Local/Regional Regenerative Land Bank

A Local/Regional Regenerative Land Bank is a useful method of acquiring and holding land for many Peace Hamlets. Local/Regional means it is run by local people and the money stays home. Regenerative means our goal is to live and act in ways that clean up and repair the land, make the land better. A land bank offers a financial tool to hold land in common, meaning shared ownership rather than having a private owner. The land bank can offer a variety of benefits, including being able to offer small loans or pay outs and other kinds of financial transactions. Local Land Banks have been used to prevent gentrification in older established communities. Many counties already have a county land bank. Most existing land banks have similar mission statements.

Sample mission statement from Genesee County Land Bank - Michigan. 

Our Mission
The Land Bank's mission is to restore value to the community by acquiring, developing and selling vacant and abandoned properties in cooperation with stakeholders who value responsible land ownership. 

A Local/Regional Restorative Land Bank will have a focus on provisioning land for human habitation in a way that improves the ecological balance and restores land using natural practices. It will plan for regional land use issues, looking to improve conditions using regional approaches.

Learning about land banks in general
Land banks are public authorities or non-profit organizations created to acquire, hold, manage, and sometimes redevelop property in order to return these properties to productive use to meet community goals, such as increasing affordable housing or stabilizing property values. Local Housing Solutions.org Overview page https://localhousingsolutions.org/housing-policy-library/land-banks/ 

Land Banking 101: What is a Land Bank? https://files.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/LandBankingBasics.pdf

• Description:
  This document provides general information on land banking. It provides a detailed definition of a land bank and discusses the four critical elements to successful land banking. Finally, it provides a discussion of types of land bank programs, governance structures, and traditional income sources
• Excerpts:
  “Land banks are not financial institutions. They are public or community-owned entities created for a single purpose: to acquire, manage, maintain, and repurpose vacant, abandoned, and foreclosed properties –the worst abandoned houses, forgotten buildings, and empty lots.” 
• “The best land banks do not work alone, but rather develop strategic partnerships with nonprofits, community organizations, lenders, and local governments – all in an effort to leverage the resources available to deal with the most distressed land in the community.” 
• “Potential Sources of Income Land bank authorities typically have access to a variety of sources of income to fund land bank programs, including: foundation grants, government contracts, land sale revenues, specific tax collection, developer fees, and rental income. Below is a description of these income sources:”
  
  

Using a Land Bank for Local/Regional Regeneration

Using a Land Bank offers a feasible solution to the difficult issues involved with buying and maintaining land in common. We expect the Local Restorative Land Bank will handle the legal aspects of buying and selling land. It becomes a vehicle to allow local communities to collectively have and hold assets like land and money. This offers a method to bring land ownership to people collectively. Properties may be donated, or acquired in a variety of other ways. Disturbed land, surplus land, feral land, vacant and abandoned land are possible sources of land. Leasing Public land, Land Patent, and Land Grant, are some of the types of land ownership that may be possible. There are a variety of situations that make donating land to a Land Bank for the purpose of restoration a rewarding opportunity, including tax breaks and tax incentives. 

An owner could donate their home/property, continue to live there and maybe even get a monthly payout from the land bank. For example an older person may find it difficult to keep up with payments and repairs. By donating the property to the land bank they can continue to live on the land and possibly even get a small monthly check back from the land bank. Other sources of income for the land bank could be monetary donations, grants, endowments, restitution, reparations and tax incentives. 

Another advantage of holding land in common is that private owner communities often fail. We believe when community members share common ownership, it leads to greater success in balancing delicate community matters. Many communities are started by a charismatic leader, or are a single family operation. Having one person in charge may be appealing to some, but Saturday, April 20, 2024 page 3 most find it unworkable in the long run. When people don’t feel secure about having long term ownership they are reluctant to invest time or money. 

A key to success for any Peace Hamlet is that the larger (local/regional) community is available, active and ready to do a variety of things. Including but not limited to: buy and sell land, research regional issues and provide executive support for the Acres of Peace communities. Leaders in regional planning will want to look at the entire region for planning and prioritizing activities and resources, identifying the areas to apply regenerative agriculture and other restorative practices. We want to be active in interfacing with the public and forming opinions about next moves for restoration. Land restoration is a key method to reverse the degradation of land habitats and restore ecosystem health, however, restoration is a challenging and lengthy process. Restoration requires a close engagement with local and indigenous communities that share an interest in conserving and restoring lands.

"Land restoration is a key method to reverse the degradation of land habitats and restore ecosystem health, however, restoration is a challenging and lengthy process. Restoration requires a close engagement with local and indigenous communities that share an interest in conserving and restoring lands."
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcosc.2022.873659 

A Local/Regional Regenerative Land Bank may be responsible for many things along with the buying, selling, holding, management and restoration of the land. 

• Leasing the land to the Peace Havens, who each set up as LLC
• PR, public relations, liaison with people, distribute and collect applications, process the applications
• Bank “workers’ may be paid. Employees preferably chosen from members of Peace Hamlets when possible. Keep it in the family. We are forming a kind of family
• Liaison with experts, scientists, activists and other interested parties to consider the myriad of issues affecting our local region while planning for restoration. We want to look at toxic areas and practices, waterflow and many other factors affecting degradation in land matters. This allows us to more effectively remediate damage and restore health to our regional ecosystems
• The Land Bank can offer micro loans for micro enterprises
• May offer employment. Along with office work there may be other paid work, for example hiring people to repair, maintain or manage a property. 

We want homesteading members to feel like they have long lasting dependable community ownership. People want to invest time and money in a home when the land is secure. Agreements will need to be made about ownership of physical structures and economic enterprises. We expect these issues to be resolved locally with templates available for handling the many options involved with economic issues. 

Starting an Acres of Peace Hamlet is like starting a small business. It can be difficult with a lot of obstacles. Acres of Peace strives to assist Peace Hamlets to succeed every time. Our keys to success: common land ownership, peaceful communication, offering tools for ‘getting along’, Saturday, April 20, 2024 page 4 natural building and more. Connection with nature empowers us. Economic independence is enabled by economic interdependence. 

It’s a Wonderful Life is a classic movie from 1943 starring James Stewart as George Bailey. An angel is sent from Heaven to help George Bailey, a desperately frustrated businessman, by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed. A key element to the story is the Bailey Bros. Building and Loan Association. It helps regular people own their homes. At one point, George explains to folks, their money is in each other's property. The angel shows the unfriendly place the community could become when there is no Bailey Bros. Building and Loan Association. A Local/Regional Regenerative Land Bank is a lot like the Bailey and Bros. Building and Loan Association. This movie shows how much a community benefits from having their own Local Regenerative Land Bank.