 First CFLT Home in Los Angeles that was developed with the County of Los Angeles |
The Community Foundation Land Trust (CFLT) is an arm of the California Community Foundation (CCF) established in late 2002 to acquire parcels of land in targeted communities and create and sustain affordable housing for less experienced homebuyers. The goal is to enable low-income residents to purchase homes and see their property rise in value, while at the same time ensuring that those homes remain permanently affordable for future generations. CFLT has since broadened its activities to include land acquisition for rental as well as for-sale housing.
Since 2002, CFLT has initiated six demonstration projects testing a range of ownership and subsidy approaches that will produce almost 300 homes. It has entered into partnerships with four local government agencies, and secured over $10 million in loans for site acquisition.
Click on the following sections to learn more about the Community Foundation Land Trust.
Mission, Vision and Guiding Principles
CFLT’s mission is to acquire and preserve land to create a range of affordable housing opportunities for low-income and working families in targeted communities.
CFLT works with public and private partners to preserve neighborhoods as communities of choice for diverse families and individuals, and to create affordable housing near workplaces, schools and services. CFLT retains long-term ownership of the land it acquires to ensure the preservation of housing opportunity for generations.
The land trust shares the guiding principles outlined in the California Community Foundation’s 10-year Strategic Plan, including:
- To promote philanthropy
- To serve as a trusted steward
- To embrace diversity
- To support equity
- To operate with integrity
- To collaborate
In addition, CFLT’s specific work is guided by the following principles:
- To preserve land within targeted neighborhoods to create and sustain affordable housing
- To ensure that affordability is maintained through generations
- To preserve affordable housing options for low-income residents in gentrifying neighborhoods
- To contribute to neighborhood diversity, and where appropriate, continued revitalization and stabilization
- To fully integrate with the Neighborhood Revitalization and Community Building initiatives of the California Community Foundation
- To ensure that homes built on CFLT land are of high quality
- To enter into partnerships to ensure that residents have access to educational opportunities, social services, health care, transportation and jobs
- To test innovations and demonstrate changes that can be replicated by government, foundations and other nonprofits to significantly increase the impact of our work
back to the top
What is a land trust?
There are hundreds of land trusts around the country, many of which are often very small and single-site oriented, with each one operating slightly differently. CFLT acquires properties suitable for development or preservation as affordable for-sale or rental housing. The properties may be all residential or mixed-use, and may be mixed-income. The land trust typically leases property to a developer or purchaser for 99 years and includes details about affordability, use and maintenance requirements of each property in the lease. CFLT’s role as lessor allows it to enforce the good maintenance and affordability rules as intended. The land trust uses a resale restriction on units that allows the homebuyer to build limited equity as the value of the home appreciates, thus ensuring that the home will remain affordable when resold.
Many land trusts have community-based boards of directors who are involved in everything from selecting property and reviewing adjustments and affordability covenants in hardship cases to defining future land use. These boards are often comprised of people who live in land trust homes themselves. CFLT’s board consists of board members of the California Community Foundation as well as community leaders with real estate, nonprofit management, financial and legal expertise. CFLT may consider site-specific, local advisory boards in the future that are connected to larger scale developments.
CFLT is unique in that it was created by the California Community Foundation and exists in part to demonstrate ideas and test innovations related to the foundation’s work in neighborhood revitalization and community building in Los Angeles County. The land trust seeks to enable the foundation to demonstrate the applicability of new models or test ideas that require time and resources to bear fruit.
back to the top
Need for Affordable Housing and CFLT’s Role
Los Angeles is facing an ongoing, deepening housing crisis. Two-thirds of renters cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment at the median price; 88 percent of residents cannot afford to buy the median-priced home. In the recent building boom, housing production has increased significantly compared to a decade ago. Even so, there were 1.35 new households formed for every one unit given a building permit over the past five years. A vast number of existing rental properties are not being properly maintained, resulting in overcrowded and substandard housing.
The consequences of this housing crisis are wide-ranging. A majority of the residents are in transient mode. As 40 percent of families with children are renters, children must change schools often as their families periodically move to find affordable and livable housing. While renters face the greatest affordability challenges, high housing costs have pushed homeownership out of reach for many families. It is difficult for families to plan for college, to start businesses, or save for retirement when half of their monthly income goes towards housing costs. Fewer than one in four families owns a home in most of the neighborhoods covered by the California Community Foundation, making it difficult to build a civic infrastructure.
To respond to the crisis, local governments in Los Angeles currently allocate more than $200 million per year to subsidize production of decent affordable housing, both rental and for-sale units. These developments rely on a patchwork of federal, state and local subsidies and incentives to make high-cost housing affordable to lower-income families. CFLT can be instrumental in significant ways:
- Current resale restrictions are not strong enough to ensure that the second buyer of a home can afford it without significant subsidy given the mechanisms used to create the units.
- CFLT’s involvement can make it easier to use stronger restrictions by ensuring monitoring and oversight of the sale process.
- Los Angeles is not competing well for state programs such as the Multifamily Housing Program (MHP) or the Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. Los Angeles County is home to 28 percent of the people in California, and to 40 percent of the people in poverty, and yet it received less than 25 percent of the state funds allocated since 2002. The combination of high land costs, slow entitlement processes and lower incomes have driven away developers to seek affordable opportunities elsewhere.
- CFLT can help by creating a pipeline of development opportunities in targeted neighborhoods.
- CFLT has the ability to test innovations and partner quickly to open opportunities otherwise unavailable. The combination of internal capacity and access to capital makes it possible to take higher risks that can demonstrate new approaches.
- CFLT can assemble and direct the capital needed to work at size and scale, make a visible impact in a neighborhood and to attract private partners and national foundations.
back to the top
Achievements and Lessons Learned
Since its inception in December 2002, the Community Foundation Land Trust has:
- Leveraged an initial $3.8 million endowment to initiate development of 284 homes worth over $80 million
- Initiated six demonstration projects serving a range of incomes and household types
- Secured donated land and/or subsidy commitments from the cities of Santa Monica, Inglewood and Los Angeles as well as Los Angeles County
- Negotiated a joint venture with a major homebuilder (MBK) to build 79 homes in the Antelope Valley
- Obtained a $2 million Program Related Investment (PRI) loan from Ford Foundation
- Obtained a $2 million Program Related Investment (PRI) loan from the California Community Foundation
- Secured a $6.25 million line of credit from Broadway Federal Bank
- Obtained start-up grants from Fannie Mae, Washington Mutual and HSBC
- Joined the California Community Foundation and the City of El Monte to launch the El Monte Community Building Initiative, a 10-year effort to revitalize the community by engaging residents and developing their leadership, and improving their physical environment and social services
Some of CFLT’s initial assumptions have been adjusted as a result of experience and in response to market changes. For example, local government agencies have not been able to make significant land donations at below-market prices due to restrictions under state law. Similarly, banks and partners such as Fannie Mae have indicated willingness to invest in loan funds that can pay near-market interest and have terms of up to five to ten years, but few foundations offer longer-term loans at below-market rates. Subsidy programs that provide deferred-payment loans to homebuyers have been stretched to their limits with high construction costs and rising interest rates using 30-year mortgages, and have been unable to increase the initial subsidy amounts needed to use shorter mortgage terms.
back to the top
Goals and Strategies
1. Purchase, entitle and lease land for development
Initiate the development of at least 1,150 units of affordable housing through the purchase and entitlement of sites for lease to high-quality developer partners who will develop according to CFLT standards.
2. Collaborate with CCF and key partners to achieve scale and innovation
Identify targeted neighborhoods for site purchases in collaboration with the California Community Foundation’s Community Building Initiative and Neighborhood Revitalization program, as well as other local partners.
3. Ensure high-quality development, maintenance and management of properties
Develop written standards for development, maintenance and management of properties with CFLT involvement.
4. Ensure permanent affordability of CFLT homes
Develop affordability covenants for for-sale properties that balance property appreciation for the buyer with affordability for subsequent purchasers.
5. Achieve financial viability and sustainability by fiscal year 2010
Use catalytic investment approaches to ensure that property purchases will generate revenue to repay loans, support current operations, and establish reserves for future monitoring. Use surplus revenues to provide longer-term leases at lower costs for homes in targeted neighborhoods in specific partnerships.
back to the top
CFLT Board of Directors
JAMES ROSSER, Chairman
Dr. Rosser has served as President and professor of Health Care Management at California State University, Los Angeles, since 1979 and as Professor of Microbiology since 2004. He has and continues to serve on many civic and community boards including: the Los Angeles County Alliance for College Ready Public Schools, the California Chamber of Commerce, Community Television of Southern California (KCET), Los Angeles After-School Education and Child Care Program--LA’s BEST, the California Community Foundation, the Music Center Performing Arts Council/Education Council, the Los Angeles Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America and the Americans for the Arts. His professional board affiliations have included: the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the American Council on Education, Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, the California Council on Science and Technology, Edison International, United California Bank and the FEDCO, Inc. Foundation, as well as numerous committees and commissions of The California State University system.
M. WAYNE NELSON, Vice Chairman
Wayne Nelson is president and CEO of Nelson & Gilmore, a leading, full-service marketing and communications company servicing the real estate industry. Mr. Nelson has more than 25 years experience in residential and commercial real estate marketing and his client list includes some of the nation’s most prominent real estate development firms. He also is a frequent speaker at real estate industry events and is a regular columnist with some of the industry’s leading publications.
back to the top
ANTONIA HERNÁNDEZ, CEO
Nationally recognized for her commitment toward the betterment of underserved communities in Los Angeles and beyond, Antonia Hernández joined the California Community Foundation as President & CEO in February 2004. Previously, Ms. Hernández was president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), a national nonprofit litigation and advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the civil rights of the nation's 35 million Latinos through the legal system, community education, research and policy initiatives.
An expert in civil rights and immigration issues, Ms. Hernández began her legal career as a staff attorney with the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice and worked as counsel to the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary before joining MALDEF in 1981 as regional counsel in Washington, D.C. Ms. Hernández is a trustee for the Rockefeller Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors for the Automobile Club of Southern California and Golden West Financial Corporation. She serves on various commissions, advisory boards, committees and panels, including the Pacific Council for International Policy. Ms. Hernández is a member of the State Bar of California, the District of Columbia Bar, the United States Courts for the Ninth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court. She also is a member of the American Bar Association, the Mexican American Bar Association of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles County Bar Association. Ms. Hernández earned her Bachelor of Arts in History at UCLA in 1970 and Juris Doctor at the UCLA School of Law in 1974.
MARTHA WELBORNE, Secretary
Martha Lampkin Welborne, FAIA, is the Managing Director of the Grand Avenue Committee, a public-private partnership focused on revitalizing the civic and cultural districts of downtown Los Angeles through the creation of a $2.0 billion project that includes six high-rise buildings and a 16-acre park.
As an architect and city planner, Ms. Welborne previously worked in the private sector in leadership roles with several internationally-recognized architecture firms. Her work comprises of the creation of new transit systems, university master plans, downtown development plans and individual building design.
Ms. Welborne is a member of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Visiting Committee for the Department of Urban Studies and Planning. She is also the President-elect of the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. She holds a Master of Architecture and a Master in City Planning degrees from MIT as well as a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Notre Dame.
In 1991, Ms. Welborne was appointed a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design, and was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects in 1993.
back to the top
DOROTHY COURTNEY
Dorothy Courtney recently retired after more than twenty years as Executive Director of the Richstone Family Center. Richstone works to prevent and treat child abuse, to strengthen families and promote nonviolent resolution of conflict in families and communities. Under Courtney's leadership, Richstone grew from an organization in a single community serving 35 families to an agency in 13 locations, serving over 9,000 participants with a wide range of programs. Before coming to Richstone, Courtney was a secondary school teacher, foreman of the Los Angeles Grand Jury, a school district board member, and a community volunteer focused on children and families. She currently serves on the boards of the Jester Pharley Fund and the South Bay Violence Prevention Council.
DAVID FLEMING
David Fleming has been counsel to Latham & Watkins since 1992. A corporate attorney for 43 years, he has represented clients in various areas including banking, real estate, estate and securities practices, bringing to market over $2 billion in securities and commercial paper.
Mr. Fleming served as the President of the Board of Fire Commissioners of the City of Los Angeles from 1993-2001. He now serves on the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission. From 1996 to 1999, he served as a member and Vice Chairman of the California Transportation Commission, appointed by California Governor Pete Wilson and confirmed by the California State Senate.
He is the Chairman of the Board of the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley, a Valleywide organization of business and civic leaders from the cities of Los Angeles, Burbank and Glendale, including 25 Chambers of Commerce, Valley Industry & Commerce Association, the Valley Economic Development Corporation, the Southern California Board of Realtors, Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau, Valley Leadership Council and the California Small Manufacturers Association. He is the Chairman of the Board of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation composed of many prominent companies throughout Los Angeles County. For the past 13 years, he has been the Chairman of the Board of Valley Presbyterian Hospital, and was a past Chairman (1988-1990) of the Valley Industry & Commerce Association.
back to the top
ANITA LANDECKER
Anita Landecker joined Excellent Education Development (ExED) in 1999, and has served as executive director since 2000. She is a leader in community development in Los Angeles having directed the western operations for the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) for more than a decade. At LISC, Ms. Landecker has raised over $1 billion for affordable housing investment in inner-city areas. She has taught at UCLA, served on the Los Angeles Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and serves on the board of the Community Development Technologies Center and Venice Community Housing Corporation. Ms. Landecker earned an Master of Science in urban planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California at Santa Barbara.
DAVID PETERS
David Peters is co-founder of The Regency Group, a diversified real estate development, investment and management company. He is an avid mediator, mediating construction defect cases for the American Arbitration Association for their Large Complex Case Panel and victim/offender cases in the juvenile justice system for the Centinella Valley Juvenile Diversion Project. Mr. Peters served as the chair of the California Community Foundation; CORO Southern California; and of Liaison Citizens, a youth leadership program in Los Angeles. He was a founder and board member of Leadership Southern California and a director of the South Bay Wellness Community. He is President of Bel-Air Country Club, and is a director of Richstone Family Center, Beverly Hills Land Company, the Thelma Pearl Howard Foundation, and the Jimmy Miller Memorial Foundation. He also serves on the board of governors of Genesis LA and the Warren Christopher Scholarship Fund. A CORO Fellow, Mr. Peters attended the University of Notre Dame, and earned his Masters degree in Urban Studies from Occidental College.
back to the top
VIRGIL ROBERTS
Virgil Roberts graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a degree in Political Science and spent a year doing graduate studies in International Relations and Constitutional Law. After attending Harvard Law School, where he received his Juris Doctor degree in 1972, he joined the firm of Pacht, Ross, Warne, Bernhard and Sears.
In 1976, Mr. Roberts formed the law firm of Manning & Roberts, specializing in civil litigation practice and representation of clients primarily from the recording industry. In 1981, he joined Solar Records as Executive Vice President and General Counsel. He became President of Dick Griffey Productions in 1982 and President of Solar Records in 1990. In April of 1996, he and a colleague formed the entertainment law firm of Bobbitt & Roberts of which he is the managing partner.
Numerous community and professional organizations of which he is a current or past board member and/or officer include the Beverly Hills Bar Association, Beverly Hills Barristers Association, the Langston Law Club, Los Angeles Legal Aid Foundation, California Teacher Credentialing Commission, and the Black Entertainment & Sports Lawyers Association. Mr. Roberts is currently Chairman of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP), a Board Member of the Los Angeles Educational Alliance for Restructuring Now (LEARN), and Vice Chairman of the Public Education Fund Network. In 1990 and 1991, he served as Chairman of the Los Angeles Educational Partnership and continues to serve on its Board.
Mr. Roberts is presently listed in a number of biographical collections, including Who's Who in America, Who's Who in American Law, and Who's Who Among Black Americans, and has been honored for his service to the community by the Los Angeles Urban League and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the University of Southern California (USC) School of Education. He was a Foreign Affairs Scholar after graduating from UCLA, and recipient of the Felix Frankfurter Scholarship at the Harvard Law School. In 1998, Mr. Roberts received the Recognition of Outstanding Support/Service for Education (ROSE) Award, acknowledging his efforts to advance knowledge and practice in the field of education.
back to the top
JEAN BIXBY SMITH
A native of Long Beach, where she currently resides, Jean Smith is Chairman and President of Alamitos Land Company. She recently stepped down after ten years from the chairmanship of Bixby Land Company, although she continues to serve on its Board of Directors. After graduation from Scripps College and armed with a teaching credential from the Claremont Graduate School, Ms. Smith taught elementary school for nine years before joining the family businesses. She has been honored with the Scripps College Distinguished Alumnae award for her service to the college as well as the broader community. A Trustee of the college for over 25 years, she chaired the board from 1996-2004. In Long Beach, she is currently active in the Rancho Los Cerritos Foundation, American Red Cross and the Long Beach Community Foundation, which she has chaired since its inception in 1996. She also sits on the board of International City Bank.
TOM UNTERMAN
Tom Unterman founded Rustic Canyon in September 1999, bringing a wealth of distinguished corporate experience to his role as managing partner. From 1992 though 1999, he was employed in several executive positions by The Times Mirror Company, most recently as its executive vice president and chief financial officer. Prior to joining Times Mirror, Mr. Unterman was a partner in the Los Angeles office of the law firm of Morrison & Foerster LLP, which he joined after serving as a partner at the San Francisco-based law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.
He graduated from Princeton University before receiving his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago.
Mr. Unterman currently serves on the Boards of: KCRW Foundation, The Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, The Los Angeles Library Foundation and Heal the Bay.
back to the top
CFLT Staff
ANN SEWILL
President
Ann Sewill has 28 years of experience in the area of affordable housing finance and development, serving in leadership positions in both the public and private nonprofit sectors.
Prior to joining CFLT, she held positions as Vice President of Enterprise Community Partners, Assistant General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing Department, Executive Director of the Los Angeles Community Design Center and Housing Director for the City of Santa Monica. She also worked with the Los Angeles offices of the California Department of Housing and Community Development and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Ms. Sewill received a Master of Arts from UCLA’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science - Public Administration from U.C. Davis. She chairs the Affordable Housing Advisory Council of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and is the immediate past chair of the Southern California Association of NonProfit Housing. In 2005, she was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
ROSIE DIAZ
Project Coordinator
As Project Coordinator, Rosie Diaz compiles research on various real estate and community issues related to CFLT and participates in the planning and permitting efforts of pre-development and development processes, including the property acquisition and construction phases.
Prior to joining CCF, Ms. Diaz managed all public, media and community relations for Crystal Stairs, the largest private, nonprofit childcare development agency in California. At Crystal Stairs, she increased the organization’s profile among government agencies, local media and other community-based organizations.
Ms. Diaz graduated with honors from Cal State University Dominguez Hills where she was awarded Outstanding Graduate in Public Relations, and was elected to Who’s Who Among Students in America Colleges and Universities. She holds certificates in Grantwriting and Administration, and in Special Event and Meeting Planning, and is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society.
Project Consultants:
Yasmin Tong
Resources
back to the top
|
