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  • About | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    ABOUT US Southern Door Community Land Trust Welcome! The Southern Door Community Land Trust is a grassroots coalition of housing advocates committed to creating and launching a community land trust based right here in Broome County, New York. ​ We are BIPOC led and will work tirelessly to achieve racial, housing and energy justice and ensure that everyone in this region has access to stable homes. We want those folks most impacted by housing insecurity to own, govern, and lead our area’s Community Land Trust. Community land trusts (CLTs) are nonprofit organizations governed by a board of CLT residents, community members and public representatives that provide lasting community assets and shared equity homeownership opportunities for families and individuals. The Southern Door Community Land Trusts is developing a strong foundation to serve local folks through community revitalization, primarily focusing on permanently affordable rental and cooperative housing projects. The heart of the SDCLT will work towards the creation of safe, healthy homes that will remain permanently affordable for generations to come. ​ ​ Fact: There are over 225 community land trusts in the United States! The creation of Land Trusts has increasingly become an important factor in developing viable solutions to the Nationwide issue of housing insecurity. ​ Over the last year the SDCLT has focused on building trust and leadership in Broome County through partnerships with the County Executives Office, Community Foundation of SCNY, and various local non-profit organizations. As of Aug, 2022 the SDCLT has gained ownership of it's first property in collaboration with Broome County. Our first housing development is a 6 unit apartment building in Binghamton. The CLT will lead this project using an anti- displacement lens. Meaning, we aim to keep folks housed during rehabilitation or remodeling and ensuring their right to return home! Sign up for regular update e-mails and learn all about our progress. ​ Sign me up - I'm excited! Get in Touch BEHIND THE SCENES We believe in this community. And we take it you do too since you're here exploring. ​ Broome County has a housing crisis. Our friends, families, neighbors lack safe, healthy, and affordable housing. ​ Over the last few years, a number of housing justice initiatives have emerged in Broome County: ​ County Executive’s Safe Housing Task Force Binghamton Tenants United The We Must Live Housing Committee Meeting The Greater Binghamton Tiny Homes Project ​ In February 2019, representatives from these and other social justice projects joined together to explore a new grant opportunity announced by the NY Attorney General Tish James. With support from the Office of Broome County Executive Jason Garnar. This coalition of grassroots activists and housing justice advocates applied for a grant to support the creation of a community land trust in Broome. Our application was focused on racial justice and included a number of creative programs to engage our neighborhoods and community in this effort. In October 2019, NY AG Tish James announced that nine communities and counties would receive grant awards to support their local community land trusts. Only one application seeking to start a new CLT was funded: ours, right here in Broome. Check out our team! Upcoming events

  • Housing Justice Talks | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    HOUSING JUSTICE TALKS Affordable housing is essential for building a vibrant, inclusive Broome County. This community-led initiative brings together local residents, stakeholders, and advocates to shape the future of affordable housing, ensuring everyone has access to secure and affordable homes. By joining our monthly virtual meetings, you’ll be part of an open forum where we discuss challenges, brainstorm ideas, and work toward practical solutions that benefit everyone in our community. Your voice matters! Whether you’re a resident, property owner, developer, or simply passionate about housing equity, your insights will directly impact our shared goals. Let’s collaborate to make affordable housing a priority and create a brighter future for Broome County. Register today to stay involved, contribute to the conversation, and help us build a community where everyone can thrive.

  • Eviction Mapping | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    HUD HOUSING EDUCATORS The SDCLT has launched the HUD Housing Educator Program, a pioneering initiative in Broome County aimed at increasing homeownership representation within the BIPOC community. This unique program provides training in HUD Housing Counseling, equipping participants with the knowledge to pass the housing counseling exam. Upon certification, participants are encouraged to “pay it forward” by guiding other historically marginalized residents through the essential steps of the homeownership journey. What sets this program apart is its emphasis on lived experience. The SDCLT has designed it to include educators who have personally faced challenges like poverty, racial discrimination, and gender bias, fostering deeper connections and trust within the community. Additionally, the program offers youth development opportunities in housing, food, and racial justice, helping young people build career-ready skills in storytelling, interviewing, community outreach, film, photography, and editing. Interested in making a difference? Join us in empowering Broome County residents toward homeownership and community transformation. Email your Inquiry!

  • Southern Door Community Land Trust | Housing Justice Binghamton NY

    SOUTHERN DOOR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST "Land is the basis of freedom, justice and equality" -Malcolm X. BLACK LIVES MATTER The Southern Door Community Land Trust emphatically believes that Black Lives Matter. The Southern Door Community Land Trust (SDCLT) stands firmly with the Black Lives Matter movement. Racial disparities in housing, education, wealth, and healthcare have perpetuated inequality for Black Americans for too long. SDCLT is committed to ensuring Black Lives Matter in all spaces by advocating for affordable, stable housing and dismantling discriminatory systems. ​ Housing Inequity has been a key driver of racial disparities in the U.S. Black Americans have historically faced barriers to homeownership and housing stability, leading to long-term economic disadvantages. SDCLT believes that providing access to affordable, safe housing for Black residents is crucial to achieving racial justice. Supporting Black Lives Matter is not just about words; it’s about taking action. SDCLT urges the community to advocate for anti-racist policies, hold systems accountable, and educate themselves on racial justice. Books like Ta-Nehisi Coates’ “A Case for Reparations” provide valuable insights into the systemic challenges Black Americans face. ​ In Broome County, SDCLT stands with Black residents in their fight for healthy, affordable housing and against systemic racism. By working together, we can build a nation that upholds equality for all. HOUSING CONTINUUM A housing continuum is the progression of individuals along a housing-focused continuum with homelessness at one end and home ownership at the other. A successful housing system has people moving up the Housing Continuum. 133 Main St, Binghamton, NY 13905 cltsoutherndoor@gmail.com 607-358-3937 HOUSING IS A HUMAN RIGHT! At the Southern Door Community Land Trust (SDCLT), we are driven by commitment, transparency, and innovation. Since 2019, we've worked passionately to increase access to resources and empower vulnerable communities in Broome County. As a registered nonprofit with 501c3 tax-exempt status, we believe in transparency and accountability in everything we do. We tackle the housing crisis with creative solutions, striving for lasting change. Please support our mission by becoming a donor today! Thank You—Let’s do the work together. Click to donate!

  • Youth Story Corps | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    YOUTH STORY CORPS When the SDCLT launched, a key goal was to involve Broome County’s young people in spreading awareness of how Community Land Trusts (CLTs) can advance housing justice. In summer 2020, SDCLT partnered with VINES Gardens to work with local youth on housing justice advocacy through media. This collaboration exceeded expectations, resulting in two powerful documentaries, Housing is a Human Right and Housing in the Time of COVID, produced in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Both films showcase youth perspectives on housing justice and are available on YouTube. This program not only empowered participants to learn about housing justice but also helped them build practical skills for future careers. Through storytelling, interviewing, community outreach, film, and photography, young people explored the intersectionality of housing, food, and racial justice. SDCLT is proud of their work and excited to continue this program, offering more youth the chance to make an impact. Stay tuned for upcoming details! Let us know if you want more info!

  • CLT Ambassador Program | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    THE SOUTHERN DOOR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST ​ AMBASSADOR PROGRAM “WHAT IS THIS?” ​ The Broome Community Land Trust (BCLT) is a new, resident-led initiative focused on affordable housing and racial justice in Binghamton. Formed by a coalition of local advocates, BCLT empowers community members to take action for housing justice and supports solutions like community-owned housing, ending exploitative landlord practices. ​ Through our program, participants receive a stipend to learn about Community Land Trusts (CLTs) and lead projects to address housing inequality. Together, we’re building a network of residents dedicated to creating stable, affordable housing and lasting change for all in Broome County. Join us in making housing justice a reality! Building community, one home at a time

  • Our Team | Southern Door Community Land Trust

    OUR TEAM Get to Know the Faces behind Southern Door Community Land Trust Since its founding in 2019, the Southern Door Community Land Trust has developed and grown exponentially—We'reproud of our staff's expertise and ability to contribute their unique experience and skills to our success. HAJRA AZIZ Executive Director Hajra is a licensed social worker who focuses on social work for social justice. As a long-time resident, community advocate, and mother of four, Hajra finds it imperative to get involved in work that will uplift and empower historically marginalized folks. Since coming on board as the Executive Director of the SDCLT Hajra has been keenly focused on developing relationships with stakeholders, community leaders, residents and power brokers in an effort to develop a footprint in the community around housing justice. ADA ROBINSON-PEREZ SDCLT Board President Ada Robinson-Perez, PhD, LMSW, CEAP Career Bio As a native of upstate New York, Ada Robinson-Perez has been a NYS licensed social worker for over 25 years. Her professional experience ranges from leading an internal Employee Assistance Program to providing community-based mental health services for children and families. Ada is a practitioner at Binghamton University in the Division of Diversity Equity and Inclusion, serving as the affirmative action officer and ADA Coordinator. Her other professional and academic experience includes working as a social work professorork and a therapist/consultant in the local community. Ada earned her PhD in Community Research and Action from Binghamton University (2019) and her MSW from Syracuse University (2001). She holds professional certifications in employee assistance and affirmative action/EEO practice. Some of her research areas include examining the mental health implications of racial microaggressions, vulnerabilities of intersectional identities, and class-based perceptions within parent engagement programs localized in rural schools. Ada’s experience in board leadership includes working with local non-profit organizations that serve women, children, and families and community charter school development. She enjoys time with her family, reading, traveling, and karaoke in her leisure time. SDCLT BOARD MEMBERS AMBER JOHNSON Amber Johnson has a strong passion for social justice with a racial justice lens. She has been a community organizer for 5+ years, loving environmental and housing justice. Amber is a founding member of the CLT. She finds good reason to invest her time in local housing crises due to many other community connections, such as working with Citizen Action and Binghamton Regional Sustainable Communities. KHADEJAH AZIZ Khadejah is an Upstate NY native and a SUNY Broome graduate of Criminal Justice and Community Policing. She has had her fair share of experiences with a lack of access to affordable, safe, and energy-efficient housing, which has developed into a proactive approach to righting the wrongs of housing injustice. KORSAH AKUMFI URIAH HUNT Uriah Hunt is a native of Brooklyn, NY, who obtained undergraduate and graduate degrees in geography and urban planning from Binghamton University. After graduation, Uriah decided to settle locally and experienced difficulty finding housing. As a board member of the Southern Door Community Land Trust, Uriah has focused on bringing more sustainable, affordable housing to Broome County's most needy residents. ASIA AMBLER Asia Ambler has lived in Broome County her entire life. After leaving for school, she returned with a vested interest in community work that uplifts, empowers, and promotes equity and accurate representation. Asia understands the impact that low-quality housing, homelessness, and poverty can have on the development of youth, stability of families, and community mental health. These principles have motivated Asia to take action, pushing BIPOC communities to the forefront of change. Korsah has been a Binghamton resident since 2015. As a renter, Korsah has experienced firsthand the difficulties people encounter in getting a house and making it a home for themselves and their families. Korsah strongly believes there is a need for an occupant to have a say in how their homes are managed and cared for by landlords. Korsah strongly believes that community residents have a vested interest in living spaces just as much as homeowners. BRIANNA SALAZAR-OLAIYA SHAKEEMA BROWN CHARLES LOVE Brianna Salazar-Olaiya is a Banking Officer and business banking underwriter who has been in banking since 2004. She has obtained degrees in Music Performance/Music Education, Music Business, and Accounting. Brianna is proud to be a part of an organization that will bring housing equity to the community she grew up in. Shakeema Brown owns Aligned Elevation Coaching and Consulting LLC, which provides comprehensive and interactive training programs that cultivate thriving individuals and inclusive, sustainable work environments. With a profound passion for social justice, racial equity, personal/professional advancement, and development, Shakeema drives meaningful change and fosters environments where everyone can succeed. In her career, she has amassed significant experience in roles that underscore her dedication to improving overall wellness and quality of life for her community. Most of my professional experience has been in budget development/management, operational, financial analysis, project management in high-tech businesses, and later, as a financial administrator in higher education. I have thirty-eight years of experience with operational and financial support in positions of increasing responsibility from senior financial analyst to finance director. I have also worked on many project teams managing financial, accounting, human resources, facilities, and payroll functions in various operations. My most important work was being part of a team that initiated a mentoring program for “at-risk” middle school students in the Oakland Unified School District in Oakland, CA. I am delighted to be a part of the essential services that the SOUTHERN DOOR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST provides to the Broome County community. I know how vital adequate housing is to individuals' and families' physical and psychological well-being.

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