How Land Banks are Reusing Vacant Land to Build Climate Resilience

Author: Bibi Macias

Land banks are finding new ways to address how their communities respond to extreme weather events, like stronger storms, extreme heat, and frequent flooding. Through the National Land Bank Network (NLBN) we interviewed 13 land banks, identified from State of Land Banking Survey responses, that are creating innovative strategies for acquiring, managing, and stewarding vacant land. Specifically, we focused on land bank work that went beyond simply redeveloping parcels, but that aligned with community needs to strengthen climate resilience.

Strategic Acquisition in Risk-Prone Areas

As the risks from extreme weather grow, some land banks have begun strategically acquiring properties for the purposes of holding, rather than redeveloping. Several land banks identified heightened climate risks in the communities they serve, especially within the past several years. Flooding emerged as a common concern among land banks we interviewed, particularly in neighborhoods already susceptible to stormwater inundation. Strategic acquisition of risk-prone properties is a constructive tool to protect residents and reduce the long-term damage of frequent climate impact in their communities.   

By taking ownership of risk-prone properties, land banks can prevent future harm while coordinating with local governments on long-term solutions. For example, since 2020, the Cook County Land Bank Authority (CCLBA) in Illinois has partnered with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) to purchase flood-prone parcels from homeowners using Federal Emergency Management Agency and Community Development Block Grant funds.

According to Darlene Dugo, Deputy Director of the CCLBA, “The Cook County Land Bank Authority led sessions with all owners of eligible properties in the targeted area, working with families to determine whether they wanted to participate in the program and relocate to a non-flood zone.” When owners opted into the program, the land bank placed deed restrictions on their former parcels, demolished all structures, and transferred the cleared land to the city forest department, municipality, or township to be maintained in perpetuity as open space.

It is important to recognize that while risk-prone acquisition addresses immediate climate hazards, creates long-term resilience, and provides residents with safer housing, the work must be approached with deep care. These properties were people’s homes, often tied to deep personal and community connections. Any discussion of relocation should center the voices and experiences of the people most affected.

Greening Assemblage

Roughly 85 percent of land bank inventory is vacant, structure-free lots. But a parcel’s highest and best use is not always residential or commercial redevelopment. Many land banks view the vacant land in their locality as a valuable resource to support greening initiatives that improve climate resilience and community wellbeing. Land banks are earmarking their existing inventory by assembling vacant land, often in partnership with local governments and nonprofits. With this strategy, land banks can support large-scale sustainable land reuse initiatives like trails, parks, and green infrastructure.   

In Erie, Pennsylvania, the Erie Land Bank and the City of Erie have assembled lots in the East Bayfront neighborhood for a new greenway trail. The land bank, which formed in 2016, recognized the need to stabilize the high number of vacant lots in the most distressed areas of the city. According to Aaron Snippert, Executive Director of the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Erie and Erie Land Bank, the land bank’s acquisitions opened the door for an exciting new project utilizing their real estate tools. “It’s a very inspiring project and uses vacant parcels that otherwise would have just sat,” he explained. “We mow them, pick up trash, and maintain them so we might as well make them some kind of other asset.” The redevelopment authority and land bank prioritized lots they already owned or proactively acquired lots in high stages of deterioration, and reimagined them into the Erie East Bayfront Greenway Trail. The trail will connect the neighborhood through pocket parks, trees, paths and bike lanes.

A 2023 feasibility study identified 26 parcels for the trail—nearly two acres across several bocks—for the project, which was funded largely through American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars. Groundbreaking on Phase I of the project started in September 2025.

In Ohio, the Mahoning County Land Bank uses assemblage for long-term planning. As Executive Director Debora Flora explained, “If we know a project will come up in a couple of years, we assemble and hold land for it as early as possible so that development can follow.” In one case, while reserving land for commercial use, the land bank set aside a quadrant of the footprint for the Youngstown State University’s Legacy Forests program, reserved solely for tree planting. The initiative plants one tree for every freshman student, creating micro forests to reduce flooding and erosion while engaging the community in climate action.

Greening assemblage shows how land banks can use their inventories not only to support redevelopment, but also to invest in healthier, more resilient communities for future generations.

Collaboration and Partnerships

For land banks to play a meaningful role in climate resilience, they must not only understand their tools—like clearing title, affordable land leasing, risk-prone acquisition, and greening assemblage—but also channel them for collaboration with others. These strategies are most effective when partners know they are available and can align them with broader community goals.

Many land banks are already building strong external relationships. In our interviews, land bank partners included local government departments, conservation land trusts, universities, and local nonprofits. Our survey results show that 80 percent of land banks already work with local governments and 68 percent collaborate with nonprofit or community organizations. Looking ahead at the future of building climate resilient initiatives, nearly half of land banks expressed interest in partnering with conservation land trusts.

Long-term success depends on land banks being active allies, working closely with local organizations and residents to identify shared goals and align projects with community needs and resilience objectives. 

Conclusion

Though this write-up highlights examples of how land banks have facilitated climate resilience strategies with vacant land, the possibilities extend even further. Land banks can adapt their tools to prioritize the environmental needs of their communities, including minimizing climate risks by supporting sustainable construction or using energy-efficient materials for green building.

At Community Progress, we are excited about the innovative ways land banks are transforming vacant parcels into restorative, productive, and innovative spaces—whether through tree canopy expansion, food production, parks, or stormwater management. By centering climate resilience in their work, land banks can help communities reimagine vacant land as assets that strengthen neighborhoods and the environment. Keeping strategies such as those listed above in mind reveals the potential of climate resilience and land banking in tandem.

Bibi Macias was a summer 2025 Yale Environmental Fellow with NLBN at the Center for Community Progress. She is an MS candidate in Environmental Justice at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor and holds a BA from the University of Texas at Austin.