Community Progress Webinars
Register for our free lunch-and-learn webinar series and stay up to date on the latest trends in community development. Webinars typically take place from 12:00–1:00 PM ET on the fourth Thursday of each month and offer a range of topics, from land banks and land banking to vacant land stewardship, strategic code enforcement, delinquent property tax enforcement, and more.
Thanks to generous support from Bank of America and General Motors Corporate Giving, webinars are offered free of charge. If you have any questions or topic suggestions for webinars, we want to hear them! Please contact Julia Zimmerman, Events Coordinators for National Leadership and Education, at [email protected] with any questions.
Upcoming Webinars
Dealing with Vacant Buildings and Lots as a Resident
If you live in a community with many vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties, the issue can feel insurmountable. Vacant properties—whether they’re dilapidated houses or overgrown lots—harm neighbors and neighborhoods. But doing something about problem properties is difficult, because of the complicated web of laws that govern who owns a property and what a local government can do about it.
If you want to do something about vacant properties in your community but aren’t sure where to start, this webinar is for you.
To better support residents in their revitalization efforts, the Center for Community Progress created The Resident’s Workbook for Dealing with Vacant Buildings and Lots. This handy guide features information and strategies that residents can deploy to tackle VAD properties in their neighborhood. Whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned community champion, the workbook was designed with a key goal in mind: Empowering residents to lead and demand change.
Join this webinar to:
- Learn about the critical role residents played in the workbook’s development
- Discover resources in the workbook you can leverage in your community revitalization efforts
- Understand the importance of resident engagement and how to best equip residents with the tools to succeed
- Hear success stories from resident-led initiatives
Download your copy of The Resident’s Workbook.
Policy Reform Post-Tyler v. Hennepin County: Preserving Homeownership, Preventing Vacancy, and Reducing Legal Risk
December 5, 2023 | 1:00 PM ET
Following the Supreme Court’s Tyler v. Hennepin County decision, state and local governments are working to understand its potential impact on their property tax enforcement systems. Though questions remain, the decision creates an opportunity to reform and improve property tax enforcement systems across the country.
In this webinar, experts from the Center for Community Progress and the National Consumer Law Center will discuss potential policy reforms that can help to address Tyler issues and create more equitable outcomes for individuals, neighborhoods, and cities. These include reforms aimed at both helping keep people in their homes and ensuring local governments have the tools they need to address vacant and abandoned properties.
Join this webinar to:
- Hear an overview of the questions left unanswered by the Tyler decision
- Understand how and why states must be proactive in reform
- Learn about the populations most impacted by tax foreclosure and policies to protect communities of color and older adults in property tax system policy and process
- Discover key areas and tools for reform, such as improved notice procedures, mechanisms for judicial oversight, elimination of the sale of tax liens, and clear and accessible redemption rights
Speakers:
- Libby Benton, Senior Counsel, Center for Community Progress
- Andrea Bopp Stark, Senior Attorney, National Consumer Law Center
- Matt Kreis, General Counsel, Center for Community Progress
- John Rao, Senior Attorney, National Consumer Law Center
- Odette Williamson, Senior Attorney, National Consumer Law Center
Past Webinar Recordings
Available on YouTube.
October 2023: Contracts and Codes: What Land Banks Should Know About Community Gardens »
Presenters: LaTosha Okoiron, General Counsel and Compliance Manager – Houston Land Bank; Brian Larkin, Director, National Land Bank Network
July 2023: Resident-First Revitalization in a Rapidly Gentrifying Atlanta Neighborhood: Lessons in Creating Economic Groundcover at 918 Dill Ave »
Presenters: Odetta MacLeish-White, Director, Georgia Initiatives – Center for Community Progress; Zach Murray, Organizing and Movement Building Director – The Guild
May 2023: Utilizing Partnerships and Collaboration in Vacant Land Stewardship »
Presenters: Liz Kozub, Associate Director, National Technical Assistance – Center for Community Progress; Laura Ginn, Vacancy Strategist – City of St. Louis; Torrey Park, Director, St. Louis Vacancy Collaborative
February 2023: Reimagine Delinquent Property Tax Enforcement »
Presenters: Kim Graziani, Technical Assistance Senior Advisor – Center for Community Progress; Nneka N'namdi, Founder and Chief Operation Office – Flight Blight Bmore
November 2022: Leaders of Color in Land Banking »
Presenters: Terica Black Bashir – Program Director, Metro Atlanta Land Bank; Christa D. Stoneham – Chief Executive Officer/President, Houston Land Bank; Stephanie Quick – Chief Operating Officer, Intend Indiana
October 2022: Land Banking 101 en Español »
Presenters: Luis Gallardo – Executive Director, Center for Habitat Reconstruction, Inc.; Ricardo León – Chief Operating Officer, Cuyahoga Land Bank
August 2022: Incorporating Green Building Into Your Equitable Community Development Plan »
Presenters: Odetta MacLeish-White – Director of Georgia Initiatives, Center for Community Progress; Cheneé Joseph – President and CEO, Historic District Development Corporation
July 2022: How to Use Property Condition Data for Vacant Land Stewardship »
Presenters: Janell O’Keefe - Senior Program Officer for Michigan Initiatives, Center for Community Progress; Melissa Hertlein - Genesee County Land Bank; Austin Harrison - Rhodes College
May 2022: State Policy and Equitable Revitalization: A Conversation with Alan Mallach »
Presenters: Alan Mallach - Senior Fellow, Center for Community Progress; Alison Goebel - Executive Director, Greater Ohio Policy Center
April 2022: Strengthening Community Relationships to Achieve Equitable Code Enforcement »
Presenters: Liz Kozub - Associate Director of National Technical Assistance, Center for Community Progress; Joe Dulin - Community Development Director; Community Development Department; City of Peoria
March 2022: Understanding The Final Rule: Leveraging ARPA To Address Vacancy and Strengthen Communities »
Presenters: Rob Finn - Director of Policy and Research, Center for Community Progress; Cordaryl Patrick - Director of Economic and Community Development, City of Decatur, Illinois; and Katelyn Wright - Executive Director, Greater Syracuse Land Bank
February 2022: Land Banks and Community Land Trusts: Partnering to Provide Equitable Housing Opportunities for Generations to Come »
Presenters: Kim Graziani - Senior Technical Assistance Advisor, Center for Community Progress; Christopher Norman - Executive Director, Metro Atlanta Land Bank; and Amanda Rhein - Executive Director, Atlanta Land Trust
November 2021: Creative Placemaking: New Tools for Empowering Community-Led Revitalization »
Presenters: Liz Kozub - Associate Director of National Leadership and Education, Center for Community Progress; Daniel Egusquiza - Executive Director, Barrio Alegria
October 2021: Vacant Land Stewardship – New Online Resource Center from Community Progress »
Presenters: Janell O'Keefe – Senior Program Officer for Michigan Initiatives, Center for Community Progress; Evaine Sing, RLA, LEED AP - Community and Organizational Consultant, EKS Solutions, LLC.
August 2021: The Cost of a 2×4 is What?! Overview of Lumber Costs and the Opportunity for Deconstruction »
Speakers: Dr. George H. Berghorn - Assistant Professor of Construction Management and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Forestry, Michigan State University; Mae Bowley, Executive Director, Re:Purpose Savannah; Danielle Lewinski - Vice President of Technical Assistance, Center for Community Progress for Community Progress
June 2021: Land Banks in America: Today’s Movement and What We’ve Learned »
Speaker: Brian Larkin – Director of the National Land Bank Network, Center for Community Progress
April 2021: Prioritizing Repair Support for Financially Struggling Property Owners »
Presenter: Payton Heins – Director of Michigan Initiatives, Center for Community Progress
March 2021: Land Banks 101: The Fundamentals of Land Banking and Equitable Development »
Presenter: Tarik Abdelazim – Director of National Technical Assistance, Center for Community Progress
“Most informative webinar I have experienced in some time. Great content, great presentation. Thank you”
Anonymous Survey Respondent, 2020