What We Do

The Valley Community Land Trust (VCLT) acquires and holds land in trust for the benefit of present and future generations—removing it from the speculative market. We provide affordable access to land through long-term leases and support limited equity homeownership by separating ownership of land from ownership of homes. VCLT fosters responsible land stewardship that sustains biodiversity, renews resources, and protects the long-term health and productivity of the land.

We are a 501c3 non-profit organization.

Our Mission

Valley Community Land Trust (VCLT) holds land, not as private or public property, but as a sacred resource to be held in trust for present and future generations.

How We Do It

For nearly fifty years, the Valley Community Land Trust (VCLT) has taken land off the speculative market in Franklin County, Massachusetts to ensure permanent affordability, land stewardship, and democratic community control.

Permanent Affordability

We remove land from the speculative market and hold it in trust, providing stable, affordable access to it through long-term renewable ground leases. We also support limited equity homeownership, through separating ownership of land from the houses on top of it.

Land Stewardship

Like other community land trusts across the country, we blend more traditional land conservation with the creation of affordable housing. We promote responsible stewardship—protecting the health and biodiversity of the land, so that it remains productive and resilient for generations to come. All of our residents create land stewardship plans, which are reviewed every five years by our land stewardship committee.

Democratic Community Control

We are a membership-based, all volunteer-run organization, registered as a 501c3 non-profit

Our Impact

Since its founding as one of the first community land trusts in the country, our organization has created affordable housing in a variety of creative ways, while also preserving open space. We have taken over 150 acres off of the speculative market, permanently maintaining the affordability of the 16 of homes which sit on that land. Many VCLT homes are built by those who live in them. Others are made available to people who might not otherwise be able to purchase a home because the value of the land is always subtracted from the sale price. In all cases, our focus is on long-term affordability and stewardship.

VCLT holds land throughout Franklin County totaling over 150 acres in Colrain, Greenfield, Wendell and Ashfield, including:

  • 16 Leaseholds (parcels of land that residents have long-term leases to live on and care for)
  • 16 Homes
  • 40 Residents
  • 63 acres of common woods
  • 2 community trail networks
  • 1 orchard with 100 fruit trees
  • 35 additional units of new housing planned

Who We Are

The VCLT is run entirely by volunteers, and has been for most of the last half century. Our members are invested in the long-term success of our organization, and not just because many of them make their home on land that we hold. While our leaseholds are spread out geographically, we are knitted together by a commitment to shared values around land stewardship, mutual aid, and gratitude for the many ways that this aid reverberates throughout our extended community.

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about VCLT?

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