Land Banks and Community Land Trusts: Partnering to Provide Equitable Housing Opportunities Now and for Future Generations

Land banks and community land trusts (CLT) are two entities that, in concert, can help reverse the trajectory of disinvestment and unlock a pipeline of VAD properties to provide much needed quality affordable housing for current and future generations. 

Places like Albany, New York; Atlanta, Georgia; and Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio are pioneering models of how these partnerships can support neighborhood stabilization and prevent displacement of vulnerable residents.

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See Every Room Inside the Kingston Design Showhouse 2021

This year, the show house is partnering with affordable housing advocate Kingston City Land Bank to renovate an existing home in need of repair.

With New York City transplants arriving in the region during the pandemic, the average home value rose 30% in the Kingston metro area, according to Zillow. In an effort to help a local resident find affordable housing, Kingston Design Connection has partnered with the Kingston City Land Bank to rehab a property in dire need of repair for the latest show house. The home will be sold to a first-time homeowner who earns 80% or less of the area median income. “It’s the type of partnership that I’d love to see show houses across the country imitate,” Damour says.

See the incredible transformation of this year’s Kingston Design Showhouse, on view on weekends through October 24, here.

In Ogdensburg, building better

OGDENSBURG, New York (WWNY) - BOCES students in St. Lawrence County are helping the City of Ogdensburg to fill in holes left by the demolition of derelict houses. They’re building new homes to replace what’s been torn down.

“It’s a good feeling for me. I feel like we’re going to make the town better, the city better,” said Abbie Rybka, a Northwest Tech building trades student.

The Ogdensburg Land Bank - a non-profit whose mission is to revive the housing stock in the city - paid for all the materials. The Land Bank liked it so much they went and bought another built at BOCES’ Southwest Tech.

“It’s been a really great partnership and opportunity for the Land Bank,” said Andrea Smith, the group’s Executive Director.

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Amsterdam and Capital Region Land Bank seek state subsidies for home rehab project

AMSTERDAM — The Common Council signed off on a cooperation agreement with the Capital Region Land Bank on Tuesday to pursue a state funding program aimed at rehabbing dilapidated city-owned properties and getting the fixed-up homes into the hands of underserved families.

The state Homes and Community Renewal Legacy City Access Program is geared toward addressing blighted residential properties in upstate communities that drive down market conditions while straining limited municipal resources as the cost to renovate the languishing buildings exceeds their post-project value.

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Where can you find a bargain in Buffalo’s red-hot housing market? Land Bank

(WIVB) – If you are looking to grab up a piece of the American dream in this red hot housing market, you might be in luck.

Local officials in the City of Tonawanda cut the ribbon on a new build on Tuesday. The property is affordable and competition is limited, because you have to be income-qualified to even be considered for this new build in the City of Tonawanda.

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Wellsville house for sale: Allegany County Land Bank builds home on long vacant lot

WELLSVILLE —The Allegany County Land Bank marked the completion to construction of a three bedroom, single-family home in Wellsville with a ribbon cutting this week.

The 1,320-square-foot contemporary home sits on over an acre and a half of property that had a long history of being vacant/abandoned and unwanted — going through multiple county tax auctions without a buyer.

“The Land Bank worked with Alfred State, the County, the village of Wellsville and local contractors to change 79 Clark from an overgrown problem property to a newly built great home,” said Jason Isaman, executive director at the Allegany County Land Bank.

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Wayne County Land Bank sets its sights on blight

Improving neglected properties can help challenged neighborhoods rebound, Humbert believes. He pointed to the recent Lawrence Street project in Lyons, where he said the rehabilitation and redevelopment of a vacant and dilapidated home into the Child Advocacy Center of Wayne County resulted in additional homeowners improving their properties on the street.

“It becomes contagious,” he said. “We want to get the parcels, do the right thing, whether repair or demolish, and get them back on the tax rolls as quickly as possible.”

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Guest Column: It’s time to rebuild. Let’s get it right

New York has ended the Covid-19 state of emergency, signaling the beginning of the post-pandemic era. Federal, state, and local leaders, front-line workers, businesses, nonprofits, community groups and residents did a remarkable job working together to transcend silos and prioritize preserving our collective well-being. Now we must do the same to help our neighborhoods recover and build a better future.

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Land Bank wants $100K CDBG loan through Schenectady to rehab Prospect Street home

The City Council is expected to help provide the Capital Region Land Bank with the financial wherewithal to reimagine a two-family residence that has been vacant for at least four years.

The Capital Region Land Bank has brought in more than $9 million in grant funding for projects, the majority of which have come from bank settlements after the mortgage foreclosure crisis in late 2008.

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Reverse redlining: Albany organizations ask city for $20 million for neighborhood revitalization

ALBANY — As the city awaits  $85 million in federal COVID-19 relief funding, community organizations have asked the COVID-19 Recovery Taskforce to prioritize neighborhood revitalization.

The Albany County Land Bank, along with Capital District Habitat for Humanity and the Albany Community Land Trust, wrote a letter Monday proposing that the task force allocate $20 million — roughly a quarter of its overall funding — toward preserving and revitalizing historically underserved neighborhoods.

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How Syracuse plans to spend the city's $123M stimulus

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh unveiled a plan to spend the city’s $123 million in federal stimulus money on at least 30 separate initiatives aimed at a sweeping array of urban needs.

Plan to allocate $14 million to build or improve housing in the city's low-income neighborhoods, including providing $5 million to the Greater Syracuse Land Bank to assist with reclaiming vacant buildings.

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