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Dear John,

On behalf of the Grounded Solutions staff team, I want to express our collective thanks, excitement, and appreciation for each of the 200+ members who have quickly renewed or joined our network for the first time. If you haven’t already done so, please access our website membership page [[link removed]] and join today.

I also want to extend a very warm welcome to over 55 first-time members, such as the Na Hale O Maui CLT in Hawaii, WEPOWER in St. Louis, and the national nonprofit Living Cities. Worth noting as well, is that approximately 1/3 of our current members self- identify as POC and/or POC-led. I’m especially thrilled to also have a significant number of mission aligned, highly valued, strategic partners as formal members this year including; NeighborWorks America, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, National Low Income Housing Coalition, and National Housing Trust. Working in coalition along with Habitat for Humanity, Enterprise Community Partners, the National Community Stabilization Trust and many others has directly resulted in a wider embrace of shared equity models, with increased resources and opportunities for training and education than Grounded Solutions can achieve alone.

For all those who may have missed our year end 2023 news and updates, please note that we have two amazing new board members joining us this year include:

Practitioner Board member Jonathan Frederick, President and CEO Housing Alexandria - [[link removed]]At-Large Board member Jerry [[link removed]]Maldonado, Vice President of Programs Policy Link - [[link removed]]

I’m equally pleased to announce our commitment to once again sponsor and participate in the annual member-led regional NW CLT Coalition Conference May 6-8 in Walla Walla, WA. I also had the honor of representing our network on March 20th as the featured guest speaker for the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies in-person event - Meeting Our Housing Needs: Scaling the Impact of Community Land Trusts and Shared Equity Models

Event Information [[link removed]]

I’m also looking forward to joining all our executive staff team and board members for a special June retreat in Denver. Our generous partners at the Colorado Health Foundation have agreed to host that meeting, and our Champion member Elevation CLT will provide us with a project site tour in Denver’s historic Five Points neighborhood (formerly known as “The Harlem of the West”) featuring their exciting new project - the Burell [[link removed]]

Learn More about the Project [[link removed]]

Working together this year we must continue to cultivate a thriving and diverse ecosystem for Lasting Affordability that includes a wide range of activities and organizations committed to our values and goals. Consistent with our organizational purpose and current bylaws, Grounded Solutions must also continue to balance the many needs and interests of CLTs, Shared Equity Programs and Inclusionary Housing practitioners. Later this summer, our staff and board will begin the important work of crafting a new multi-year strategic plan for Grounded Solutions. Our process will include some reflection on the lessons, unforeseen challenges and strong progress made during the first eight years of our initial operations and programmatic focus. I’m quite certain the results of our new long range planning process will chart a path to even greater impact.

Case in point, in February the Puget Sound Business Journal [[link removed]] announced that the Amazon Housing Equity Fund has deployed over $1.8 billion of its committed $2 billion investment goal a full two years ahead of schedule. That wonderful news includes $40 million in funding for our Grounded Solutions partnership with the National Housing Trust. Fueled by Amazon’s significant investment we are directly supporting and providing critical below market cost loan capital for Community Land Trust and other Shared Equity programs, such as specific Habitat affiliates. The result is that several of our members are better able to actively produce permanently affordable homeownership opportunities in 3 national markets; the Washington DC area, Nashville, and the Puget Sound region.

In closing, I want to express my deepest gratitude to each of our members who has been widely sharing and providing us all with access to compelling stories of their work outcomes and experiences. While only a few of those are included this quarter’s newsletter, due to our space constraints, our communications team will continue to proactively seek out your inspiring narratives of change and progress which are incredibly useful in our ongoing advocacy work. Stay tuned for more about that later this year.

Be well and let’s make Q2 a great one!

Champion Member Atlanta Land Trust recently broke ground on The Trust at Oakland City, which will build 21 brand-new town homes with lasting affordability.

Check out the Announcement [[link removed]]

Lighthouse Beloved Community CLT recently secured $2.1 million in funding to start construction on 10 brand-new energy-efficient homes with lasting affordability.

Learn More about Lighthouse Beloved Community [[link removed]]

The PBS show Life in the Heart Land recently featured Virginia Statewide Community Land Trust in a segment focused on CLTs are part of the lasting affordability solution and how Virginia Statewide CLT specifically aims to help those looking for affordable homes in rural Virginia.

Watch the Episode [[link removed]]

National Community Reinvestment Coalition recently released critical research on efforts to narrow the racial wealth gap titled The Racial Wealth Divide And Black Homeownership. The illuminating report shows that while Black households have increased their wealth, those gains have not impacted the racial wealth gap.

Read the Report [[link removed]]

Grounded Solutions CEO Tony Pickett Joins Power Station Podcast to Talk CLTs and Lasting Affordability

Tony had the pleasure of joining Anne Pasmanick, host of Power Station, a podcast focused on nonprofit leaders inspiring change. Tony talked about the history of CLTs, lasting affordability, and what comes next as we continue to scale our work. Grab your headphones and listen to this insightful, engaging, and genuinely entertaining conversation.

Listen to the Podcast [[link removed]]

Welcome New Executive Leadership to the Grounded Solutions Network Team!

Grounded Solutions Network continues to grow its staff and fill the team with talented, dedicated, and brilliant individuals. We want to welcome three new staff members to the team, including our brand-new Vice President of Development Cielo Contreras, Vice President of Housing Policy Doug Ryan, and Chief Program Officer Dave Smith.

To learn more about Cielo, Doug, and Dave and how their collective expertise and leadership will further our work scaling housing with lasting affordability, please read this short blog post highlighting their experience.

Welcome Cielo, Doug, and Dave [[link removed]]

New Governing Magazine Column Offers Insight for Local Housing Authorities

Local Policy Principal Colby Sledge recently published a column in Governing Magazine outlining how federal funding earmarked for local housing and planning departments may be at risk as local and state governments begin their FY 2025 budgeting process. Colby keenly identifies several ways housing departments can protect their funding now.

Read the Column [[link removed]]

New CLT Launches in Louisville, KY with Grounded Solutions Network Support

Grounded Solutions Network provided technical assistance to the Smoketown CLT in Louisville, KY, providing the fledgling community land trust with the tools and knowledge they need. Smoketown CLT recently had an official ribbon cutting, and Grounded Solutions Community and Technical Assistance Principal Jason Webb was not only on hand for the event but had the opportunity to speak with Louisville Public Media to talk about Smoketown CLT and how it’s part of the lasting affordability solution in Louisville.

Learn More about Smoketown CLT [[link removed]]

New Shelterforce Article Highlights Key Findings from the Census of Community Land Trusts

Following the release of our 2022 Census of Community Land Trusts and Nonprofits with Shared Equity Homeownership Programs [[link removed]], we detailed our illuminating findings in a recently published Shelterforce article authored by the Grounded Solutions Research Team. The field continues to grow (with a recorded 30 percent growth between 2011 and 2022) and diversify. Join Amanda Butler, Sophia Corugedo, and Vince Wang as they share a wonderful overview of the census, provide key insights, and highlight our brand-new CLT/Shared Equity mapping tool.

Read the Article [[link removed]]

HOME Reauthorization Bills Filed in the U.S. House and Senate

Last month, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH) filed landmark bills in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives respectively titled the HOME Investment Partnerships Reauthorization and Improvement Act of 2024. The bills offer much-needed fixes within the HOME Investment Partnerships program. Grounded Solutions Network applauds Senator Cortez Masto and Rep. Beatty for their committed leadership on updating the HOME program and for being strong champions for housing with lasting affordability. We look forward to lending our advocacy, technical expertise and support as the legislative process continues to evolve.

Read the Blog Post [[link removed]] Training Institute Online 2024 Schedule

We’re wrapping up our first Training Institute Online courses of 2024, and they were great! We’re thrilled that we can share the rest of our TIO schedule for the year. We’ll provide additional information when registration opens—and remember—members save on registration fees! If you haven’t already, please join or renew your membership for 2024!

Summer 2024 TIO Series

June 12-13 – Pre-Purchase Stewardship for Shared Equity Homeownership

June 17-18 – Post-Purchase Stewardship for Shared Equity Homeownership

June 25-26 – HomeKeeper: Basics & Beyond

Fall 2023 TIO Series

October 23-24 – Shared Equity Homeownership: Basics & Beyond

October 30-31 – Affordable Pricing & Resale Formulas for Shared Equity Homeownership

Learn More [[link removed]] Sign up Today for 2024 Membership!

Our network membership recruitment push is underway for 2024. Members are already participating in our monthly member call virtual meeting series, planning together for in-person regional convenings, coordinating advocacy campaigns and accessing our online helpdesk for prioritized technical assistance commitment to housing with lasting affordability is critical to advancing our goals for exponential growth.

As of March 21, 2024, we have:

• 208 total members

• 9 Champion Members

• 18 governmental entities as members

• 45 HomeKeeper users as members

It’s not too late to join this incredible group of members. Secure your 2024 membership today!

Become a Member! [[link removed]] Where we live matters.

We bring together an extensive network of partners and member practitioners from local communities who have a deep understanding of best practices in community land trusts, shared equity housing, local housing policies such as inclusionary zoning, and more.

At Grounded Solutions Network, we know what policies and strategies work to build and preserve housing opportunities, and we help communities use them.

Grounded Solutions Network

PO Box 70724

Oakland, CA

94612

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