The Community Land Trust Playbook: Creating Affordable Housing That Lasts
As housing costs rise and communities face increasing displacement, community land trusts are offering a different way forward—one that separates land ownership from homeownership and places land under long-term community stewardship.
But how does the model actually work?
How do you acquire the land? How do you finance the development? How do you create pathways to homeownership? And how do you make sure affordability doesn't disappear a few years after the ribbon cutting?
At Groundbreakers, we're bringing together leaders who are doing the work to answer those questions.
Of course we'll talk about what a community land trust is. But this will also be a deeper conversation about how the model works in the real world, how land is acquired, how projects are financed, how partnerships are built, and how affordability is preserved.
If you're a developer, planner, attorney, lender, nonprofit leader, public official, or anyone working to shape the future of housing and communities, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.
Sherry Taylor (Panelist)
Executive Director, Durham Community Land Trust
Sherry Taylor is the Executive Director of Durham Community Land Trustees (DCLT), an affordable housing nonprofit dedicated to creating sustainable housing solutions for low and moderate-income families. With 16 years of experience in the nonprofit, government, and private sectors, Sherry is a seasoned real estate developer who brings a wealth of knowledge in commercial real estate consulting and urban planning to her role at DCLT.
Sherry holds a Master’s degree in City & Regional Planning from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master’s degree in International Real Estate Development from Florida International University. She is also a licensed real estate professional, underscoring her deep expertise and commitment to the field.
Under Sherry’s leadership, DCLT is pioneering innovative projects such as CLTplusOne and Alma Street Commons. CLTplusOne pairs a land trust home with an accessory dwelling unit, enhancing the purchasing power of low and moderate-income buyers. Alma Street Commons is a regenerative, environmentally sustainable affordable housing development that aims to meet the rigorous standards of the Living Building Challenge green building certification.
Sherry’s strategic vision and dedication to affordable housing development continue to drive DCLT’s mission forward, ensuring that more families have access to quality, affordable homes.
Patrick Graham (Panelist)
Chief Operating Officer, WeBuild Concord
Dr. Patrick Graham is a public and social sector leader with over 25 years of executive-level and policy experience. He served as the chief executive officer of the Martin Luther King Center of Long Island, the Urban League of Central Carolinas, and Charlotte Works; as Senior Policy Advisor for Wealth Building with the City of Richmond; and as a director with the Crisis Assistance Ministry. He currently serves as CEO of WeBuild Concord. WeBuild has become one of the largest affordable housing developers in Cabarrus County and the operator of an innovative revolving gap loan fund for construction. Dr. Graham influenced regional and national economic and social justice strategies.
After leading the State of Ethnic Charlotte publication and policy agenda in 2011, he was nationally ahead of the economic mobility movement in the Charlotte region. This publication warned of the impact of social and economic disparities on Charlotte's competitiveness three years before the Where is the Land of Opportunity study. Dr. Graham coined the term "At-Opportunity, Not At-Risk," which redefined disenfranchised youth and communities and influenced policies within organizations such as the National Urban League and mentoring and workforce agencies.
He created the City of Richmond's eviction prevention model and five surrounding counties. As part of the model's creation, he wrote one of the first policies giving domestic violence victims access to CARES Act funding for emergency moves. During the same period, Dr. Graham developed a stability measure to determine the impacts of workforce and housing placement on households experiencing a loss of social benefits. Many Richmond and Charlotte agencies adopted some of his practices.
Dr. Graham earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Johnson C. Smith University, a Master of Arts in African American Studies (Media and Policy) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a Ph.D. in American History focusing on civil rights and migration from Stony Brook University. He has several academically published works on civil liberties, economic mobility, and migration.
Jarrod Jones (Panelist)
Interim Executive Director, West Side Community Land Trust
Jarrod Jones is Interim Executive Director of West Side Community Land Trust and a real estate development professional whose work sits at the intersection of affordable housing, community development, and community ownership.
Through his work with West Side Community Land Trust and Backyard Development, Jones brings a practical, development-focused perspective to the community land trust model. His work is centered on the challenge of creating housing opportunities that respond to community needs while remaining affordable and accessible over the long term.
Jones understands that creating permanently affordable housing requires more than good intentions. It requires thoughtful development strategies, strong partnerships, access to land and capital, and a commitment to the communities that will ultimately call these places home.
As part of the Groundbreakers panel, Jones will offer insight into implementing the CLT model in Charlotte and the opportunities and challenges involved in creating permanently affordable homeownership opportunities through community-centered development.
Delores Bailey (Moderator)
Executive Director, EMPOWERment, Inc
Bailey joined EMPOWERment Inc. as a community organizer and has served as Executive Director since 2005. Throughout her tenure, she has championed community-based approaches to housing and neighborhood development, helping expand housing opportunities while giving residents a stronger voice in shaping their communities.
Her work reflects a fundamental belief that successful community development must involve the people who live in the communities being developed. Bailey brings experience navigating the intersection of affordable housing, neighborhood preservation, resident engagement, and community-led change.
As moderator of this Groundbreakers conversation, Bailey will guide a practical discussion about how community land trusts can be used to preserve affordability, strengthen communities, and create lasting housing opportunities, and what it takes for practitioners and partners to turn the model into reality.
