Led by residents, for all Ann Arbor residents.

Our community leads on sustainability through both environmental stewardship and social resilience.

Our guiding goal is for residents and their families to grow and thrive.

Our target residents are young workers and young families who seek to live, work, and give back in Ann Arbor. Local residents ages 18-34 experience the highest poverty rates in Ann Arbor. At the same time, over 80,000 people commute into the city to work every day, meaning our young, essential workers can no longer afford to live in the city they serve. We believe this mixed-income development can be part of the solution to bring this demographic back to Ann Arbor. Moreover, we aspire to be a model for other mid-size cities experiencing housing shortages to show how a city can leverage strategic partnerships to ensure high-quality, sustainable, and affordable housing for all residents.

We empower residents as owners and local leaders.

We envision a community land trust model that is led by a board of residents. We recommend the City transfer site ownership to a newly formed nonprofit, and residents will be able to purchase their homes or start the path to ownership through rental conversions. This follows a proven model at the Dwelling Place in neighboring Grand Rapids, MI.

Why a Community Land Trust? Homeownership is a critical resource to build wealth and economic stability; however, in Michigan, people of color and young people as well as low-income households have significantly lower rates of ownership compared to other demographics. The CLT model reduces barriers to homeownership by maintaining collective ownership of the site, which is leased at low rates to residents. Eliminating the cost of land makes purchasing a home achievable for more people. The model also preserves the land value to prevent gentrification due to rising costs. Overall, we value the ethos of collective ownership and action that guides a CLT to make the most sustainable, equitable choices for residents and their environment.

Our site proposal was closely informed by the site's community engagement feedback because we want to create the home that will best serve residents. Our CLT model will make it possible to continue collaborating with our future residents throughout final development, construction, and ongoing operations. Prioritizing resident needs presents some tradeoffs, such as providing parking for each unit rather than expanding green space. We alleviate this choice by building the lot with semi-permeable pavement and providing micro-mobility solutions to shift behavior over time.

Our community is a gathering place for Ann Arbor.

We aspire for The Atrium to be a central resource for the surrounding Ann Arbor community. Our commitment starts with our role as a resilience hub for our local ward. Ann Arbor continues to face infrastructure-related issues related to climate change such as unplanned outages, increased heat waves, increased instances of extreme cold, and increased flooding and stormwater management issues from heavy precipitation events. In response, our team proposes that the development contain a community-facing, resident-managed resilience hub. A resilience hub is a community-operated center designed to coordinate distribution of resources before, during, and/or after a natural hazard event. The City of Ann Arbor wants to see a hub in each ward, and resilience is one of the seven core strategies of the A2Zero Carbon Neutrality Plan. A resilience hub within the development will lend support to reach the city’s overall climate goals.

Based on the climate issues facing Ann Arbor, we propose the following resilience solutions to be implemented in the site’s resilience hub:

• Hybrid resilience system: this would entail a conventional generator paired with onsite solar PV and battery storage.

• Backup Generator: While a conventional generator is in opposition to the net zero energy goal, our team feels confident that the onsite solar PV generation, paired with excellent efficiency strategies will allow for the development to reach net zero even with the use of a conventional generator. If there is a year in which there are multiple black outs requiring generator use that exceeds onsite energy generation, purchase of offsets could support continued net zero energy.

• Wifi: In the event of an outage, having a community hub with access to reliable internet services can connect residents to loved one and resources.

• Health and medical supplies

• Food rations

Resilience requires strong networks, so we plan to be active members of the Ann Arbor community. To that end, we have partnered with a variety of local organizations to host local groups and resources such as the Ann Arbor Community Center and the Treeline Trail.

Our community and collective impact is made possible by 100% renewable energy.

Our unique community is made possible by our commitment to 100% electric, net zero energy. Our vision of sustainability captures much more than environmental impact, which we realize is only one decision-making factor for people choosing a home. For residents of The Atrium, sustainability also means increased cost savings, healthy homes, and a safe place to play for their children. We celebrate our net-zero building for this holistic approach to sustainability and the real impact on residents' lives. From our technology to our partnerships, our community is focused on the future: for our environment, for our city, and for our residents.

We are a recognized resource for economic development and opportunity.

We will accelerate the local sustainability industry by training the next generation of green building workers and leaders. Led by our expert partners, local workers will be able to join training cohorts to learn every step of our net zero journey, from construction to daily operations and management. Additionally, our partners at the Ann Arbor Community Center will be able to use our space to hold other trainings and events for their clients.

We prioritize high-quality materials and amenities.

As a development focused on the intersection of community, affordability and sustainability, equitable access to high-quality materials and unique amenities across all units is top priority. All residents, regardless of the unit they live in, will experience the same aesthetically pleasing and low-emissions finishes, high-quality materials, and holistic amenities.

Amenities to attract and serve residents will include:

• The Atrium, our namesake community gathering space

• 1 parking space per unit, with semi-permeable materials to reduce stormwater runoff and protect the floodplain

• No-cost bike rental on site

• Community outdoor space with a rain garden and food garden for residents

• Direct connect to The Treeline Trail

• Green playground

• Local leadership opportunities through the Resilience Hub and CLT Board