Join Us in Georgia: Grounded Solutions Network at RVP 2019 – October 2-5
Grounded Solutions Network is proud to formally join with the Center for Community Progress as a featured partner for the 2019 Reclaiming Vacant Properties (RVP) Conference, October 2-5 in Atlanta, Georgia.
A joint convening – and the only national conference dedicated to transforming vacant abandoned, and deteriorated properties into community assets – RVP 2019 will also serve as Grounded Solutions’ national annual conference, with Intersections 2020 returning next year in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Land access, land value, inclusive housing and shared equity are intrinsically intertwined, so we encourage Grounded Solutions members, practitioners, stakeholders and strategic partners to take advantage of RVP 2019, culminating with an October 4-5 overnight expedition to Albany, Georgia for a historic 50th Anniversary celebration of New Communities, Inc. – widely recognized as the first Community Land Trust (CLT) in the nation as part of the American Civil Rights Movement.
RVP 2019 general registration is now open, and under the conference theme of Equity First: Revitalizing Communities Together, scholarships are available for current 2019-2020 Grounded Solutions Network Members.
Grounded Solutions Network Members must register through RVP to participate in Grounded Solutions RVP programming and 50th Anniversary Albany celebration.
The backbone of our convening is our programming, and along with a dedicated slate of exhibitions and various session topics appealing to shared equity housing leaders and RVP attendees, Grounded Solutions has assembled an impactful slate of top-notch workshops and learning opportunities as part of our RVP 2019 contributions.
Conference Workshops have been broken down into separate tracks by medium and selected with an emphasis placed on quality over quantity, as well as comprehensive, wide-ranging sessions suitable for an audience of varying market size and experience level.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
8:30 am - 10:00 am
Assessing City Housing and Development Policy through a Racial Equity Lens
As we work to revitalize neighborhoods, it is important to be prepared for our own success. That means assessing our cities’ housing and development policies to ensure that they promote equitable and inclusive growth. Participants in Grounded Solutions Network’s ForEveryoneHome program are doing just that in an effort to “get ahead of the curve” on rising displacement and gentrification pressures in their cities. In this session, you will hear what teams from Indianapolis, Indiana, Winston-Salem, North Carolina and San Antonio, Texas learned when they applied a racial equity lens to assess their housing and development policies.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
10:30 am - 12:00 pm
Land Bank- CLT Partnerships
Cities and towns across the country are struggling with an affordable housing crisis. At the same time, many of them have vacant and abandoned properties, often concentrated in disinvested neighborhoods. It’s a common question: can’t those properties be used for affordable housing and shouldn’t the community have a say in how land is used in their neighborhood? Learn how land banks and related systems in Houston, TX and Atlanta, GA have successfully unlocked properties that are trapped in decline and coordinated with local community land trusts on reuse strategies that support lasting affordable housing, disaster resiliency and other community needs.
Thursday, October 3, 2019
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Inclusionary Housing in Mixed Market Cities
Inclusionary housing policies tie the creation of affordable homes for low- and moderate-income households to the construction of market-rate housing or commercial development. In its simplest form, an inclusionary housing policy might require developers to set aside 10-20% of new housing units in development projects at below-market-rate prices for low-income households. These policies have historically been popular in hot-market cities but can be a valuable tool in mixed-market cities as well. Grounded Solutions Network’s Inclusionary Housing Calculator tool illustrates the economic impact of inclusionary housing requirements—as well as common incentives used by cities to offset those impacts—on development projects of different types under varied market conditions. We’ll use the Calculator to show different approaches for making inclusionary housing economically feasible under mixed-market conditions. Speakers will feature hot topics and best practices from mixed-market cities like Atlanta, Chicago, and Detroit that have adopted and implemented inclusionary housing policies.
Beyond the sessions being presented by Grounded Solutions, RVP 2019 participants will:
- Learn how to leverage cities’ vacant land and housing pipeline to enhance opportunities to produce housing with lasting terms of affordability
- Learn how inclusionary housing, CLTs and other programs can be used to build more inclusive and equitable communities.
- Learn how cities, nonprofit organizations, advocates and residents have worked together to advance racial equity in their neighborhoods and jurisdictions.
- See equitable development projects and policies in action in Atlanta and Albany, GA.
- Honor the roots of the CLT movement with special workshops on advancing racial equity, resident-led development, and creating and preserving community-oriented commercial and green spaces.
We encourage everyone to attend this year’s unique RVP and Albany Celebration convenings as an exceptional, once-in-a-lifetime experience; see you in Georgia!
New Communities, Inc. 50th Anniversary Celebration: Albany, Georgia (Add-on Event)
Grounded Solutions Network cordially invites you to join us October 4-5 in Albany, Georgia for the historic 50th Anniversary celebration of New Communities, Inc. – widely recognized as the first Community Land Trust (CLT) in the nation as part of the American Civil Rights Movement.
The overnight excursion begins in Atlanta on Friday, with breakfast and orientation at RVP 2019 before departure to Albany by charter bus.
In Albany, participants will meet CLT model founders Charles and Shirley Sherrod at Resora, the Sherrod’s 1,600-acre working farm. There will be interactive programming and an evening gala with freedom songs before returning by chartered bus to the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Saturday afternoon.
Date
Friday, October 4 (departure from Atlanta Mariott Marquis Hotel by 8 am)
Saturday, October 5 (arrival to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport by noon)
Destination
Resora Farm
801 Old Pretoria Road
Albany, GA
Cost
Grounded Solutions Network Members: $250
Non-Members: $300
Cost includes all ground transportation, programming and meals
Excluded costs: Overnight hotel stay (approx. $99-$149/night, plus tax)
