Building Power Through Collective Ownership in Philly

Two Philadelphia organizations are ensuring that the property in their neighborhoods remains in the hands of the community, not developers. Along the way, they’re building community power.

In this episode, recorded during the Next City Vanguard Conference, we meet the leaders of two models for collective ownership that keep homes and storefronts affordable, while standing up to the speculative real estate market.

Adriana Abizadeh-Barbour, Executive Director of the Kensington Corridor Trust, explains how a perpetual purpose trust ensures long-term affordability and community control over commercial real estate in Kensington. Lorissa Luciani, executive director of the Women’s Community Revitalization Project, shares how their Community Justice Land Trust permanently keeps rent affordable for low-income women and families in North Philadelphia.

Together, they’re showing how shared ownership can redefine wealth-building in neighborhoods long vulnerable to displacement and gentrification.

“Many people can’t afford where they’re living right now,” says Luciani. “This problem is in every council district throughout Philadelphia.”

“If people collectively own land, they collectively build wealth, which allows them to collectively build power,” says Abizadeh.

Listen to the episode below or subscribe to the Next City podcast on Apple, Spotify or Goodpods.

Women's Community Revitalization Project Cuts Ribbon on 27 New Affordable Townhomes Copy

The Women’s Community Revitalization Project (WCRP) celebrated the completion of its newest affordable housing development, 27-unit the Arlene Thorpe Townhomes, with a ribbon cutting ceremony on July 11.  Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, whose Second Council District the townhomes were built in, was on-site to honor the occasion.

The Arlene Thorpe Townhomes are the latest WCRP properties developed on land owned by the Community Justice Land Trust (CJLT) which ensures the homes will remain permanently affordable. This unique partnership is part of WCRP’s strategy to prevent residents from being displaced in neighborhoods like Grays Ferry as the area undergoes rapid gentrification. The Townhomes are named after Arlene Thorpe, a beloved community leader and fierce advocate for the Grays Ferry neighborhood.

Housing workshops aim to empower Kensington owners and renters

Kensington residents can stock up on housing policy knowledge this fall through an ongoing, first-of-its-kind workshop series hosted by the New Kensington Community Development Corporation.

In September, NKCDC launched the “People-First Housing” workshop series and exhibit in partnership with Philadelphia Community Land Trust, Reclaim Philadelphia, Green Building United, Women’s Community Revitalization Project, Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities, and Philly Boricuas.

The free series includes weekly workshops running through December 13th, covering a range of housing topics–from local organizing to statewide housing policy–focused on creating “affordable and accessible” housing. All workshops are held at the Kensington Engagement Center.

Lorissa Luciani, the executive director of the Women’s Community Revitalization project, said the series offers space for people to come together and share experiences and knowledge.

“At a time when so many communities are facing displacement and rising housing costs, it’s vital to build understanding and collective strategies for change,” wrote Luciani in an email. “It’s about lifting up lived experience, building solidarity, and envisioning a city where everyone can thrive.”

People-First Housing Workshop Series

Tuesdays from 6-8pm at the Kensington Engagement Center *

October 28th: Budget 201 - The People’s Budget Office will explain affordable housing, shelter, and neighborhood development.

November 4th: Philadelphia H.O.M.E. Plan - the city’s Chief Housing and Development Officer will break the plan down

November 11th: Housing and Climate Summit - Green Building United will discuss the links between the Housing and Climate crises.

November 15th: Youth Town Hall, 2-4pm* - Fab Youth Philly will host a conversation with young people on visions for their neighborhoods.

November 18th: PA State Housing Action Plan - staff from Governor Shapiro's office will explain the state’s Housing Action Plan.

November 22nd: Housing and Disability Issues, 2-4pm* - Philadelphia Community Land Trust will discuss disability housing assistance programs.

December 2nd: Turning Data Into Action - the District Attorney’s Transparency and Analytics Lab will discuss how data can inform policy.

December 9th: Advocacy Workshop - The Philadelphia Community Land Trust, Coalition for Affordable Communities, and NKCDC will discuss organizing to overcome obstacles.

December 13th: Advocacy Workshop and Closing, 2-4pm* - The Philadelphia Community Land Trust, Coalition for Affordable Communities, and NKCDC will discuss building collaborations.

NKCDC conceived the idea after launching Co-Creating Kensington – an initiative focused on developing a community-centered plan to revitalize Kensington – earlier this year, and quickly learned that housing was a top priority for residents, said Bill McKinney, NKCDC’s executive director.

With the city’s recently-launched $2 billion housing initiative and a statewide affordable housing plan on the way, NKCDC and several partner organizations saw a timely opportunity to engage with community members around this issue. It started with the development of an exhibit at the Kensington Engagement Center on the history of housing in Philadelphia, then evolved into an idea for a workshop series. Both the exhibit and the series are centered on examining the past in order to move forward.

“We need to understand the history, what has taken place over time. We need to understand what the current status of housing is within the city,” he said.

While the workshops have a Kensington focus, McKinney said NKCDC is using the neighborhood as a “jumping off point” to have conversations about issues citywide.

So far, sessions have covered gentrification, the city’s budgeting process, renter and homeowners’ legal rights, and housing “wins” like the Safe and Healthy Homes Act and the No Arena in Chinatown movement. McKinney said the turnout for the workshops has exceeded expectations, drawing dozens of participants with varied perspectives from across the city–from nearby residents who want a better understanding of housing issues, to developers who want to explore alternative methods for creating housing.

The next workshop will be presented by The People’s Budget Office examining how the city budgets for housing and development, held on October 28th at 6pm.

Five families buy affordable homes in Point Breeze Copy

After building affordable housing for 30 years, a program led by the Women’s Community Revitalization Project (WCRP), made five families and individuals homeowners when they moved into town homes in the Point Breeze section of South Philadelphia.

The town homes, known as the Mamie Nichols Homes, are named for an activist and founder of the Point Breeze Federation. It is the first development from the Community Justice Land Trust, (CJLT), a non-profit sponsored by WCRP. The families moved in at the end of last year.

Utilizing low income housing tax credits, WCRP has built hundreds of affordable housing units. This is the city’s first project to utilize a land trust model for home ownership — a model other Philadelphia groups hope to duplicate.

“The CJLT is pioneering a new affordable housing model that allows long-term residents to stay in Point Breeze and preserve the fabric of their community,” said Nora Lichtash, WCRP executive director.

Philly community groups could get priority in sale of thousands of vacant city lots under new bill Copy

For decades, community gardeners have tended to abandoned land in neighborhoods redlined by the insurance industry, neglected by government and ignored by developers. Yet as values rise across the city and builders see opportunity in long-overlooked lots, gardeners find themselves fighting to hold onto the spaces they’ve cultivated.

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Nora Lichtash, who directs the Women’s Community Revitalization Project and has   worked in housing and community development for decades, sees Gauthier’s   proposal as a big step toward permanent affordability in the city.

“It feels almost revolutionary,” she said.

Housing in Philadelphia: What to watch in 2022

The pandemic put a renewed spotlight on Philadelphia's housing issues. And with COVID-19 protections expiring late last year, pressure to address the city's affordable housing crisis and homelessness could fuel changes in 2022.

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What they're saying: Nora Lichtash, executive director of Women's Community   Revitalization Project, wants the city to prioritize giving some of its   publicly owned property to nonprofits that focus on affordable and accessible   housing instead of only giving it to market-rate developers.
 

"Our next focus is to focus on land. Land justice is a 2022   issue," Lichtash said.

The transformative potential of Community Land Trusts

Our country has been struggling with an affordable housing crisis for decades. Simply put, there is not enough housing, and what is available is too expensive for those with limited means. However, there’s an up-and-coming player in the affordable housing world that offers the potential to transform it: community land trusts (CLTs).

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Another example is the Nicole Hines Townhomes in Philadelphia, a 32-unit community where the Women’s Community Revitalization Project (WCRP) has used federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) and state and local funds to cover 93 percent of Hines’s $12.1 million development costs. Rents will be kept low through a fund made up of “developer fees” collected over the years by WCRP, augmented by a per-unit contribution by the local public housing authority. Again, all the units will house families earning less than 30 percent of AMI.

More than just a check

Social Venture Partners is investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in local nonprofits that fight poverty. But it’s their “engaged philanthropy” that really sets them apart.

Over the next three years, the organization is investing $600,000 in funding, plus operational support, in three local nonprofits that target a different root cause of poverty. Center for Black Educators targets education inequities; Resilient Coders provides job training through their coding bootcamps; and the Women’s Community Revitalization Project works to create affordable housing. They hope to make multi-year grants of this size to different organizations every year.