ANNUAL REPORT JUNE 2025
Introduction
This year our theme is growth. This is our 7th Annual Meeting, and we now hold 7 properties in trust in Southeastern Connecticut – houses, community gardens, a farm and community facilities! Our net assets are now over $1 million. That amount will go down as we transfer the ownership of buildings to Ceiba, Ledge Light Health District, Hearing Youth Voices and homeowners. But we will keep growing, putting land permanently in trust, increasing access to land for affordable housing, growing food and community facilities.
We are two years into our three year Strategic Plan. Our board, a team of three staff, committees including a number of new ones, the New London chapter, members and partners are working towards accomplishing the goals we set for ourselves. This year we will also need to begin the collective process of creating the next Strategic Plan.
New London Chapter Report
It has been a year of stutter steps, staff changes, and new ideas. As a result, the Chapter operated without dedicated staff support for a significant portion of the year. During this time, we embraced new opportunities for growth and collaboration. In April, we welcomed Danni Cruz as our new Community Organizer, and we’re excited to work alongside him and our Administrative Assistant, Aliyah Lacombe.
Chapter meetings continued through the Fall of 2024, but numbers dwindled, and in December we began to reconsider how we were doing our work. With input from staff and Board members, the Chapter decided to move away from monthly meetings and into a more project-based framework. The Chapter Convener Frida Berrigan gathered a series of listening circles to develop a new framework for Chapter work and out of those meetings, we developed a Chapter definition:
“Chapters of the SECT CLT can be the eyes and ears for the CLT for specific areas. They know about key housing and land issues, projects that would make a local impact, what’s working and challenging for ground lessees, and more. They know all this because they engage diverse community members and are trusted by the membership. They can present new ideas, be thought partners, and evaluate current work.”
We also decided our work will focus on four areas: 1) Engagement through quarterly meetings and events 2) Lessee support as advocates for future and current lessees, 3) Discover and asses new projects that combine New London specific knowledge and innovative ideas: and 4) Work more closely in partnership with the Board.
These were presented to a robustly attended May meeting where they were adopted, we appointed Jessica Hill as our Board Liaison, and established a “hospitality team” for upcoming meetings of Alicia, Maya, Danni and Frida.
In the service of community learning, chapter members worked to develop an Accessory Apartment workshop that took place on Wednesday, June 11th. Nearly 40 people attended and more have asked for the video and slideshow that were part of the event. We had a number of people come for the very first time and have a lot of food for thought to digest at our next Chapter Meeting, which will be held on Thursday, July 31st at 5:30 (for food and fellowship, 6pm meeting) at 32 Broad Street.
The next community workshop will be in the Fall and will focus on alternative ways of thinking about and using money– micro loans, sharing circles, and a deep dive into the SE CT Fund for Land Equity, a joint project of the CLT and Equity Trust.
Farmland Preservation
Ceiba Arbor, Salem This past year has been a year of many firsts for Ceiba Arbor and our collective journey with the land in Salem, CT. In October 2024, two collective members, Sunny and Zen, officially moved onto the land, marking the beginning of our on-site stewardship and relationship-building with the property. From November 2024 through January 2025, we undertook a series of critical home renovations, including a full bathroom remodel, window replacements, washing machine re-routing, and general maintenance to improve air and water quality—such as radon mitigation, chimney relining, oil tank servicing, and installing dehumidifiers and air purifiers. Many of these upgrades were done through DIY efforts using proper tools and protective equipment, allowing us to better understand the home and tend to it with care. From February to May 2025, we began cultivating our first acre for food and flower production. This involved a range of labor-intensive steps: seeding, mowing, tilling, broad forking, installing electric fencing, designing rainwater catchment structures, and preparing beds to welcome seedlings. We also invested in essential farming tools and equipment—laying the foundation for our inaugural growing season.
We were honored to represent Ceiba Arbor at the Connecticut Land Conservation Council’s Annual Conference, where we spoke about our collaboration with the SE CT CLT . The session offered an opportunity to share our transition from urban agriculture to rural land stewardship, and how we’re co-developing new models for equitable land access. Together with Equity Trust, we continue to meet regularly as part of the Formation and Ground Lease Committee to draft our 99-year agricultural ground lease. These monthly meetings have been instrumental in shaping our long-term vision for the land while ensuring transparency and communication between our collective and the board.
Our second year of programming has also taken root. To support farm costs, we hosted six events across NYC and Salem CT last year. This year we’ve engaged in educational programming, including a composting workshop in New London where we provided buckets, worms, and education around food waste and soil health. Looking ahead to the spring and summer of 2025, we plan to expand our programming with more events that will take place in NYC and Salem, CT. We welcome anyone interested in getting involved to follow us @ceibaarbor on Instagram. We’ve also launched “Brigade Days”—monthly community-led farm day opportunities for volunteers to help us on the land.
Excitingly, we’re also preparing to install a second well to help meet our growing irrigation needs. This will make a big difference in how we care for our crops as the season progresses. We are hopeful that by summer, we’ll be selling our produce at local farmers markets—bringing fresh food, native plants, and rare products to our community. Stay tuned for dates and locations! Ceiba Arbor is rooted in food sovereignty, art, and ecological care. We’re proud of what’s taken shape this past year and grateful for the partnership and support that makes this possible.
Create a Farm Network – The Board has included this in our committee development.
Transferring Rose City Properties
Identifying properties in Norwich that remain under a ground lease from the defunct Rose City Community Land Trust has been more challenging than anticipated. Our Connecticut College intern Grace Webb moved us along in the process. This year we sent that information to Pro Bono Partnership for legal advice. Most importantly, we recently were able to secure the ground lease documents from the lawyers now occupying the former office of Rose City’s legal counsel. With the documents and legal aid, we should be able to move this forward in the coming year,
Fundraising
SE CT Fund for Land Equity
We relaunched the Fund for Land Equity promotion, joining it with the Fundraising Committee. To support this effort, we hosted an informational session about the Fund for Land Equity at our Gorton Street property, which was purchased with a loan made possible by the fund.
LISC Capacity Building Cohort
We are proud to share that SECT CLT has been accepted into LISC’s Capacity Building Cohort for community development organizations. Year 1 Grant: We received a $15,000 grant for general organizational support. Successful participation in Year 1 will make us eligible to apply for an additional capacity-building grant the following year. Peer Learning: The cohort includes six in-person peer learning sessions focused on common capacity challenges faced by community development organizations. As part of this process, we will co-create a customized fundraising plan for each of our organizations. Coaching Support: Beginning in January 2025, we will also receive five coaching sessions with Dr. William Clark of Eli Patrick & Co. These sessions will focus on leadership development and exploring personal and organizational growth opportunities.
Grants
In April 2025, we received an unsolicited $10,000 grant from Haymarket in honor of their 50th anniversary. The funding supports our general operating expenses.
In May 2025, we were awarded a $25,000 grant from the Community Foundation, also designated for general operating support.
With feedback from other staff and committee members, Aliyah established systems to organize grant materials and developed a comprehensive tracker to monitor federal and state filings, as well as tax compliance. This system has been invaluable for tracking deadlines, maintaining documentation, and improving internal communication as we prepare for future grant applications.
We are quickly using the $140,000 in ARPA funds allocated for renovations at 30 and 32 Broad Street.
We have not raised additional funds for land acquisition. We encountered challenges with the lending products available to support property acquisition using the $100,000 we currently have, and we need to assess how to address these challenges. We have been collaborating with a few lenders to increase their understanding of the lending process as it relates to ground lease agreements.
Organizational
Homekeeper- Is a specialized data management system built on Salesforce and designed for community land trusts and other affordable housing organizations. HomeKeeper allows us to efficiently track and manage our property portfolio, ground leases, homebuyer information, and long-term affordability requirements. The platform supports our ability to steward homes over time, streamline internal processes, and generate reports that demonstrate our impact.
- We began implementing HomeKeeper in December 2024.
All of our office staff have been trained or are in the process of being fully trained on the HomeKeeper platform. - Danni, our Community Organizer, will begin streamlining our system within HomeKeeper, cleaning up our contact lists, and cross-referencing our Network for Good (NFG) contacts with those in HomeKeeper.
We’re really glad we made the switch to HomeKeeper when we did, before our property portfolio grew too large.
Pro Bono Legal Support
In March 2025, we signed an engagement contract with Pro Bono Partnership to provide legal services to the SECT CLT on a case-by-case basis. This partnership has already proven valuable in several instances during our short time working together. From reviewing leases, to offering sample policies, and supporting property acquisitions, their guidance has been immensely helpful. We are deeply grateful for this partnership.
Developing Policies and Procedures:
As our work progresses, we continue to identify the need for formal policies and procedures. Some have been developed internally, while others have been modeled with support from our partners at LISC and Pro Bono Partnership. This is an ongoing effort that will remain essential throughout the life of the organization.
Hired Administrative Assistant and Community Organizer
- In late March, we welcomed our Administrative Assistant, Aliyah Lacombe, who has been instrumental in streamlining our office systems and processes. She has also strengthened our lines of communication with stakeholders, members, and the broader community.
- In April, we brought on our Community Organizer, Danni Cruz, who is eager to apply his organizing skills to help us achieve our goals, advance our mission, and explore how we can better serve our community particularly by addressing the need for long-term, permanent affordable homeownership opportunities. Danni is especially excited to engage authentically with the community.
- Both Aliyah and Danni are settling into their roles and developing a strong working dynamic, which we believe will benefit the CLT in the long run.
Contract Social Media/Tech Consultant(s)
Earlier this fiscal year, we worked with intermittent consultants to fulfill our social media and tech needs. However, with the addition of permanent staff, we’ve been fortunate to find that our Community Organizer is well-equipped to manage our social media, and our Administrative Assistant is fully capable of handling our technical operations.
7th Annual Meeting, 7 Properties: SE CT CLT Properties and Partnerships
- 34 Prest Street, New London CT ( Residential)
- 198 Ledyard Street, New London (Fresh NL Community Garden)
- 530 Harford Road, Salem CT (Ceiba Arbor)
- 46 Gorton Street, New London CT (Residential)
- 74 Garfield, New London CT (The Place by LLHD)
- 30 Broad Street, New London CT ( HYV)
- 32 Broad Street, New London CT (HYV)
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STAFFING |
CONSULTANTS |
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Mirna Martinez |
Grace Webb |
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Aliyah Lacombe |
Daz Park |
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Danni Cruz |
Sky Hall |