and land use with project funding in technical assistance. Apply by Aug. 31.
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The Nationwide Foundation is funding nonprofit organizations working to address communities’ basic and emergency needs, crisis stabilization, financial security, housing stability, and family empowerment. Apply by Sept. 1 after completing a mandatory grant training.
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Impact Fund is accepting grant applications for impact litigation advancing economic, environmental, and social justice. Submit a letter of interest by Sept. 29.
This article is part of The Weekly Wrap, a newsletter rounding up stories that explain the problems oppressing people in cities and elevate the solutions bringing us closer to economic, environmental and social justice. Click here to subscribe to The Weekly Wrap newsletter.
Roshan Abraham is a contributing editor for housing and homelessness at Next City. Based in Queens, New York, he has written extensively about city policy, including prisons and policing, housing and homelessness for The Guardian, The New York Times, Slate, The Baffler, Village Voice, The Verge, Pacific Standard, The Appeal, Vice and other outlets. At Vice, he was formerly a staff writer covering the housing beat. He is a former Open City Fellow and Witness Fellow at the Asian American Writers Workshop and a former Equitable Cities Fellow at Next City.
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