New Orleans OCD Consolidated Plan Highlights Community Land Trusts

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Crescent City Community Land Trust today commented on the City of New Orleans Office of Community Development’s (OCD) recently released 2012-2016 Consolidated Plan. The plan, released just prior to 4Q 2012, incorporated content that acknowledged the evolving terrain of how affordable housing – one of three areas of focus for Crescent City – is approached. It pointed to long-term affordability as a new arena for consideration while highlighting the community land trust model as an example.

  • Click here to read the full announcement.
  • Click here to access the OCD’s action plan page and to download the full plan.

Equal Housing Affirmed in Delaware

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Crescent City Community Land Trust applauds the U.S. Department of Justice for taking the side of hard working American families and the successful settlement of its lawsuit with Sussex County, DE.

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The suit alleged the Sussex County planning and zoning commission denied land use approval for a 50-lot affordable housing subdivision proposed by Diamond State Community Land Trust, a Delaware affordable housing developer. The suit also alleged that the Sussex County Council denied Diamond State’s opposition to the proposal was based partly on the assumption that the subdivision’s residents would be Latino and African-American and on stereotypes based on race, color and national origin.

The settlement, filed same-day as a proposed consent decree that must be approved by the court, requires that the defendants reconsider the affordable housing proposal using nondiscriminatory criteria and take no actions to obstruct or delay the development of the subdivision. It also requires the county to pay $750,000 to Diamond State Community Land Trust in compensation for its damages.

The lawsuit arose from a complaint to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that was referred to the Department of Justice. Crescent City Executive Director Van Temple served as Diamond State’s executive director at the time the complaint was made and remains a friend and supporter of the organization and the work its doing for Delawareans.

What’s Community Land Trust Mean? The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond Delivers Housing-Specific Overview

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Click on the image to download the Report

Unique and at the leading edge of affordable housing, enterprise development and vacant land use, community land trusts roles and functions can differ by organization, but they all hold universal characteristics that are a win-win for communities. The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond provides a comprehensive overview of land trusts in its 2012 Marketwise Community Report, which offers a compelling viewpoint from a financial institution’s perspective. The report focuses specifically on the housing sector.

Crescent City Executive Director Van Temple to Present at 2012 National Community Land Trust Conference

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Crescent City Community Land Trust Executive Director Van Temple will serve as a panelist in two seminar sessions at the 2012 National Community Land Trust Conference on Wednesday, September 12, at 9:45 a.m. and 11:05 a.m. (EASTERN), respectively.

On the panel segments, titled “The Central Server: Our Experience To Date,” Van will discuss Crescent City’s unique approach and model and its innovative focus on three distinct yet critical and interrelated areas - residential real estate, commercial real estate and vacant land. Through the two-part panel discussion, he will join colleagues from Atlanta and Rhode Island to compare notes and share examples and successes and enter into a discussion of challenges faced to date.

The conference begins today in Burlington, VT, with the theme “Transforming Communities Through Innovation and Collaboration.” The conference runs through Thursday, September 13. It is an annual event of the National Community Land Trust Network, which advances a mission of providing training, advocacy and resources for its member organizations which nurture and sustain healthy and economically diverse communities by providing permanently affordable access to land, homes, and related resources.

Perspective: NOLA Assets & Opportunities Report

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In the latest issue of the Louisiana Housing Alliance’s (LHA) newsletter, Crescent City Community Land Trust Executive Director Van Temple lends perspective to the Corporation for Economic Development and the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center’s Assets & Opportunities Report on New Orleans.

The LHA works to ensure the preservation and production of quality, affordable housing for low and moderate income Louisianians as well as those with special needs. Visit them to find out more.

In the article, titled “Assets and Opportunities,” Van writes, “What this report brings home is that many of our families including a sizable portion of higher income families have very few assets to turn to when income streams are interrupted or transitions or crises occur. 37% of New Orleans household do not have sufficient assets to live for 3 months at poverty level if the main source of income is lost. While this is not completely new news - it raises questions about some of the short-term solutions we design for problems here in America without looking more deeply into what’s really needed for lasting empowerment and family success.”

He then asserts that building assets is key to the long-term solution and goes on to outline how CCCLT and other community land trusts address this need.

  • Read Van’s full article.
  • View the Corporation for Economic Development and the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center’s full report.