Affordable housing advocates across Philadelphia are grateful to City Councilwoman Jamie Gauthier, as well as her co-sponsors Council people Kendra Brooks and Derek Green, for their work in passing legislation that will advance a local ordinance giving Community Land Trusts (CLTs) and other qualifying nonprofits an edge in Land Bank dispositions. It’s called Public Land for Public Benefit legislation. Initially, the legislation will apply to the 3rd and 4th Council Districts.
This legislation is the result of advocacy from the Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities (PCAC). PCAC advocates for policies that preserve affordability in Philadelphia neighborhoods as market forces drive up the prices of housing and land.
RHLS is a participating member of PCAC and assisted PCAC with early amendments to the bill. To benefit from the new legislation, a nonprofit applying to receive public land must demonstrate “community control,” and “permanent affordability.” This means that the applicant must have an organizational structure that’s directly accountable to the community it serves, and that buildings on conveyed land will have permanent, enforceable affordability restrictions.
Gauthier was recently quoted: “Utilizing the City’s thousands of vacant parcels is one of our best opportunities to secure the land uses our communities urgently need: permanently-affordable housing, community facilities, and urban gardens and farms. My bill will empower neighbor-controlled Community Land Trusts to build these uses on unused publicly-owned land, so residents can set the rules for what happens on the land.”
Organizations approved for land conveyance may be granted a lease of up to five years, allowing organizations the time to raise funds, expand capacity, and engage the community. In effect, the legislation promotes a democratic approach to development, expands long-lasting housing affordability, and levels the playing field for smaller, place-based nonprofits.
Community Land Trusts are nonprofit organizations dedicated to holding title to land in “trust” on behalf of a local community, and dedicating it to specifically defined, community-benefiting uses, including affordable housing, shared-equity homeownership, and community agriculture. The CLT structure undercuts the incentive to sell property when market values rise.
The Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities (PCAC) is a coalition of 59 community, disability, faith, labor, and urban agriculture organizations that have joined together to pass a series of laws that will expand and protect affordable, accessible housing and green space in neighborhoods undergoing gentrification.