Dear John,

It hardly seems possible that the first two months of 2023 are already over. For me, the first weeks of this year began with some introspective thinking about organizational culture – which culminated in an Austin, Texas, retreat with members of my senior leadership team in late January. As part of the preparation for our retreat we all read and collectively grappled with processing the published thoughts and observations of Maurice Michell, the National Director of the Working Families Party and Black Lives Matter co-founder. I found it helpful to discuss his reflections on the various tensions related to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts typically being experienced across our social movement focused nonprofit sector. Anyone experiencing organizational changes and shifts should read his article: Building Resilient Organizations [[link removed]].

As Grounded Solutions continues to hire a significant number of new staff, I’m aware that many of our members and partners are also actively recruiting for a range of new positions. All of this hiring is happening amid a near constant flood of news about inflation, the ongoing national housing supply deficit, the continuing political divide and culture wars, and the ever-present threat of climate change related impacts. Similar to many of you, I’m attempting to practice some degree of self-care as we navigate these external and internal influences. I’m also contemplating how to best leverage three particular recent developments. First, I’ve noted a steadily growing number of executive leadership transitions across our network, including the following:

Selina Mack retired from her role as Executive Director of Durham Community Land Trustees, in December 2022. Her 26 years of outstanding service and clear vision have resulted over 150 permanently affordable homes in Durham, North Carolina’s historically Black neighborhoods of East Durham, Southside, and Lyon Park.Jeff Washburne has announced that on June 30, 2023, he will step down as Executive Director for the City of Lakes CLT. Over the last 20 years, his strong leadership has resulted in CLCLT serving 477 Minneapolis, Minnesota families by stewarding a $25M+ real estate portfolio of community assets.Diane Linn has recently announced that she will retire from her current position as the Executive Director of Proud Ground, as of September 1, 2023. During her successful 9-year tenure, Proud Ground has grown in impact to become the largest CLT in the Pacific NW, with 439 permanently affordable homes serving families across the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area.

Each one of these reliable friends has given us a legacy of many valuable lessons and strategies that will continue to serve as inspirational examples of success. However, any leadership transition also provides the potential for new energy and vision to fuel further growth and additional success.

As we recognize and celebrate these and other retiring colleagues, I’m also excited to witness the rise of new leaders in prominent roles across our network. Among those is our board’s recent election of Dr. Germaine Smith-Baugh, who serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Urban League of Broward County, as our new Grounded Solutions Network Board President! I’m also very pleased to highlight Ashon Nesbitt, who is the new CEO for the Florida Housing Coalition. His long successful tenure with the Florida Housing Coalition, incudes leading its Community Land Trust Institute.

The second recent item worth noting is also included in the federal policy updates section of this newsletter. During Black History Month, the Biden administration acted on its commitment to equitable and fair access to housing, as demonstrated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s recent release of an updated Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule. In the words of our strategic partners at the National Fair Housing Alliance, “When used appropriately, the Fair Housing Act’s AFFH provision can reduce racial and gender wealth and homeownership gaps; increase the supply of quality accessible and affordable housing; improve educational, health, environmental, and other outcomes; increase economic opportunities; and benefit thousands of communities and millions of people.”

We have a significant opportunity at hand to positively impact the futures of Black and other American families of color in a way that is meaningful. Our coordinated advocacy can help to shape an AFFH rule that will overcome long standing patterns of segregation, promote fair housing choice, eliminate disparities in housing opportunities, and foster inclusive communities free from housing discrimination. All of that is undeniably consistent with our own collective commitment: Grounded Solutions Network seeks a future where everyone has access to a home they can afford in economically and racially diverse communities of opportunity that foster better health, academic, and economic outcomes.

The third recent development has direct bearing on our shared vision for expanding the number of homes with Lasting Affordability. Huge congratulations to our long-standing network member, the San Francisco Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development, on approval of its bold Housing Element Plan [[link removed]], which includes 82,000 new housing units — around 10,000 per year — of which 46,000 or about 6,000 per year need to be designated affordable. This will basically triple the city’s recent rate of housing production. The action is based on the State of California’s requirement that all local governments create housing production plans for state review and approval, demonstrating a local commitment to deliver a measurable proportionate share of the new housing needed to resolve the total statewide housing supply deficit. San Francisco’s approved plan also includes specific policy provisions such as expedited permitting, zoning changes to increase density, and a task force made up of nonprofit builders and city officials, to come up with an "affordable-housing implementation and funding strategy."

In closing, I’m grateful to both our strategic partner, NeighborWorks America, and our network champion member, Champlain Housing Trust, which are among the various sponsors of the Vermont Racial Justice Housing Jam virtual conversation series. The Feb. 16th final session featured speaker was housing policy expert Leah Rothstein. She and her father; Richard Rothstein, have co-written an exciting sequel to The Color of Law. Their new book, Just Action, will be released this Spring. It outlines many strategies and activities, such as recommending greater support for community land trusts and inclusionary housing programs, that can be undertaken in the coming years to produce outcomes reducing and ultimately ending residential segregation. Video recordings of the entire series are available to view at the Abundant Sun [[link removed]] YouTube channel.

Sending positive vibes to you all for achieving even greater than anticipated Q2 successes.

In solidarity,

In January, Grounded Solutions was thrilled to formally launch the Home Futures Institute in partnership with our various members who collectively comprise the Northwest CLT Coalition. The fast-paced initiative is designed to build capacity and promote the development of nonprofit community land trust organizations across the state of Washington.

Read more about what's to come from that partnership, as well as what the rest of our team is up to!

Read More [[link removed]]

The FY23 Federal Funding update from our Grounded Solutions policy team includes insights on the potential impacts of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) Proposed Final Rule, and the Restoring Communities Left Behind Act (RCLB).

Read More [[link removed]]

Welcome to the more than 125 members who have already renewed or joined for the first time as network members for the 2023 calendar year! We are thrilled to have you with us and look forward to working alongside you in advancing our shared mission.

For those who have not yet renewed their membership, or if you’re thinking about joining for the first time—we’d love to have you join today!

Read More [[link removed]] HomeKeeper's Annual Virtual Roadmap/Recap

Thursday, March 16th, 2023

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. CT

Each year, HomeKeeper hosts an annual Roadmap/Recap – a virtual gathering for HomeKeeper Participating Organizations, Alliance Partners, and our team. We'll highlight notable HomeKeeper wins and lessons from 2022 and provide a preview of what to expect from HomeKeeper in 2023.

Register [[link removed]] Career Opportunities

Please review and share our open positions with potential candidates among your professional contacts. We are attempting to identify a range of talented individuals to increase our support and contributions toward building strong communities that are equitable, inclusive and filled with opportunity for all.

Learn more [[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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