Accelerator For America

A nonprofit, nonpartisan "Do tank" that has delivered resources and solutions to 200 localities nationwide

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Thank you, Mayor @JaneCastor and @CityofTampa, for hosting our Fall Advisory Council gathering! Great conversations, great takeaways, and great work still ahead. Stay tuned!

https://t.co/BxdTZDDKv7

[Jane Castor @JaneCastor]

Honored to host @USAccelerate in Tampa! Met with other mayors, business leaders & experts from across the country to create innovative approaches to the issues facing our cities. From AI to transit, we shared solutions to strengthen our local communities for generations to come.

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

$22.9B. That’s what voters just secured for transit & infrastructure in 2026 ballot measures.

Hear how Mayor @DanielLurie (San Francisco) & Mayor William Cogswell (Charleston) got it done — join AFA Action on Thu 11/12, 4pm ET.

Register: https://t.co/uCDHxhwJTT

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Despite affordability concerns dominating the political conversation, voters nationwide said yes to transit, infrastructure & housing investment in 2026 — approving 81% of local transportation ballot measures tracked by @ARTBA.

AFA Action, AFA’s sister org, backed campaigns in the Bay Area, Charleston, Pierce County & Charlotte. Join AFA Action's Nov. 12 webinar to hear from the leaders behind these wins: https://t.co/NmpFCjgsdR

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Federal workforce funds are growing the pool of trained workers, but getting someone into a good job runs through local systems those dollars aren’t built to fund.
Our new report with Blackstone Charitable Foundation lays out 8 ways local philanthropy can close the gap: https://t.co/XrAIWZ24zs

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

How do you build local wealth that actually stays local?

@NGINetwork's new report digs into land trusts, worker co-ops, ESOPs & community investment vehicles — with real examples from St. Paul, Jackson & Sacramento.

Worth a close read 👉https://t.co/L6p6CjBwMM

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Three cities. One proven model. One shared goal: good, stable jobs for more residents. A year after our Commitment to Action with The Skills Initiative, that partnership is taking shape in Allentown, @Chattanooga_gov & Louisville, with support from #TruistFoundation.
@M@MayorTimKelly @LouisvilleMayor
https://t.co/aRFpAqVJqW

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Good news for America’s city halls: @BloombergDotOrg is moving three of the nation’s most effective local housing solutions from the city halls that pioneered them – @CityofAtlanta, @austintexasgov, and @CityofSanDiego – to up to 30 more across the country. We are proud to partner with them.

Interested U.S. municipal officials can learn more today: https://t.co/UAcY6O5O6M

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Mayor @MattMahanSJ wants to cut multifamily permitting in @CityofSanJose from 16 months to 1 month. We’re proud to be working with @BloombergDotOrg to help him get closer to his speedy permitting goals.

Hear Mayor Mahan on @thephilacitizen's How to Really Run a City.
https://t.co/9VQL6UYU0b

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Today’s #ImagineADayWithoutWater isn’t hypothetical for some of our Advisory Council Mayors. @MayorGallego in @CityofPhoenixAZ is preparing for Colorado River cuts by doubling down on conservation, while @MayorToddGloria in @CityofSanDiego is advancing Pure Water San Diego and investing in reliable water infrastructure. @CityofAtlanta's Mayor Dickens is investing $2B over 20 years after aging mains failed.

Different challenges, same lesson: water infrastructure takes sustained investment.

@USWaterAlliance

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

The road to solving our housing shortage is to meet mayors where the work actually happens: city hall.

We’re proud to join @BloombergDotOrg, America’s biggest backer of municipal innovation, to bring tools proven to unlock housing supply to up to 30 more city halls nationwide. Together, we are creating national change from the ground up.

[Bloomberg Philanthropies @BloombergDotOrg]

The way out of America's housing shortage runs through city hall.

That's why we're bringing the best of municipal innovation to the nation's building charge, moving the most effective local solutions from the places that pioneered them — Mayor @AndreforAtlanta's @CityofAtlanta, Mayor @KirkPWatson's @AustinTexasGov, Mayor @ToddGloria's @CityofSanDiego — to up to 30 more across the country.

With @USAccelerate and @PublicDigitalHQ, we will help mayors ready to lead deliver what residents need most: more homes.

Learn more in @Vox by @rcobooth: https://t.co/YmdBHPJk1R

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

We’re proud to be a 2026 @anthemawards finalist! Our work with @jocogov & @sidewalkinfra turned the World Cup into a local transit win — building a stress-tested airport circulator connecting fans (and residents) to KCI and beyond. Vote for the Johnson County circulator & AFA for the Anthem Community Voice Award:
https://t.co/4JZIUQX8G3

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

AFA Advisory Council members Mayor @davidfholt, Mayor @freddieoconnell, and @wspusa's Jannet Walker-Ford spoke about the power of communities betting on themselves & how investing in transit & quality of life led to tremendous growth.

@APTA_info

[Mayor David Holt @davidfholt]

In 1970, the population of OKC was 366,481; the population of Austin was 251,808; and the population of Nashville was 448,003.

Today, the population of OKC is 719,849; the population of Austin is 1,002,632; and the population of Nashville is 721,074.

Oklahoma City, Austin and Nashville are three of the nation’s fastest-growing cities. This is a testament to our quality of life, but it also puts pressure on the ease of living that contributes to our attractiveness. Austin and Nashville have seen tremendous growth in traffic. We are starting to see it in OKC.

In 2020, Austin passed a major transportation initiative. Nashville passed theirs in 2024. Leaders in both cities would tell you that they wish they had passed it much earlier.

It was great to be on a panel in Chicago at the American Public Transportation Association Expo with Mayor Watson of Austin and Mayor O'Connell of Nashville. Oklahoma City can learn lessons from our two peer cities as we face the inevitable challenges of growth.

We three mayors talked about efforts underway in all our cities to provide mobility for our residents, whether in cars or public transit. As I talked about at length in my State of the City address this summer, it will soon be time for our residents to make a major commitment to our region’s transportation system.

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Today's the deadline for governors to submit their OZ census tract nominations to Treasury. As OZ 2.0 takes shape, revisit our case study on Golaski Labs in Philadelphia — how @partners_mosaic, PIDC & the City turned a vacant factory into 35 units of workforce housing: https://t.co/jEsLMbyBHP

More OZ case studies + policy briefs coming soon.

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

As @ClintonGlobal returns to NYC this week, progress on 2 of our Commitments to Action: with @TolemiHQ, 17 cities turned property data into 100K+ identified public parcels for housing. With @westphilaskills, more communities are now exploring a workforce model that lifts grad pay by $12K/yr.

More → https://t.co/B5MAU0h1Mx

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

ROAD to Housing Act programs will roll out over the next 2 years. Cities that organize now on public land, permitting & lending will be ready when funding lands.

Read the Mayor's Action Guide, released by AFA & National Housing Crisis Task Force, for ways to get started: https://t.co/9co3pKCIYq

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Step 1: Read the ROAD to Local Results guide 🏘️

Step 2: Join us on *Sept. 15 at 1 p.m.* to hear from National Housing Crisis Task Force team and from practitioners on what ROAD means for their own housing priorities. Register 👉https://t.co/ddomYrJ0HO

https://t.co/U70DNpiZQz

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

AFA Advisory Council member & @CLEMayorsOffice @JustinMBibb is showing how local leaders solve for housing and jobs together. $80M+ raised via the city's Site Readiness for Good Jobs Fund → 25,000+ potential jobs. Plus a new housing innovation district cutting red tape for affordable housing.

Cleveland is a city to watch. 👇
https://t.co/Yc7TWlBCVv

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Housing affordability & supply are top of mind for local leaders, and federal policy keeps reshaping the tools cities have to work with.

Join us Tue, Sept 15 at 1pm ET: Economic Opportunity Accelerators — The ROAD to Housing Act. What's in the bill, what matters most, what to do now.

Register 👉 https://t.co/FpUQHwfgyG

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Congratulations to AFA Advisory Council member, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, on being recognized as one of @GOVERNING's Public Officials of the Year!

Mayor Dickens is finding innovative ways to meet his housing goals — including creating the Atlanta Housing Strike Force — and his commitment to accelerating economic opportunity for all is a great example of how local leaders can create national change.

[GOVERNING @GOVERNING]

Governing’s annual Public Officials of the Year program celebrates state and local leaders who have delivered lasting results for the people they serve. This year’s honorees show how effective public leadership can strengthen communities: https://t.co/QOti44JJSF

[Accelerator For America @USAccelerate]

Growing our Advisory Council: 6 local elected officials and 3 national philanthropic leaders are joining AFA — bringing fresh expertise in economic & community development, transit & infrastructure, housing, and workforce development.

Plus: @CityofMiami Mayor Eileen Higgins is our new Council Co-Chair.

Meet them ��https://t.co/BW0MRf5PFc