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We have exciting projects and partnerships across the state and want to bring you the latest updates on how we're working tirelessly to create a positive economic impact on Michigan communities, by recycling land to productive use and fostering the development of property to promote and support land bank operations at the county and local levels.
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 Robinson Landing, the 30 single-family home development, will address an identified housing need by offering new construction homes priced from $139,900 to $279,900. Formerly owned by the City of Grand Haven, the 7.5-acre parcel on Comstock Street was transferred from the City to the Ottawa County Land Bank in November 2020. Michigan Community Capital purchased the land at a reduced price of $32,000 earlier this year to encourage affordability of the neighborhood development. The project broke ground in May 2021.
“This project is responding to a housing crisis we are seeing across the state,” said Marilyn Crowley, Vice President of Investment for Michigan Community Capital. “With construction prices skyrocketing and a large number of buyers, we are seeing a shortage of housing that is priced affordably for the majority of Michigan’s workforce. It took many partners to bring this project together, and we’re excited to see the result come to life.”
“This project is a model for non-profit/governmental cooperation,” said Pat McGinnis, City Manager of City of Grand Haven. “When we all put our full toolbox into play, we can create attainable workforce housing in Ottawa County. The Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (BRA), Housing Next, Ottawa County, BlueWest Properties, Michigan Community Capital, Ottawa County Land Bank, Grand Haven Charter Township and the City of Grand Haven all put this on the front burner and made it a reality. There’s surely more to come.”
Key Highlights
The partnership with the Ottawa County Land Bank allowed for some of the development costs to be paid for with the Tax Increment Financing Bridge Loan tied to the approved Act 381 Brownfield Plan adopted by the local BRA. This decreased the construction loan, which allows for 16 of the 30 houses to be sold at attainable prices for moderate-income households:
- $139,900 for a 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom home
- $159,900 for a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home
- $179,900 for a 3-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom, 2-story home.
There are renderings of different houses available on the Community Land Trust (CLT) website.
To preserve the investment of the BRA to ensure these 16 homes are permanently affordable, the Grand Haven Area Community Land Trust program was created. It is a shared-equity program allowing for lower home prices because the buyer is purchasing the home, not the land. The CLT retains ownership of the land and enters into a 99-year ground lease with the homeowner. This allows for the homeowner to build equity but at the time when they choose to sell, some of that equity is kept with the land, allowing it to be sold to another moderate-income homebuyer.
The Grand Haven Area Community Land Trust was created by the City of Grand Haven and is managed by the Neighborhood Housing Services team.
If your municipality is interested in learning more about the tools available through land bank partnerships, please contact us at landbank@michigan.gov.
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