Tulsa is turning to churches in the city’s next push to create more housing.
The city and the George Kaiser Family Foundation will host two public forums in April called “Connecting Mission and Place.” It’s a chance for local faith leaders and residents to discuss how to use church property to build affordable housing.
Emily Hall, the mayor’s senior adviser on homelessness, said the city has been approached by faith organizations, including 13 in west Tulsa, asking how they can help and whether they could develop the land they own.
“This is going to really be a coming together of how we can bring congregations from across our city and the resources that they may physically have,” Hall said. “Members may want to work with the city and developers and start really producing some more housing options.”
The forums will explore how property development can serve the congregation’s mission and provide case study examples. They will include a presentation from national expert Sara Joy Proppe, founder of the Proximity Project, a Minneapolis-based consultancy that connects churches with land-use opportunities in their communities.
“This is bringing faith leaders together with the national expert who’s going to do a training and present on ways to plug in and kind of merge developers who are very interested in congregations who have space, and what that look may look like around housing,” Hall said.
City Councilor Anthony Archie, who represents District 2 in west Tulsa, said many faith-based organizations have made it clear they want to be involved in the solution.
“We have excess land. We have additional properties,” Archie said he’s been told. “What does it mean for us to come together with developers, with the city and with churches to provide affordable housing, transitional housing?”
Senate Bill 1545, dubbed the Yes in God’s Backyard Act, would’ve made it easier for faith-based organizations to apply to develop affordable housing on their property. But that measure has stalled, according to The Frontier.
The first forum will take place at 11:30 a.m. April 16 at Rudisill Regional Library and the second at 5:30 p.m. the same day at Boston Avenue Methodist Church.
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