WEBVTT 00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:15.000 Speaker 1 Hello and welcome to Community and University, the MSU Center for Community and Economic Development podcast aimed at providing outreach to both community members and students throughout the state of Michigan. 00:00:15.000 --> 00:00:18.000 Speaker 1 The Michigan State University U.S. 00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:29.000 Speaker 1 Economic Development Administration University Center for Regional Economic Innovation's mission is to stimulate innovative economic development in the most distressed communities in Michigan. 00:00:29.000 --> 00:00:38.000 Speaker 1 The REI University Center embraces a culture of regional collaboration and knowledge sharing between economic development professionals and committed scholars. 00:00:38.000 --> 00:00:59.000 Speaker 1 The center's model provides responsive community engagement, strategic partnerships, and collaborative learning to support the creation and identification of innovative tools, models, and practices to increase the number of small businesses, create access to job skill development, improve public infrastructure, advance high-growth entrepreneurship, and encourage global competitiveness 00:00:59.000 --> 00:01:03.000 Speaker 1 to strengthen underserved communities and historically excluded citizens. 00:01:03.000 --> 00:01:16.000 Speaker 1 The REI University Center's most recent award focuses on four key pillars of community and economic development that together will build up the resilience, sustainability, and equity within the communities in which it partners. 00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:23.000 Speaker 1 The 4 pillars include resiliency planning, financial resilience, circular economies, and 21st century communications. 00:01:23.000 --> 00:01:42.000 Speaker 1 The University Center will work with community partners to address these themes in Michigan Economic Development Corporation identified redevelopment ready communities containing opportunity zones, census tracts, or large concentrations of ALICE populations or those who are asset limited income constrained employed. 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:46.000 Speaker 1 I am Emma Gilbert and I'm one of the hosts for Community and University. 00:01:46.000 --> 00:01:52.000 Speaker 1 Today, we will be spotlighting one of REI Center's student-led faculty guided authors, Dr. 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:58.000 Speaker 1 Jake Parcell, who is working on a project entitled Wayne County Land Bank Practicum Project. 00:01:58.000 --> 00:02:07.000 Speaker 1 The results of the research conducted for this project will help create strategies for the Wayne County Land Bank to return vacant and abandoned property to productive use. 00:02:07.000 --> 00:02:19.000 Speaker 1 The research will uncover which of the Land Bank's existing programs are the strongest based on how they address community needs, the number of properties returned to productive use, and how well they fit the Land Bank's mission. 00:02:19.000 --> 00:02:27.000 Speaker 1 Student-led faculty-guided projects provide assistance to Michigan communities in completing local and regional economic development initiatives. 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:34.000 Speaker 1 Work is completed by students at colleges and universities throughout the state under the supervision of experienced faculty. 00:02:34.000 --> 00:02:45.000 Speaker 1 Through these projects, students gained first-hand and practical experience in the application of previously studied theory and economic development professionals received technical assistance that they might not otherwise receive. 00:02:45.000 --> 00:02:51.000 Speaker 1 Projects typically include data collection, analysis, and the development of plans and implementation strategies. 00:02:51.000 --> 00:02:54.000 Speaker 1 Welcome to the CCED podcast, Jake. 00:02:54.000 --> 00:02:56.000 Speaker 2 Thank you, Emma. 00:02:56.000 --> 00:02:57.000 Speaker 2 Really excited to be here. 00:02:57.000 --> 00:02:58.000 Speaker 2 It's my first podcast, so. 00:02:58.000 --> 00:02:59.000 Speaker 1 This will be great. 00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:00.000 Speaker 2 I'm very excited. 00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:03.000 Speaker 1 Well, before we get started on your 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:05.000 Speaker 1 project. 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:10.000 Speaker 1 Can you introduce yourself for our audience, including some of your educational and also professional background? 00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:11.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, definitely. 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:12.000 Speaker 2 I'm Jake Parcell. 00:03:12.000 --> 00:03:16.000 Speaker 2 I am the current deputy director for the Wayne County Land Bank. 00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:31.000 Speaker 2 Academically, I have my bachelor's from Saginaw Valley State University, my master's in planning from Michigan State University, and recently at the end of 2020, wrapped up my doctorate in planning, design, and construction with a focus in urban planning. 00:03:31.000 --> 00:03:41.000 Speaker 2 During my doctorate, I was the planner for the city of East Lansing and had an internship, assistantship through the Global Urban Studies Program with Michigan State University. 00:03:41.000 --> 00:03:48.000 Speaker 2 So I've been at MSU on and off for four years in the last decade, and I'm excited to be giving back and working with the school again. 00:03:48.000 --> 00:03:49.000 Speaker 1 That's awesome. 00:03:49.000 --> 00:03:51.000 Speaker 1 I love that background. 00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:55.000 Speaker 1 how long have you worked in your position at the land bank itself? 00:03:55.000 --> 00:04:04.000 Speaker 1 And originally, what inspired you to get involved in community and economic development work specifically, rather than a traditional planning role? 00:04:04.000 --> 00:04:17.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, so I've done traditional planning for a long time in the city of Flint from 2016 to 17, and then East Lansing through 2017 until April of 2021, right after I graduated with my doctorate. 00:04:17.000 --> 00:04:20.000 Speaker 2 I really love planning and zoning. 00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:26.000 Speaker 2 I think learning about traditional planning gives me a strong basis for understanding how communities work and how they're formed. 00:04:26.000 --> 00:04:29.000 Speaker 2 But I really wanted to get down to the Detroit area. 00:04:29.000 --> 00:04:32.000 Speaker 2 My wife and I were really excited to move down there. 00:04:32.000 --> 00:04:34.000 Speaker 2 So I found an opportunity with the Wayne County Land Bank. 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:36.000 Speaker 2 It's the deputy director. 00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:42.000 Speaker 2 I started in April of 2021 and we moved down shortly after there. 00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:44.000 Speaker 2 And I love it so far. 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:45.000 Speaker 2 I think 00:04:45.000 --> 00:05:00.000 Speaker 2 from a county perspective, you have a really interesting role in the communities because not only do we get to work with certain communities and populations is what traditional planner would do one at a time, but I get upwards of 40 some communities under my umbrella. 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:09.000 Speaker 2 So I get to work really closely with a lot of different community groups, community leaders, nonprofits, different governments and government departments, and a lot of different 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:13.000 Speaker 2 variety in neighborhoods and populations that it is really exciting to me. 00:05:13.000 --> 00:05:15.000 Speaker 2 So from a county perspective, I'm really enjoying it. 00:05:15.000 --> 00:05:23.000 Speaker 2 And I think that it gives us a larger platform to influence change at the most populous county in Michigan. 00:05:23.000 --> 00:05:31.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, especially given there's, everything from villages, townships, cities, and then you have the biggest city in the state, all in one county. 00:05:31.000 --> 00:05:34.000 Speaker 1 So I'm sure it's very interesting, a very diverse set of issues. 00:05:34.000 --> 00:05:37.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, it's a really diverse set of issues, population. 00:05:37.000 --> 00:05:41.000 Speaker 2 It's exciting work to do and exciting people to work with. 00:05:41.000 --> 00:05:42.000 Speaker 1 That's awesome. 00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:44.000 Speaker 1 I'm glad we got to establish some of your background. 00:05:44.000 --> 00:05:47.000 Speaker 1 Now we're ready to get more into the details of your project. 00:05:47.000 --> 00:05:57.000 Speaker 1 So can you provide the audience with a little bit of an overview of the project itself and the research that was conducted, as well as how you hope it will be implemented? 00:05:57.000 --> 00:05:58.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, definitely. 00:05:58.000 --> 00:06:00.000 Speaker 2 I, as a former 00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:04.000 Speaker 2 grad of the planning school at Michigan State have gone through practicum before. 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:09.000 Speaker 2 I understand the pros of having a practicum group do work for you. 00:06:09.000 --> 00:06:14.000 Speaker 2 And we were lucky at the land bank on such a shoestring budget to have REI there to support our projects. 00:06:14.000 --> 00:06:22.000 Speaker 2 So we got a group of undergrads to do a program needs assessment for the Wayne County Land Bank. 00:06:22.000 --> 00:06:50.000 Speaker 2 Basically what they did is look at all of our programs, line them up with other programs from other land banks in the state, see where we're the strongest and the weakest, how successful our programs have been over time by looking at how many properties come back into our inventory, how many properties are successfully returned to productive use through the land bank, and then kind of a social needs analysis of what our communities need from us as well that they accomplished by doing a survey that they wrote and distributed and worked with communities on their own. 00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:52.000 Speaker 2 So it was a really ambitious 00:06:52.000 --> 00:06:56.000 Speaker 2 project, and we had a really ambitious group. 00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:59.000 Speaker 2 And it ended up being incredibly beneficial to work with them. 00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:06.000 Speaker 2 They also worked on our website and social media presence as well, something that the day-to-day is way off of our radar. 00:07:06.000 --> 00:07:17.000 Speaker 2 So we had a really interesting experience finding gaps in our day-to-day work that the practicum students were able to look at from an outside perspective on us and 00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:22.000 Speaker 2 see where we have some serious shortcomings that are not on, any of our minds? 00:07:22.000 --> 00:07:23.000 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:28.000 Speaker 1 Now, can we get a little bit more detail about some of these, important findings? 00:07:28.000 --> 00:07:38.000 Speaker 1 was any of, were any of these findings shocking or unexpected, or was a lot of the research that you found to be along the lines of your kind of preconceived ideas about the status? 00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:44.000 Speaker 2 So I was only with the land bank for about six months when I applied for the practicum project. 00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:51.000 Speaker 2 I think that a lot of the findings they had were really eye-opening for me and things that I didn't think about in that time. 00:07:51.000 --> 00:07:59.000 Speaker 2 I was so used to familiarizing myself with our programs, our guidelines, and how to expand ourselves so rapidly as the state is kind of recovering from the pandemic. 00:07:59.000 --> 00:08:05.000 Speaker 2 And what they were able to do is look at different ways to approach some of the programs that are offered by the land bank. 00:08:05.000 --> 00:08:07.000 Speaker 2 So for instance, we do a side lot program. 00:08:07.000 --> 00:08:09.000 Speaker 2 It's one of our most common sale programs. 00:08:09.000 --> 00:08:14.000 Speaker 2 If there's a vacant parcel next to an existing house that's in good condition, 00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:23.000 Speaker 2 We offer a reduced cost for someone to purchase that lot and then they can combine the lots and we move the stewardship of vacant lots over to people in the community. 00:08:23.000 --> 00:08:27.000 Speaker 2 They looked at other best practices such as greening 00:08:27.000 --> 00:08:31.000 Speaker 2 lots that are done in Philadelphia and other land banks across the country. 00:08:31.000 --> 00:08:41.000 Speaker 2 And so just using just small things like that to work on bettering our lots while they're in our inventory so that we can constantly be improving the communities we work in as well. 00:08:41.000 --> 00:08:45.000 Speaker 2 And even if the lot is still in our ownership and not in private ownership. 00:08:45.000 --> 00:08:53.000 Speaker 2 So things like that are, we base everything we do off of best practices academically and research and collaboration with other land banks. 00:08:53.000 --> 00:08:56.000 Speaker 2 And they were able to find opportunities for that with us. 00:08:56.000 --> 00:08:57.000 Speaker 2 And I think the 00:08:57.000 --> 00:09:02.000 Speaker 2 biggest and most interesting thing they looked at is how many parcels per program we had. 00:09:02.000 --> 00:09:05.000 Speaker 2 So we have a compliance program, which is traditional sales. 00:09:05.000 --> 00:09:09.000 Speaker 2 People are expected to rehabilitate the lots. 00:09:09.000 --> 00:09:22.000 Speaker 2 And then the side lot program I mentioned, occupied program where people who are residing in a lot that was foreclosed on maybe unknowingly to them are allowed to purchase the house through us at a reduced cost. 00:09:22.000 --> 00:09:26.000 Speaker 2 And then a couple other programs, we didn't want to give them the full 00:09:26.000 --> 00:09:33.000 Speaker 2 run of them in such a small time, but they looked at the parcels that came back into our inventory through each program. 00:09:33.000 --> 00:09:37.000 Speaker 2 So we could see where we were having shortcomings in these programs that we thought are looking so great. 00:09:37.000 --> 00:09:48.000 Speaker 2 So if we say, oh, wow, we've sold 400 parcels in the side lot program in the last year, and then realize that X percent comes back in our inventory, maybe it's not as successful as we thought. 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:51.000 Speaker 2 So they helped us find gaps and stuff that we maybe didn't 00:09:51.000 --> 00:09:55.000 Speaker 2 recognized on our own through an outsider's perspective. 00:09:55.000 --> 00:09:56.000 Speaker 2 And it was really helpful. 00:09:56.000 --> 00:10:07.000 Speaker 2 And then looking at our website, obviously a group of students, maybe a little more tech inclined than some, mostly me on staff, looked at our website from a mobile perspective. 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:16.000 Speaker 2 looked at ways that people may have difficulty finding properties and finding applications for some of our programs and to purchase property. 00:10:16.000 --> 00:10:20.000 Speaker 2 And then from that perspective, kind of a third party saying, here's where your problems are. 00:10:20.000 --> 00:10:24.000 Speaker 2 Here's how you can make yourself more accessible to communities was really helpful. 00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:26.000 Speaker 1 That's awesome. 00:10:26.000 --> 00:10:33.000 Speaker 1 And were any of those properties that they analyzed that were coming back into your portfolio, were 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:39.000 Speaker 1 Were they concentrated in any geographical area within the county, or were they more dispersed? 00:10:39.000 --> 00:10:41.000 Speaker 1 Can you give a little bit more insight on that? 00:10:41.000 --> 00:10:58.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, so with Wayne County being as geographically large and populated as it is, we had them focus on three different communities where we do most of our work, which are the ones that are in need of assistance from a stabilization, revitalization perspective. 00:10:58.000 --> 00:11:03.000 Speaker 2 So they looked at Highland Park, the city of Ecorus, and River Rouge, two of them 00:11:03.000 --> 00:11:07.000 Speaker 2 in Southwest Wing County and Highland Park right in the middle of Detroit. 00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:14.000 Speaker 2 And they were able to notice where we were having more success in those communities and different programs. 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:16.000 Speaker 2 We should start to maybe implement more in those communities. 00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:26.000 Speaker 2 So the recommendation of doing a greening program in Highland Park is really useful because we own a wealth of vacant property through demolition that we have in that community. 00:11:26.000 --> 00:11:34.000 Speaker 2 So instead of letting it become overgrown or potentially hazardous with debris, which we try and clean up on our own, but they give us new strategies to do that. 00:11:34.000 --> 00:11:39.000 Speaker 2 So new things to look into and assess our inventory based on that. 00:11:39.000 --> 00:11:44.000 Speaker 2 So it was really helpful to focus geographically where we have our largest holding as well. 00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:50.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, that makes a lot of sense, especially considering this project was only what, about four, 4 1/2 months? 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:54.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, one one semester, so we got them. 00:11:54.000 --> 00:12:02.000 Speaker 2 right after the beginning of the semester in January and let them on a crash course through the county right after that and threw a bunch of data their way and then let them work with it. 00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:06.000 Speaker 2 And we gave them a lot of free rein to do things that made sense to them. 00:12:06.000 --> 00:12:09.000 Speaker 2 Obviously, you want 00:12:09.000 --> 00:12:14.000 Speaker 2 I view the practicum project as getting essentially a professional consultant or a team of them. 00:12:14.000 --> 00:12:22.000 Speaker 2 And you want them to be as candid and honest with their results as you can be, because otherwise you're just getting a feel-good piece about what you've been doing. 00:12:22.000 --> 00:12:25.000 Speaker 2 So we really wanted data we could use. 00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:26.000 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:39.000 Speaker 1 And just for context for any of our listeners, I should have prefaced this earlier, but the practicum project that this student-led and faculty guided initiative was taken up under what is the senior 00:12:39.000 --> 00:12:47.000 Speaker 1 capstone course for undergraduates as well as graduates in the urban and regional planning program at Michigan State University. 00:12:47.000 --> 00:12:50.000 Speaker 1 So that's where the group of students came in as part of that course. 00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:56.000 Speaker 1 And then obviously Jake and others come in and present projects. 00:12:56.000 --> 00:13:08.000 Speaker 1 So just in kind of moving forward in the progression of this project, were there any partners other than students in the class that kind of helped with this project, provided data, anything like that? 00:13:08.000 --> 00:13:16.000 Speaker 2 So we obviously we can't give direct access to a lot of people who've purchased homes through the practicum project to people. 00:13:16.000 --> 00:13:29.000 Speaker 2 But we created a survey and I found a list of contacts for every municipality and allowed the student who was in charge of the survey on the practicum team to reach out and send the survey to all the community members. 00:13:29.000 --> 00:13:32.000 Speaker 2 Then I encouraged them to respond following there. 00:13:32.000 --> 00:13:38.000 Speaker 2 That way, should any of the students come in and look for a job in Wayne County, they then immediately have contact 00:13:38.000 --> 00:13:43.000 Speaker 2 in 40-some communities that they had worked with right prior to graduation. 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:51.000 Speaker 2 So I thought that was a beneficial way for the student to get their name out a little bit, but also to provide a really rich data source for the project. 00:13:51.000 --> 00:14:01.000 Speaker 2 So I was actually really impressed with the amount of responses they were able to get, upwards of 35 in just a week or two from the different communities, which is impressive. 00:14:01.000 --> 00:14:04.000 Speaker 2 It's a lot of people and a lot of departments to reach out throughout the county. 00:14:04.000 --> 00:14:06.000 Speaker 2 So 00:14:06.000 --> 00:14:15.000 Speaker 2 We're focused, on partnering and making better partnerships with our community members, and they were able to do that with our project as well. 00:14:15.000 --> 00:14:24.000 Speaker 1 Were any of those partnerships kind of previously in development that you kind of, are kind of getting the push to move forward with now? 00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:30.000 Speaker 1 Is that concentrated also in those geographical areas with those local municipalities too? 00:14:30.000 --> 00:14:36.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, so they were definitely included to the cities that they focused on getting the data in, but for the county-wide portion of it, 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:41.000 Speaker 2 We are working really hard to expand our outreach to our municipalities. 00:14:41.000 --> 00:14:51.000 Speaker 2 Obviously, with the pandemic, there's this huge disruption of work that is done and communication that's been disrupted between partners that have been together in the past. 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:56.000 Speaker 2 So by having them reach out to every community, we can find 00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:15.000 Speaker 2 what communities have had really positive experiences with us since our formation, which ones have had no interaction with us, and which ones have had potentially, questionable problems with us in the past in terms of a property guide or property, I can't think of the right word, but in terms of purchasing and selling property. 00:15:15.000 --> 00:15:18.000 Speaker 2 So we were able to find out 00:15:18.000 --> 00:15:29.000 Speaker 2 since before I got there, who has worked with the land bank, who wants to continue to work with the land bank, and then we can move forward on creating stronger partnerships based on that survey as well. 00:15:29.000 --> 00:15:39.000 Speaker 1 Sounds like a great initiative to me, especially given this kind of re-emergence that's occurring right now after the hard-hittingness of the pandemic originally. 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:40.000 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:15:40.000 --> 00:15:44.000 Speaker 1 So what motivated you to take on this project? 00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:51.000 Speaker 1 Or more specifically, even, what did you observe in the land-based interactions with the community that may have, motivated this project? 00:15:51.000 --> 00:15:55.000 Speaker 1 I know you said that you were kind of new in this role, but 00:15:55.000 --> 00:16:02.000 Speaker 1 Was there anything in terms of that observation that maybe kind of pushed you to do this initiative? 00:16:02.000 --> 00:16:03.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, definitely. 00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:09.000 Speaker 2 It's the data that you get from using a project of this caliber is irreplaceable. 00:16:09.000 --> 00:16:14.000 Speaker 2 So we have a really small staff for the scope of work that we do. 00:16:14.000 --> 00:16:17.000 Speaker 2 I think it's about seven people total. 00:16:17.000 --> 00:16:21.000 Speaker 2 And now we have one intern who we brought on from our practicum team, actually. 00:16:21.000 --> 00:16:27.000 Speaker 2 So we, if you look at our field team alone, it's three people and around 1,200 properties. 00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:31.000 Speaker 2 It's 400 properties a person spread out throughout the entire county. 00:16:31.000 --> 00:16:38.000 Speaker 2 And we have one attorney, one person who generally does applications and sales, and it's spread very thin. 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:44.000 Speaker 2 So coming in new, there was only five people when I started, and now we're up to seven. 00:16:44.000 --> 00:16:45.000 Speaker 2 So 00:16:45.000 --> 00:16:57.000 Speaker 2 The data in the working with practicum team basically gave us a jumpstart on everything since so many people on staff were new and we had new directions we wanted to go to help communities recover after the pandemic. 00:16:57.000 --> 00:16:58.000 Speaker 2 So I found it 00:16:58.000 --> 00:17:13.000 Speaker 2 as a valuable opportunity through MSU to get some data that was really nice and to help improve our networking when we had staff limitations at the time, just in terms of filling positions from people who had left in the last couple of years. 00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:21.000 Speaker 2 So it was like a way to jumpstart our community relations and our analysis of our programs as we started to come back into the office in person more. 00:17:21.000 --> 00:17:23.000 Speaker 2 And I thought that would be really beneficial. 00:17:23.000 --> 00:17:28.000 Speaker 2 And I also think that land banks are something that are one very important because they're so multidisciplinary 00:17:28.000 --> 00:17:41.000 Speaker 2 from legal issues, housing issues, community issues, things like that, but they're not really discussed enough, at least when I went to school, because they were still new and newer in the state of Michigan. 00:17:41.000 --> 00:17:47.000 Speaker 2 So I thought this was an opportunity to get a really strong multidisciplinary group of students in here. 00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:52.000 Speaker 2 They could follow whatever interested them within the practicum group that the Land Bank touches on. 00:17:52.000 --> 00:17:56.000 Speaker 2 vacancies, housing, et cetera, and then help prepare them for a job in the future. 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:59.000 Speaker 1 It's also kind of like an opportunity for everyone to learn at the same time. 00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:07.000 Speaker 1 You know, if you have new people coming in, they're learning the like newest, hottest, greatest data that they possibly can at the same time that everyone else is. 00:18:07.000 --> 00:18:10.000 Speaker 1 So it kind of gives you a nice starting place altogether too. 00:18:10.000 --> 00:18:12.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, I agree entirely. 00:18:12.000 --> 00:18:21.000 Speaker 2 We've had two people who have been there for five years, one for about two and two for about you and a half, 2 1/2, or 1 1/2, sorry. 00:18:21.000 --> 00:18:27.000 Speaker 2 I'm one of them, so I'm still new in this position and still finding ways to improve our operations within the county. 00:18:27.000 --> 00:18:30.000 Speaker 2 So bringing in, and then two people who started just last summer. 00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:42.000 Speaker 2 So bringing in the practicum team was a really amazing way to get a jumpstart on some of the data that we have and then provide them with a unique perspective into land banking as well. 00:18:42.000 --> 00:18:50.000 Speaker 1 Has the research that you guys discovered, has that kind of helped you also kind of redefine your 00:18:50.000 --> 00:19:13.000 Speaker 1 role or what you think the Wayne County Land Bake's role should be in the community, in thinking about, broadly defined the role that a Land Bake could play, but then coming off of the opportunities that are out there and really setting something defined for yourself or a mission, I should say, or maybe yourself. 00:19:13.000 --> 00:19:15.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, 100%. 00:19:15.000 --> 00:19:29.000 Speaker 2 So it's a really critical time for land banks in the state as they're transitioning more into development authorities and within our land bank as well as we're starting to receive all of this new property from the foreclosure moratorium ending. 00:19:29.000 --> 00:19:33.000 Speaker 2 So throughout COVID, there was a foreclosure moratorium, which is great. 00:19:33.000 --> 00:19:43.000 Speaker 2 It kept people in their homes, but now they're going to start getting hit harder and harder as foreclosures start to ramp up again, or as people have just abandoned properties, 00:19:43.000 --> 00:19:47.000 Speaker 2 left them in their community, potentially moved, moved in with family members. 00:19:47.000 --> 00:19:50.000 Speaker 2 And now we have to find these properties and find what to do with them. 00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:56.000 Speaker 2 So this is our first year that we're working on getting this huge list of foreclosed properties back. 00:19:56.000 --> 00:20:02.000 Speaker 2 And very much economic development is a very important thing for everyone to focus on right now as we try and recover 00:20:02.000 --> 00:20:03.000 Speaker 2 from the pandemic. 00:20:03.000 --> 00:20:07.000 Speaker 2 And we're under the umbrella of the county's economic development team. 00:20:07.000 --> 00:20:10.000 Speaker 2 So we have a large role to play in that as well. 00:20:10.000 --> 00:20:23.000 Speaker 2 So reexamining all of our projects and proposals that we have out for grant funding and things like that with new data is important to reassess where we are and where we want to go moving forward. 00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:28.000 Speaker 2 There's a lot of federal funding becoming available through the American Rescue Plan. 00:20:28.000 --> 00:20:34.000 Speaker 2 And it's something that we really need to be taking advantage of to kind of make a greater imprint in the county. 00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:42.000 Speaker 2 And you need fresh data for grant proposals and you need a way to kind of reframe how projects have gone pre and post pandemic. 00:20:42.000 --> 00:20:47.000 Speaker 2 So getting this practicum team at this point was incredibly valuable to us. 00:20:47.000 --> 00:20:49.000 Speaker 2 It came at almost like a perfect time. 00:20:49.000 --> 00:20:58.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, especially because getting the data from years during the pandemic can be extremely difficult depending on what variable you're trying to focus on. 00:20:58.000 --> 00:21:09.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, there's this huge dip in sales or in inventory that happened during the last, mostly 2020 and then into 2021 that affected us. 00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:10.000 Speaker 2 So 00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:12.000 Speaker 2 Now as we come back, we want to come back stronger. 00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:16.000 Speaker 2 We want to make a bigger difference and really expand the reach of the land bank. 00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:17.000 Speaker 2 We have a full staff. 00:21:17.000 --> 00:21:19.000 Speaker 2 We're incredibly capable. 00:21:19.000 --> 00:21:21.000 Speaker 2 It's a very amazing staff full of talented people. 00:21:21.000 --> 00:21:26.000 Speaker 2 And now we have new outlets on where to find we can make the biggest impact. 00:21:26.000 --> 00:21:26.000 Speaker 1 That's great. 00:21:26.000 --> 00:21:29.000 Speaker 1 Taking an opportunity and really making the most out of it. 00:21:29.000 --> 00:21:30.000 Speaker 2 Yeah. 00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:35.000 Speaker 2 And we got fortunately great work from the practicum team that's going to help us do that. 00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:37.000 Speaker 1 That's great. 00:21:37.000 --> 00:21:37.000 Speaker 1 So 00:21:37.000 --> 00:21:48.000 Speaker 1 maybe moving a little forward to the, from talking about the actual research to the impact that this will have, the implementation strategy, even maybe. 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:55.000 Speaker 1 What impact do you expect this research to have on, you know, either Wayne County or some of the communities specifically in Wayne County? 00:21:55.000 --> 00:22:04.000 Speaker 1 And even going beyond the county itself or cities within it, to whom within the community do you anticipate your work having the largest effect? 00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:07.000 Speaker 1 Is, you know, talking about community relations, 00:22:07.000 --> 00:22:11.000 Speaker 1 Is there any kind of extension in coordinating in that regard? 00:22:11.000 --> 00:22:12.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, definitely. 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:22.000 Speaker 2 So, first of all, the first thing that we really are already working on in our entrance playing a wonderful role in that is updating our website, making ourselves more technically accessible. 00:22:22.000 --> 00:22:26.000 Speaker 2 And that is going to be really important with a lot of the grant projects that we're starting to launch. 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:31.000 Speaker 2 So that's the first thing that we noticed when we took from the practicum report and started to do. 00:22:31.000 --> 00:22:36.000 Speaker 2 But we, I always like to think that land banks operate within this negative space. 00:22:36.000 --> 00:22:39.000 Speaker 2 We operate where there are vacancies, blighted foreclosures. 00:22:39.000 --> 00:22:49.000 Speaker 2 And our role is to find the neighborhoods that are the hardest hit through our inventory and begin to stabilize them and to make them more resilient 00:22:49.000 --> 00:22:51.000 Speaker 2 and make the property return to use. 00:22:51.000 --> 00:23:06.000 Speaker 2 So our goal is to have an impact on the communities that have been the hardest hit, particularly coming out of this foreclosure crisis in the last decade, and then the pandemic after that, and then return the property to productive use. 00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:13.000 Speaker 2 And there's so many ways to do that and so many different best practices to follow from throughout the country. 00:23:13.000 --> 00:23:15.000 Speaker 2 It's finding what works best for each community. 00:23:15.000 --> 00:23:18.000 Speaker 2 So our goal is to work 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:27.000 Speaker 2 more closely with the communities, take their feedback and the feedback that they've already given us, and begin to kind of tailor our programs to work with them in a better capacity. 00:23:27.000 --> 00:23:36.000 Speaker 2 Obviously, we work in areas where housing markets and economic development is in a lull because we're getting the foreclosed property. 00:23:36.000 --> 00:23:43.000 Speaker 2 So finding a way to be as accessible, open, and I'd say flexible for those communities is important. 00:23:43.000 --> 00:23:46.000 Speaker 2 And that's where we anticipate having the largest impact. 00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:52.000 Speaker 2 reusing these vacant lots into new developments, partnering with different groups that can take advantage of it. 00:23:52.000 --> 00:24:01.000 Speaker 2 If it's a nonprofit, a community group, a community garden, finding what the community needs and filling that role from a housing and from a land perspective is going to be important. 00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:05.000 Speaker 2 And that's where we're going to have the largest impact. 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:11.000 Speaker 1 I'm really happy to hear that because I think there's a lot of 00:24:11.000 --> 00:24:22.000 Speaker 1 hesitation in piloting new programs and the fear of, this failing or failing worse than something that was already not working out very well. 00:24:22.000 --> 00:24:27.000 Speaker 1 But then if you don't try new strategies, right, you never know the what if, right? 00:24:27.000 --> 00:24:28.000 Speaker 1 So. 00:24:28.000 --> 00:24:30.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, no, every program we have, 00:24:30.000 --> 00:24:36.000 Speaker 2 in my opinion, from everyone who's worked at the Wayne County Land Bank before me, is very well thought out. 00:24:36.000 --> 00:24:45.000 Speaker 2 It's very, very practical and multifaceted in the terms of the way to tax the vacancies and the parcels in our inventory. 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:47.000 Speaker 2 But there's always 00:24:47.000 --> 00:24:59.000 Speaker 2 there's a difference in communities that we're going to have in Wayne County in terms of socioeconomic status, the amount of housing vacancy, housing costs, even demographics within each community. 00:24:59.000 --> 00:25:03.000 Speaker 2 There's all sorts of different people that need different things. 00:25:03.000 --> 00:25:09.000 Speaker 2 And we need to be as specific as we can for each community to have the greatest impact. 00:25:09.000 --> 00:25:12.000 Speaker 2 So maybe our side lot 00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:27.000 Speaker 2 property or our program works really well in a community with high amounts of vacancy, but in others where there's really dense neighborhoods with a lot of occupancy, but one house that needs special attention, we can find something else to do. 00:25:27.000 --> 00:25:32.000 Speaker 2 So we have to be flexible and we have to pay attention to what each community within Wayne County needs. 00:25:32.000 --> 00:25:39.000 Speaker 1 Now I'm really seeing why you choose the word flexible instead of, you know, multifaceted or something else, because that makes a lot of sense, right? 00:25:39.000 --> 00:25:42.000 Speaker 1 You have to like identify what works 00:25:42.000 --> 00:25:49.000 Speaker 1 within a very specific kind of context, considering you're working in so many different contexts at the same time. 00:25:49.000 --> 00:25:50.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, definitely. 00:25:50.000 --> 00:25:53.000 Speaker 2 We don't work in every community. 00:25:53.000 --> 00:25:55.000 Speaker 2 Some just don't have the need, but we work in a lot of them. 00:25:55.000 --> 00:25:59.000 Speaker 2 And sometimes it's on a scale of hundreds and hundreds of properties. 00:25:59.000 --> 00:26:02.000 Speaker 2 Other times it's eight. 00:26:02.000 --> 00:26:02.000 Speaker 2 So just depends. 00:26:02.000 --> 00:26:04.000 Speaker 2 Yeah. 00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:09.000 Speaker 1 And have you encountered any specific challenges or barriers in working on this project? 00:26:09.000 --> 00:26:20.000 Speaker 1 I know data can sometimes be an issue, any kind of personnel issue or something the land bank was looking for that wasn't received, anything like that. 00:26:20.000 --> 00:26:24.000 Speaker 2 The biggest thing that we tried to do is not overwhelm our students. 00:26:24.000 --> 00:26:25.000 Speaker 2 So we had all this data. 00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:28.000 Speaker 2 I think that was something I had to work on as the semester went on. 00:26:28.000 --> 00:26:34.000 Speaker 2 So we had all this data, and we were really easily an organization that is driven by metrics. 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:37.000 Speaker 2 We can see everything that's been tracked since our inception. 00:26:37.000 --> 00:26:44.000 Speaker 2 And to give a group of people who are students a bunch of data and just say, here you go, just tell us what to do, is not going to end well. 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:50.000 Speaker 2 So I think I had to really reframe how I approached the project as well. 00:26:50.000 --> 00:26:55.000 Speaker 2 But from a personnel standpoint, no, we are really active. 00:26:55.000 --> 00:27:02.000 Speaker 2 in taking the data and implementing it and kind of creating new programs that can fit what the data shows. 00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:10.000 Speaker 2 And I think we have a really talented team that is going to be able to take this data and move forward with it in a good fashion that, you know, helps the communities. 00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:16.000 Speaker 2 But I haven't noticed any problems just yet other than, you know, getting through the barrier of having to 00:27:16.000 --> 00:27:16.000 Speaker 2 do it all. 00:27:16.000 --> 00:27:23.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, and also coordinate a group of like 6 to 7 undergraduate students who all have very different interests and skill sets. 00:27:23.000 --> 00:27:27.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, no, we got a lot of findings that were broad and diverse that we never thought we would. 00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:28.000 Speaker 2 So that was a positive too. 00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:29.000 Speaker 2 That's. 00:27:29.000 --> 00:27:30.000 Speaker 1 Great. 00:27:30.000 --> 00:27:34.000 Speaker 1 And do you have any next steps developed in this initiative? 00:27:34.000 --> 00:27:40.000 Speaker 1 taking the research or the recommendations that were derived in that report and really putting them into action? 00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:44.000 Speaker 1 Or do you have an implementation strategy that you're working on, anything like that? 00:27:44.000 --> 00:27:47.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, so our first step is 00:27:47.000 --> 00:28:12.000 Speaker 2 building off of the county-wide survey that our students did, crafting some of a combination of our existing programs and projects, and some of the data we got from the practicum team and some of the communities to go around for all of the counties in Wayne County, or all the cities in Wayne County, find a time to meet with their staff, present what we do as a land bank, and introduce them to us on a personal level. 00:28:12.000 --> 00:28:13.000 Speaker 2 And then 00:28:13.000 --> 00:28:17.000 Speaker 2 strengthen these partnerships that we've already introduced to them through the practicum project. 00:28:17.000 --> 00:28:24.000 Speaker 2 So that was a really good way to get the communities thinking about what we did and how we can work together. 00:28:24.000 --> 00:28:40.000 Speaker 2 And now we're going to follow up face-to-face, fingers crossed, should we continue to be able to work face-to-face and have this opportunity to get a little more in-depth data from each community through each of these little presentations. 00:28:40.000 --> 00:28:42.000 Speaker 2 So we're going to be working on that. 00:28:42.000 --> 00:28:46.000 Speaker 2 And then accessibility through the website is something that we're already working on. 00:28:46.000 --> 00:28:50.000 Speaker 2 Like I said, our intern is working on that and moving forward with that. 00:28:50.000 --> 00:29:00.000 Speaker 2 And finding a way to advertise us on social media in ways that the average public is more easy able to digest than searching out what the land bank does. 00:29:00.000 --> 00:29:03.000 Speaker 2 So making ourselves more accessible to people. 00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:07.000 Speaker 2 There's this connotation in land banking where it's negative. 00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:09.000 Speaker 2 We demolish properties. 00:29:09.000 --> 00:29:11.000 Speaker 2 We hold all these foreclosed properties. 00:29:11.000 --> 00:29:19.000 Speaker 2 There's instances where there's people who live in homes of ours that for safety reasons have to be taken out of the structure. 00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:25.000 Speaker 2 If it had been an arson or is so severely blighted that it's potentially dangerous to be in, 00:29:25.000 --> 00:29:33.000 Speaker 2 And we want to remove any negative connotations of what we do and start to have, showcase this really positive impact that we have in our communities. 00:29:33.000 --> 00:29:36.000 Speaker 2 And building the relationships with them is the first step. 00:29:36.000 --> 00:29:40.000 Speaker 2 And then moving forward with specializing our program for each community is going to follow. 00:29:40.000 --> 00:29:54.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, really like it's this not really sounds like reframing, you know, the negative maybe like threat that a land bank seemingly poses or like has a role in the threatening. 00:29:54.000 --> 00:29:57.000 Speaker 1 parts of community work, right? 00:29:57.000 --> 00:30:07.000 Speaker 1 Like dealing with those foreclosures that can feel threatening to community members, but really reframing this as a way to build resilience within your community. 00:30:07.000 --> 00:30:11.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, and we have programs that are specifically created to do that. 00:30:11.000 --> 00:30:13.000 Speaker 2 So we have an occupied program. 00:30:13.000 --> 00:30:18.000 Speaker 2 It's for people who are residing in structures of ours that are in our inventory. 00:30:18.000 --> 00:30:25.000 Speaker 2 And we get a lot of people who are victims of rental scams or are unaware of the foreclosure. 00:30:25.000 --> 00:30:31.000 Speaker 2 due to difficulty noticing them, or just unawareness of what's been happening in the last couple of years. 00:30:31.000 --> 00:30:39.000 Speaker 2 It's been so difficult with the pandemic that there are any number of times there's people potentially living in a structure that we have in our inventory. 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:51.000 Speaker 2 So our job is to find the person, reach out to them, and give them a very detailed, but at the same time understandable way to purchase the property from us with no penalty at a highly reduced cost. 00:30:51.000 --> 00:30:53.000 Speaker 2 And if they need any resources to provide them. 00:30:53.000 --> 00:30:54.000 Speaker 2 So home ownership 00:30:54.000 --> 00:31:08.000 Speaker 2 classes, financial literacy classes, things like that, we can connect them with other community partners and make it so it's not so potentially scary that they may lose their home through something that they may have had no idea was happening. 00:31:08.000 --> 00:31:11.000 Speaker 1 It seems like very important, important work. 00:31:11.000 --> 00:31:11.000 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:31:11.000 --> 00:31:16.000 Speaker 1 Your home is really where like you start your feeling of sense of yourself. 00:31:16.000 --> 00:31:18.000 Speaker 1 family, community, friends, all of that. 00:31:18.000 --> 00:31:29.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, and that's what our goal is with our resiliency planning too is at the neighborhood level is making the neighborhoods more resilient to having these gaps in it. 00:31:29.000 --> 00:31:40.000 Speaker 2 So putting people in the houses that can build a life in these communities that will then strengthen the neighborhood, reduce vacancies, reduce blight, and then strengthen the neighborhoods will strengthen the cities. 00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:44.000 Speaker 2 So moving from just a very grassroots, 00:31:44.000 --> 00:31:49.000 Speaker 2 parcel by parcel approach of helping these communities become strengthened. 00:31:49.000 --> 00:31:49.000 Speaker 1 Yeah. 00:31:49.000 --> 00:32:01.000 Speaker 1 And then, we kind of previously touched on this, given the nature of reframing and also talking about we piloting some new programs, but what do you think makes this project truly innovative? 00:32:01.000 --> 00:32:03.000 Speaker 2 I think that moving 00:32:03.000 --> 00:32:12.000 Speaker 2 forward, innovation is important for finding ways to dispose of, sell off these properties that are sticky. 00:32:12.000 --> 00:32:15.000 Speaker 2 They stick in our inventory, they come back in our inventory. 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:22.000 Speaker 2 So we need to be innovative in terms of finding ways to get them back to productive use constantly. 00:32:22.000 --> 00:32:34.000 Speaker 2 So finding ways, as our practicum team told us, to green vacant lots and make them more approachable and from a visual perspective, make the neighborhood look better is going to be something that can help 00:32:34.000 --> 00:32:36.000 Speaker 2 even while they're in our inventory strength in the neighborhood. 00:32:36.000 --> 00:32:40.000 Speaker 2 And to me, little things like that are what leads to long-term innovation. 00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:51.000 Speaker 2 So getting rid of parcels or identifying programs where parcels come back into our inventory and making sure that they stay in a productive use is going to be important. 00:32:51.000 --> 00:33:05.000 Speaker 2 Whether that comes from working after we do our face-to-face with every city, different ways to look at the zoning code or the master land use plan and reframing how we sell the property or what program we sell the property under is going to be important. 00:33:05.000 --> 00:33:11.000 Speaker 2 Working with communities that have needs, such as demolition or rehabilitation is going to be important. 00:33:11.000 --> 00:33:18.000 Speaker 2 And then finding ways to move forward from where we've been in the last couple of years and 00:33:18.000 --> 00:33:24.000 Speaker 2 help the communities come forth as we recover as a state from the pandemic and through any foreclosures that have been happening. 00:33:24.000 --> 00:33:32.000 Speaker 2 So really just adapting, finding ways to get the parcels out of our inventory and back to productive use is our main goal. 00:33:32.000 --> 00:33:38.000 Speaker 2 And, you know, innovative approaches built on best practices and built on research is important to do that. 00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:41.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, it sounds like. 00:33:41.000 --> 00:33:58.000 Speaker 1 you're not just getting at the environmental, or I should say the economic and social benefits that, kind of reimagining the role of a land bank, but also in looking at this in the greening opportunity, thinking about the environmental benefits that could come from that too. 00:33:58.000 --> 00:34:03.000 Speaker 1 So you're really looking at this from a truly intersectional resilience lens. 00:34:03.000 --> 00:34:06.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, and we have property of 00:34:06.000 --> 00:34:10.000 Speaker 2 every kind of status or land use classification you can imagine. 00:34:10.000 --> 00:34:19.000 Speaker 2 So just vacant land, residential structures, commercial and industrial vacant land and commercial and industrial structures. 00:34:19.000 --> 00:34:21.000 Speaker 2 It's really wide, diverse. 00:34:21.000 --> 00:34:32.000 Speaker 2 Most of it's residential, but there's different structures that and different vacant land and all sorts of different mosaics splattered throughout the county that we need to be aware of. 00:34:32.000 --> 00:34:50.000 Speaker 1 And, you know, moving from innovation to really looking at the lens of equitable development and the, you know, goals of resilience planning as a theory in and of itself, how do you feel that this project furthers the REI mission of equitable development? 00:34:50.000 --> 00:35:05.000 Speaker 2 So RAI works, as your website says, in really vulnerable communities from an economic perspective, which as I've said, is where land banks function in that kind of negative space where something needs to be done in these properties. 00:35:05.000 --> 00:35:07.000 Speaker 2 They're in our inventory, but they're not quite in limbo. 00:35:07.000 --> 00:35:10.000 Speaker 2 They're being remediated in a way. 00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:17.000 Speaker 2 And that's how we need to focus on building resiliency to our communities, like I said, through a parcel by parcel process. 00:35:17.000 --> 00:35:18.000 Speaker 2 So 00:35:18.000 --> 00:35:33.000 Speaker 2 Not only are we looking at ways to make the communities resilient, but equitable development is very important for what we do because we understand that there needs to be opportunities available for everyone to have the potential to purchase these homes. 00:35:33.000 --> 00:35:46.000 Speaker 2 So most of our communities, we want to look at getting people in who will be long-term residents, who will find their home in these communities and have the ability to 00:35:46.000 --> 00:35:50.000 Speaker 2 live in a house that, they may not have had the opportunity to purchase otherwise. 00:35:50.000 --> 00:36:12.000 Speaker 2 So we very much, and then in the people who are still in these communities, we have our, like I said, our side lot program and all these vacant lots that we want to give to people at such a severely reduced cost that they can improve their equity in their property and then take over the stewardship of some of these vacant lots and, you know, provide themselves with more long-term space for them to live in as well. 00:36:12.000 --> 00:36:13.000 Speaker 2 So 00:36:13.000 --> 00:36:25.000 Speaker 2 It's something equitable development is really important to us in finding ways to get these properties out of our inventory into productive use is going to go a long way in helping people find opportunity as well. 00:36:25.000 --> 00:36:31.000 Speaker 1 Yeah, and homeownership has not been something that's been available to everyone throughout history. 00:36:31.000 --> 00:36:39.000 Speaker 1 And so it really sounds like you're trying to rewrite some of the programmatic 00:36:39.000 --> 00:36:56.000 Speaker 1 areas within the land bank so that there is a program that fits the needs of each of these community types or property types so that they can increase, the rate or the likelihood that someone can become a first time homeowner. 00:36:56.000 --> 00:36:58.000 Speaker 1 Is that a correct assumption? 00:36:58.000 --> 00:37:03.000 Speaker 2 Yeah, we're really trying to focus more on affordable housing. 00:37:03.000 --> 00:37:04.000 Speaker 2 So the state 00:37:04.000 --> 00:37:21.000 Speaker 2 Land Bank Authority, excuse me, is doing something what they call Land Banking 2.0, which is their movement into a development of vacant parcels or blighted or newly demolished parcels and using that to create opportunities in these communities. 00:37:21.000 --> 00:37:26.000 Speaker 2 So the state has been an incredible partner for us in technical guidance 00:37:26.000 --> 00:37:34.000 Speaker 2 And now as we move forward finding areas for opportunity, we're hoping to move forward into transitioning into this land banking 2.0 model as well. 00:37:34.000 --> 00:37:39.000 Speaker 2 So finding opportunities to create new developments, affordable housing. 00:37:39.000 --> 00:37:51.000 Speaker 2 In the past, there's been discussion early 2020 before it fell apart a little bit, but with veterans housing initiatives and things like that. 00:37:51.000 --> 00:37:52.000 Speaker 2 So 00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:55.000 Speaker 2 finding opportunity to use our lane to help people is important. 00:37:55.000 --> 00:38:01.000 Speaker 2 And finding opportunity to create development where there is none is some of our biggest goals moving forward. 00:38:01.000 --> 00:38:04.000 Speaker 1 That's really awesome. 00:38:04.000 --> 00:38:14.000 Speaker 1 Is there anything else that you'd like to share with our listeners about your research or any opportunities for local resilience planning that you're aware of before we sign off for today? 00:38:14.000 --> 00:38:19.000 Speaker 2 We're always looking to build partnerships with other organizations that work in our space. 00:38:19.000 --> 00:38:21.000 Speaker 2 So in Wayne County, 00:38:21.000 --> 00:38:28.000 Speaker 2 We work a lot with housing nonprofits, housing coalitions, neighborhood groups, urban farming groups, different communities. 00:38:28.000 --> 00:38:35.000 Speaker 2 And if you're in the area and you need anything from us, please feel free to reach out. 00:38:35.000 --> 00:38:41.000 Speaker 2 Building partnerships at the government and community level is important from the county government, which is what we represent. 00:38:41.000 --> 00:38:43.000 Speaker 2 So we're here to help. 00:38:43.000 --> 00:38:45.000 Speaker 2 We're here to do the best we can to 00:38:45.000 --> 00:38:49.000 Speaker 2 remove these properties out of our inventory and help strengthen our communities. 00:38:49.000 --> 00:38:52.000 Speaker 2 And sometimes it takes a lot of different partners on it. 00:38:52.000 --> 00:38:59.000 Speaker 2 And our doors are always open for anyone who has ideas or potentially has a need for property in these areas. 00:38:59.000 --> 00:39:05.000 Speaker 2 And we're happy to work with everyone as best we can to help mutual goals be accomplished. 00:39:05.000 --> 00:39:12.000 Speaker 2 So definitely, you know, we're looking forward to implementing more and more of this research that we got through this. 00:39:12.000 --> 00:39:19.000 Speaker 2 I'm incredibly thankful for REI and MSU for helping us fund it and for the data that we got back. 00:39:19.000 --> 00:39:24.000 Speaker 2 And I look forward to being a part of the summit and hopefully doing this again in the future. 00:39:24.000 --> 00:39:25.000 Speaker 1 That's awesome. 00:39:25.000 --> 00:39:28.000 Speaker 1 I will look forward to hopefully hearing more if you have the opportunity. 00:39:28.000 --> 00:39:30.000 Speaker 1 So thank you for joining us today. 00:39:30.000 --> 00:39:37.000 Speaker 1 We look forward to the completion of your project as you go off into the next month to the summit. 00:39:37.000 --> 00:39:40.000 Speaker 1 This has been Community in the University with Dr. 00:39:40.000 --> 00:39:50.000 Speaker 1 Jake Parcell discussing his project, Wayne County Land Bank Practicum, to help create strategies for Wayne County Land Bank to return vacant and abandoned property to productive use. 00:39:50.000 --> 00:39:53.000 Speaker 1 Tune in next time for another interview with an REI project leader. 00:39:53.000 --> 00:39:58.000 Speaker 1 Bye.