Homestead Community Land Trust News

1st Annual Celebration & Auction

We had a great time at Homestead's 1st Annual Auction & Celebration and were glad so many of you were able to join us to celebrate! With the help from our supporters, we were able to exceed our fundraising goal of $32,000 and we raised $35,215!

Thank you to our generous sponsors who provided funding to underwrite the festivities so that every dollar raised at the event went directly to supporting programs and services:

Premier Home & Hearth Sponsor

HomeStreet Bank

Community Framers Sponsors

Riddell Williams, P.S.
Washington Mutual
Trade Printery

Patrons of Affordability Sponsor

KeyBank

Special Event Sponsors

Northwest Community Land Trust Coalition
White Center Community Development Association
Windfall Winery

Congratulations to The Tenants Union of Washington State, who received the 2008 Esther "Little Dove" John Community Leadership Award, presented by Esther "Little Dove" John and Representative Eric Pettigrew!  We were thrilled to see so many Tenants Union members and organizers at the event.

Homestead Community Land Trust is working to create a systemic solution to the lack of affordable housing in Seattle and South King County-we can be successful in this work with friends in the community like you!

Thank you again so much for all you do to support Homestead and for your help in creating and preserving permanently affordable housing in our community!  If you were not able to join us in celebration and would like to make a contribution to Homestead, click here to make your tax deductible donation today! 

Partnerships

By Sheldon Cooper

Two years ago, Homestead’s Board of Delegates held a retreat and crafted a strategic direction for future sustainability. Several key agreements came out of that discussion, including the desire for the land trust to grow much faster, and identifying partnerships as a key strategy for achieving the desired growth.

We quickly realized that if Homestead was to ever hope of achieving the 100 home per year growth rate envisioned, new approaches would be needed. Homestead’s ongoing homeownership program, the Advantage Program was projected to have a maximum capacity of 20 homes per year because of the limitations on available public funding. Rather than compete for limited funding to exclusively run our own program, Homestead would also steward the ongoing affordability of housing produced by nonprofit and for profit housing developers.

Today, we have two partnerships well under way. Our partnership with Habitat for Humanity and the City of Seattle has added two homes to the land trust to date, with five more on the way. See the story about Nurri’s family in this issue to read about the first family that purchased their home through this project. Some of these homes were relocated and renovated, some renovated in place, and one is being built new. They all are on surplus City of Seattle land that is being conveyed to the project at no charge. These homes are reserved for low income families who are selected by Habitat and who provide 500 hours of sweat equity work on the home.

Homestead entered into a partnership with the Low Income Housing Institute this spring on Dearborn Town Homes. It will be a 15-unit new construction town home development at Dearborn and Hiawatha, scheduled to begin construction this summer. This development is also on City of Seattle owned land that will be conveyed at no charge in exchange for all the homes remaining permanently affordable through the land trust. The two bedroom two bath homes will sell for approximately $228,000.

Homestead is also working on a significant partnership opportunity with the City of Seattle on proposed Incentive Zoning legislation. This law is currently under consideration by Seattle City Council and would provide an incentive to developers who agree to build affordable homes within or near to their developments. Homestead would like to steward the ongoing affordability of ownership units produced through this program. Over time, this program has the potential generate hundreds of affordable that would stay permanently affordable through the land trust.

The scale of our affordable housing crisis is too large for any one organization to tackle alone. Through partnerships with housing developers, local jurisdictions, public and private funders, lending partners, our membership, and our homeowners, Homestead will grow its stock of affordable homes over time into the hundreds and then thousands. Together, we can make sure that our communities are vibrant, diverse, stable and strong.      

A Family Finds Their Home

The Omer & Gesese family includes Nurri and Ayalnesh, two sons and three daughters—including a new baby girl, Nuhameen!  The family decided to move to the States from Ethiopia because of the opportunities for education and for better employment. 

When the family came to Seattle, Washington, Nurri & Ayalnesh found jobs and the children, Selamawit, Fitsum, Mintesinot and Dagmani started school, but finding someplace to live was a tremendous challenge.  They moved often and had difficulty finding someplace large enough for the entire family.  They eventually decided to live in emergency and transitional housing for stability while Nurri looked for an apartment for the family.

Nurri contacted many places looking for housing, but there were few options and they were either too small or too expensive.  The family finally chose an apartment because it was the only available option at the time.

The apartment the family could afford was unsafe.  When they applied for a home through the Homestead/Habitat for Humanity partnership, they were living in a small, three-bedroom apartment in Seattle that had mold, leaking widows, and plumbing problems. There were major electrical problems after the apartment above them caught on fire and the electricity often did not work as a result.  When the upstairs neighbors did laundry water came down the walls of the apartment, which resulted in a growing mold problem.

Nurri repeatedly asked the management to fix the problems, but the repairs did not last.  Ayalnesh often cooked outside because the lights in the kitchen did not work.

Nurri and Ayalnesh learned about the Habitat for Humanity/Homestead partnership and applied for the program because he believed it was the “only way for our family to have a better home.”  Today, the family lives in a renovated home located in the Judkins Park area of central Seattle.

The family’s home is the result of a truly innovative partnership!  The home was donated to Habitat for Humanity and Homestead by the City of Seattle, volunteer labor and sponsorship was provided through Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Thrivent Builds program & Habitat for Humanity International and through 500 hours of “sweat equity” from the family.  This collaboration ensured that the donated house was transformed into a safe and secure four-bedroom home for the Nurri Omer family.  Because of the partnership with Homestead, the home is permanently affordable for a future low-income family.

“Our new house is beautiful.  It is on a street where my brothers can play outside,” said Nurri’s oldest daughter, Selamawit.

“There is room for all of us, and my sisters and brothers and I can study now and find space. My father is looking forward to not having to mediate so many arguments between all of us that happened because we could never find enough space or a quiet place to study.  My mother is very happy.  She does not say a lot, but you can tell,” she said. 

“My family was not looking for luxury, just a safe, clean home with room for all us.  We are very happy to have found that house,” Selamawit said.

Expansion to White Center

We are excited to announce we are expanding our Advantage Homebuyer Program to White Center!

White Center is a community tucked between West Seattle to the north and the City of Burien to the south.  Expanding the boundaries of our program to White Center seems like a natural extension of our work in the Delridge neighborhood where our first home became part of the Land Trust back in 2002.      

White Center has one of King County’s greatest concentrations of cultural diversity and a history of strong community-based organizations like the White Center Community Development Association that have been leading a neighborhood planning efforts focused on preserving the diverse character of the area while encouraging community investment. By helping create and permanently preserve affordable homeownership in the area, Homestead is supporting White Center’s vision that it remain vibrant, diverse, equitable and strong as it grows.    

To make expansion into White Center possible, Homestead has forged a new funding partnership with the King County Housing Finance Program. King County funds are combined with funds from the Washington State Housing Trust Fund, Washington State Housing Finance Commission, and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle. Combined, these sources allow the Advantage program to assist buyers with purchase assistance of up to $100,000 per household.

If you or someone you know would be interested in buying a home in White Center, please contact me. We have purchase assistance available now to help eligible households purchase homes and create stability, equity and legacy for their family, as well as a legacy of permanent affordability for White Center. 

Laura Evans
Homeownership Program Manager
206-323-1227 ext 111   

Homestead's Long Range Plan

Homestead is currently engaged in a rigorous business planning process that started in January and is projected to end in August 2008.  The process will provide a specific and detailed roadmap for our growth as an organization.

Homestead’s Business Planning Committee is providing the necessary leadership, expertise, and recommendations to the Board throughout the business planning process.  We will keep you posted with developments and decisions as we move forward.

We wanted to pause, though, and take a moment to thank the members of the Planning Committee and Advisory Circle!

Homestead Business Planning Committee

Will Kemper, Homestead Board & Realtor/CoHo Team of Windermere Agents
Jay Lapin, Homestead member & Retired GE
Peter Nevin, Homestead Board Secretary & Homestead homeowner
Jeff Stedman, Homestead Board Treasurer & Senior Financial Analyst/HomeStreet Bank

Advisory Circle

Julie Brunner, Common Ground and OPAL Community Land Trust
John Davis, Burlington Associates
Paul Fischburg, former Executive Director/Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association
Deborah Goodin, King County Housing Authority
Maureen Howard, Washington Habitat for Humanity
Nick Licata, Seattle City Council Member
Neil Powers, former staff for Peter Steinbrueck
Randy Robinson, Community Development Lending/Key Bank
Paul Schissler, Executive Director/Kulshan CLT
Darryl Smith, Windermere Real Estate
Tony To, Executive Director/HomeSight

Happy Anniversary Homestead Homeowners!

Several Homestead homeowners have recently had anniversaries of their date of purchase recently that we want to celebrate.  Thank you for your partnership with Homestead and your commitment to stewarding affordability for the future!
      

Brian Allen
3 years
Michael Smith & Willow Kelly
2 years
Peter Graff
2 years
James Nail & Family
1 year
Vanessa “Mijo” Lee & Teyo
1 year

One of the most exciting aspects of Homestead Community Land Trust homeownership is that it cultivates a genuine partnership between each household and the community based on mutual security, equity and legacy.

Thank You Auction Donors!

Thank you to the local businesses & individual supporters who have contacted us with early support for our 1st Annual Celebration & Auction in June!

94 Stewart Restaurant
Becky Andrews & Scott Olmsted
Becky Andrews & the Seattle Ladies Canasta Club
Mr. & Mrs. Leonard Andrews
Asteroid Ristorante
Central District Forum for Arts & Ideas
Sheldon Cooper
Dukes Chowder House
Eat the State!
Emerald Downs
Mike & Susie Estok
Fireworks Galleries
Garage
Hoodsport Winery, Inc.
Invisible Fence NW
Jillian's
Sarah Kaltsounis
Andrea LaVare Sandoval
Majestic Bay Theatres
McCormick's Fish House & Bar
Peter Nevin & the Washington Conservation Corps
Northwest Outdoor Center
The Paramount
Geov Parrish
Kristin Relyea
Salty's Alki Beach Seafood Grill
Seattle Art Museum
Seattle Repertory Theatre
Seattle Thunderbirds
Spectrum Dance Theater
Stumbling Goat Bistro
Tacoma Rainiers
Sabrina Tatta
Brook Taylor
Tillicum Village & Tours, Inc.
Town Hall Seattle
University of Washington
Windfall Winery and Larry Sol
Woodland Park Zoo

Thanks for your many contributions.  Because of generous individuals and businesses such as yours, we can continue to create and preserve lasting housing solutions in our community!

We are continuing to accept donations for the silent & live auctions through June 5th!  Please contact Kristin Bolken at 206.323.1227, ext. 114 or email kristin@homesteadclt.org  to contribute an item. 

June Auction & Celebration

Homestead’s Board, Event Co-Chairs, Rebecca Andrews & Geov Parrish, and staff invite you to join us for a fun-filled evening, fabulous auction items and awesome waterfront view at our 1st Annual Celebration & Auction!

It all begins at Home…
Friday, June 20, 2008 from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm
Daybreak Star Cultural Center at Discovery Park

A special thanks goes out to 2008 Event Sponsors!

Premier Home & Hearth Sponsor:

HomeStreet Bank

Community Framers Sponsors:

Riddell Williams P.S. and Trade Printery

Patrons of Affordability Sponsor:

KeyBank

The 2nd Annual Esther “Little Dove” John Community Leadership Award will be presented to our friends at the Tenants Union of Washington State by “Little Dove” John and Washington State Representative Eric Pettigrew. 

Tickets are $25 for members, $30 for non-members, $75 for Patron guests and $200 for Homestead Champions (Patrons and Champions make a tax deductible donation over and above the $30 ticket price).  Everyone is welcome, but space is limited, so call or email us to reserve your event ticket or to host a table. 

Tickets can be reserved online via credit card transaction.  Click here to purchase your ticket today.  (Let us know you are purchasing a ticket with your online donation)

The Tenants Union of Washington State

Homestead is pleased to present the 2nd Annual Esther “Little Dove” John Community Leadership Award to the Tenants Union of Washington State (TU) this year at its June event. 

Michele Thomas, Community Organizer for the TU and past Homestead Board member will be among those accepting the award.  “Homestead and the Tenants Union are both working to achieve deep and lasting solutions for safe, affordable and dignified housing.  Both organizations share an underlying belief in equitable development and that low and moderate income residents have the right to be at the table when decisions are made about their housing and their community,” said Michele.

Created in 1977 from a foundation of volunteer service, the Tenants Union has built a dedicated membership base and steadfastly sustained grassroots social change organizing. 

“The Tenants' Union of Washington State has, throughout its 30-year history, stood for the best in social justice work in all areas, but especially in the area of housing.  From multi-property developers to small rental property owners, the TU helps tenants face their landlords armed with the law and the support of Union members and organizers.  Regardless of race, social class, language, educational level, national origin or disability, the TU bridges divides to ensure decent, affordable housing for all,” said Esther “Little Dove” John.

Washington State Representative Eric Pettigrew was the 2007 Award Recipient.  This year, he will participate in the Award presentation to the TU.  We look forward to celebrating with you and the Tenants Union this summer!  Call Kristin or email at kristin@homesteadclt.org today to purchase your ticket for June 20, 2008.

Thank You Partners!

Thank you to our realtor partners who assisted our new homebuyers in achieving their dream of homeownership!  Sabrina Smith with Windermere/East, Inc. and Jim Fath with John L. Scott University Village, we thank you!

Washington State Housing Trust Fund granted $500,000 now and earmarked an additional $500,000 to the Homestead Advantage Program to assist a total of 20 families purchase homes in the next year.

Special thanks also goes out to the City of Seattle Office of Housing for its support of the Homestead Advantage Program with a $330,000 funding renewal.

This spring the Windermere Foundation provided a generous $1,000 grant in support of Homestead’s Advantage Program operations.  Thanks to everyone who supported Homestead’s grant proposal:

Tonya Hennen, The CoHo Team of Windermere Agents
Annettee Grupido, Windermere West Seattle
Karen Lavallee, Windermere West Seattle
Mary Ann Vandergriff, Windermere Fauntleroy
D. Lisa West, Windermere Fauntleroy