News from the National Community Land Trust Network 
December 2012
In This Issue
Fair Housing Win for Delaware
ICE Financing Solutions

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Upcoming Webinar:  

New Research on the Fundamental Issues of  

Central Server CLTs

December 14th, 2012, 11:30am PST / 2:30pm EST  - 60 minutes 

  

This webinar will present findings from a graduate-level studio course at Rutgers University examining the CLT Central Server model and the Essex Community Land Trust in New Jersey. Researchers will address:   

  1. How can a central server CLT become financially self-sufficient?
  2. What kind of governance structure makes sense for this kind of CLT?
  3. How can a county-wide CLT that is acquiring pre-developed properties maintain the community in the CLT? 

 Read more & view webinar instructions. 

Delaware CLT Wins Affordable Housing Lawsuit Against Sussex County

Over two years ago, Sussex County denied Diamond State CLT's application to build a 50-unit rural homeownership community in spite of the proposal meeting zoning requirements. New Horizons, the proposed development, is a joint effort between the statewide CLT and a group of predominantly Latino agricultural workers who were wrongfully displaced from a mobile home park. When the County blocked the new subdivision, Diamond State CLT filed a lawsuit in the state's Superior Court and a fair housing complaint with the state and Philadelphia HUD offices.  

  

On November 28th, the U.S. Department of Justice settled the lawsuit in favor of affordable housing for all. The settlement requires reconsideration of the development using nondiscriminatory criteria and that the county pays Diamond State CLT $750,000.   

 

Press Release   

 

"The financing that ICE and NCALL Loan Fund provided to Diamond State CLT was critical to survive the financial challenges we faced while pursuing legal action against Sussex County for housing discrimination." 
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-Amy Walls, Board President, Diamond State CLT

 

Need Financing for Your CLT? Turn to ICE

 

For more than 30 years, the Institute for Community Economics (ICE) has been linking socially-responsible investors with organizations in their communities that are working to provide affordable homes for lower-income families. From its origins in Greenfield, Massachusetts as a community-based solution to combat racial inequalities, through its affiliation with the National Housing Trust (NHT) in 2008, ICE has been on the forefront of community investment and lending. Today, new leadership and staff have re-energized ICE and the organization's dedication to providing loans that are tailored to fit the specific needs and budgets of your organization.

 

Ribbon Cutting ICE is proud to support National Community Land Trust Network members as you work to engage and empower families that would otherwise not have access to secure, stable, and affordable homes. As the foreclosure crisis undercut the economic progress and security of countless families, CLT homeowners weathered the storm, experiencing foreclosure rates 10 times lower than traditional homeowners. During this time, ICE continued to finance shared-equity solutions, including lease-to-purchase loans to community land trusts in Albany, NY, Albuquerque, NM, and Durham, NC, in order to ensure that communities and families impacted by the housing crisis had opportunities to stabilize and build a better future.

 

Svaboda - Proud Ground
Svaboda Court

Over the past two years, ICE has approved more than $2.5 million in new loans from coast to coast. This past summer,  Svaboda Court -- a Proud Ground project in Portland, Oregon -- celebrated its Grand Opening, creating a new community of CLT homes which are now being purchased by families earning up to $45,000 annually. This fall, the Champlain Housing Trust acquired the South Meadow Apartments in Burlington, Vermont, with plans to preserve the affordable apartments and convert a number of units into CLT homes. ICE worked with partner Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), Community Housing Capital and Partners for the Common Good, to provide the capital needed to support both of these exciting projects.

 

ICE's mission and work continues to attract support from a growing base of socially-responsible ICE - Kids investors and institutions like the Ford Foundation, as it maintains its efforts to develop innovative financing solutions that meet the needs of our industry. Continually seeking new community-based solutions through collaboration, ICE has participated with its sister organization, the NHT Community Development Fund, in efforts to preserve  affordable rental housing, and during the recent Opportunity Finance Network annual meeting, ICE co-led a discussion on ways in which fellow CDFIs can support affordable homeownership through shared-equity housing. ICE is ready to work alongside your organization and provide creative financing options to meet the needs of your community and the families you serve.

 

CLTs should contact ICE Director Andy Slettebak -- (202) 333-8931, ext. 135 -- to learn more about what ICE can offer to your organization; click here for more information on ICE's lending products and footprint.