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6 GROUNDCOVER NEWS COMMUNITY LAND TRUST OCTOBER 3, 2025 Ann Arbor Community Land Trust breaks ground on permanently affordable housing for critical workers and families A community land trust is a nonprofit corporation that owns land and leases it to individuals, nonprofit corporations, and/or government entities, to live upon (in pre-existing housing), to build upon or put to best use. In other words, only housing and improvements to the land are sold to purchasers, and future re-sale of the housing and land improvements is restricted in unique ways determined by each CLT. In event of the future sale of the land improvements, the CLT reserves the right to purchase them back. This is due to the fact that community land trusts are characteristically defined by their commitment to permanent affordability, permanent responsibility and expansion. This is informed by the progressive understanding that land should not be a commodity, but instead community owned and operated. The community land trust model challenges the American conceptualization of property rights. The Ann Arbor Community Land Trust was established in 2024 by the Equitable Ann Arbor Land Trust to serve as a nonprofit developer and community-led steward of the homes under its care. A2CLT is a Michigan 501(c)3 nonprofit and a member of the national Grounded Solutions Network of community land trusts, as well as the Michigan CLT Coalition. A2CLT thus far is focused on building new affordable housing, although they do advertise the opportunity on their website to donate or sell Ann Arbor properties to the CLT. On September 20, A2CLT broke ground on “Townie Homes,” an initiative that aims to keep Ann Arbor accessible to teachers, hospital staff, university employees and families. With median home prices now exceeding $550,000, A2CLT’s permanently affordable homes priced between $125,000 and $325,000 will offer long-term stability, equity and belonging for residents otherwise priced out of the community. “This groundbreaking represents not just a construction milestone, but a public commitment to equity and sustainability,” said Executive Director Sarah Lorenz. “Our homes ensure permanent affordability through deed restrictions and ground leases while supporting Ann Arbor’s climate goals by reducing long commutes. With lower housing and transportation costs, people will have more money, LINDSAY CALKA Publisher more time and a better quality of life. We hope that A2CLT will be a new anchor institution for an affordable Ann Arbor with stronger social ties.” A2CLT shared in a September press release that 500 households expressed interest in Townie Homes. But who was eligible to purchase? A2CLT'S focus is creating local homeownership opportunities for critical workers. Eligible buyers for the lottery must: 1. Have at least one household member who has worked full time in person for the previous 12 months as an employee of one of the following anchor institutions: City, County, State or Federal Agencies; University of Michigan; Michigan Medicine; VA Hospital; Ann Arbor Public Schools; Ann Arbor District Library; Ann Arbor Police Department; Ann Arbor Fire Department; Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority; U.S. Postal Service; Early Childhood/Child Care Workers 2. Have household income 30-120% of the area median income (see Zillow listings for income brackets for each home) 3. Qualify for a home loan Buyers will be selected by lottery. The first round will be for eligible buyers whose workplace is within two miles of the home location. Homes near work offer the benefits of lower commuting costs, walking, biking, or busing to work, lower carbon emissions, more free time, and stronger social ties. Prospective homeowners anonymously shared what A2CLT’s Townie Homes would mean for them: “As a full-time U-M staff member, nearly half my income goes to rent — about $2,000 each month — just to live close enough to campus for my job. A CLT home would let me stay in the community I serve, instead of being forced out by rising costs.” “I am a single parent with two children who love their school and friends here in Ann Arbor. Without affordable housing, I may be forced to move them far away. A CLT home would give us roots, stability, and the ability to keep our family strong.” “I was born and raised in Ann Arbor. Homeownership has always felt out of reach for me and my family. A CLT home would make me a first-generation homeowner in the town I love and work in.” “I chose a career in social work because I wanted to serve this community. But I can’t afford to live here. A CLT home would let me plant roots and give back for a lifetime — because Ann Arbor is my home.” “My current commute is 45 minutes each way. A CLT home in Ann Arbor would save me hours every day, reduce my carbon footprint, and let me spend more time with my children instead of on the road.” The lottery for the first group of Townie Homes closed as of March 31, 2025. Other prospective buyers are encouraged to fill out the A2CLT Buyer List form located at www.a2clt.org/ buy so they are on the email list for new housing opportunities, which are coming soon. Can A2CLT keep up with demand? In a 2018 report “W(h)ither the community in community land trusts?” James Defllipis, Brian Stromberg and Olivia Williams examined the history of the CLT movement and studied contemporary CLTs to determine if the CLT model has maintained the characteristics defined in the second paragraph: commitment to permanent affordability, permanent responsibility and expansion. They concluded that there is strong movement away from the original values and priorities of community land trusts and movement “toward the more technically practical (and less politically challenging or transformative) aspects of the model itself.” Primarily playing the role as housing developer, A2CLT does not deviate from this conclusion. To build its housing, A2CLT is relying on local investors, is seeking MSHDA funding, and for the case of the Townie Homes project, will use construction loans for the applicants who are selected through the lottery process. In 2023, Michigan House Bill 4375 was signed into law, allowing Michigan cities with at least 50,000 residents (in counties not currently home to a land bank authority) to establish a local one. This enables Ann Arbor to establish a land bank, as the Washtenaw County Land Bank filed bankruptcy in 2010. Land banks have a bottomline goal of encouraging productive use of vacant or delinquent land. Without them, land is often sold to speculators and developers at below market prices. Reinitiating the Washtenaw County Land Bank, or starting one for the City of Ann Arbor, could interrupt gentrifying forces and direct property to productive use with this newly established community land trust. Additional, alternative methods to development include partnering with cooperative ownership models and redirecting benefits of private development through the use of inclusionary zoning.

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