Build Build Build: Never Mind The People

vector diagram with social, environment and business circles
Triple Bottom Line graphic graphic by Clonewayx is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
The the triple bottom line provides a way to report progress in advancing social and environmental responsibility in business.

Just recently, the Business Roundtable, a group of very large companies called a press conference. The purpose? Why, to say that in addition to being about shareholder profits, business has responsibilities to the environment and to the public. The group has no ability to bind businesses to act, let alone pay attention. Media covering the story pointed out that this same group has vigourously defended its right to profit and obligations to shareholders in the past. You can check it out at the CBC: U.S. Corporate Leaders Swing Left To Fix ‘Frayed’ American Dream: Don Pittis

And will business be quick to fall in line on this thinking? We checked on Housing Today, a weekly on line magazine. It is based in England, with a primary audience of architects, builders and developers.

This week’s edition leads off with an interview with Johnny Caddick, a director in a family firm that is developing build-to-rent properties. The build-to-rent arm of the business increased the company’s pre tax profit by 37.5% in one year, according to the introduction. Caddick himself says he assures councils that he’s providing housing for ‘customers’, not ‘tenants’, and targeting the top income quartile of renters.

Next up is a weekly opinion piece: this one is by Paul Smith. He uses his opportunity to point out that that planning is a judicial process and not an democratic forum. This means that you can dispute whether the amount of parking proposed on a residential development varies too much compared to a established standard, but if the site is already designated for residential use, advocating for a different use altogether (say a park) is out of bounds. Mr. Smith also reminds readers that developers are responsible to their shareholders.

Affordable housing for low income tenants? Public accountability? Neither Mr. Caddick nor Mr. Smith seem inclined to embrace the environmental and social responsibilities espoused by the CEOs of the Business Roundtable, which include some of America’s largest and most powerful companies. You can check out the interview with Mr. Caddick at Housing Today: Interview: Johnny Caddick, Moda Living. Mr. Smith’s piece, at the same site, is titled: Trust me, I’m A Developer

As for embracing the new ways of business, we’ll keep watching Housing Today. In the meantime, it’s seems to be business as usual.

 

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