‘In God’s front yard’: Charlotte church offers discount on land for affordable homes

The Rev. Matt Conner and the congregation of Newell Presbyterian Church are looking forward to having 50 or more families living on their front yard. After all, the property at the intersection is not being used.

“For about 40 years, all we’ve done is cut the grass,” Conner said of the site at the the intersection of West Rocky River Road and Old Concord Road. “And to have that type of property in the city of Charlotte with a church membership around 90, that math just doesn’t math.”

Newell Presbyterian is working with affordable housing developer DreamKey Partners to build a community of town homes. It will serve people with incomes at 80% or below the area’s median income, which is a little over $74,000 according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

“These are people who are invaluable to our community — teachers, first responders, nurses, people that you know would have at one point been considered middle class that just want to get to call Charlotte home. But they can’t compete in the market,” Conner said.

If city officials approve a rezoning request, up to 54 single-family attached units would be allowed on 4.3 acres owned by the church.

“There’s kind of this national movement in support of turning NIMBY into YIGBY,” Conner said. “Not in my backyard — to— Yes, in God’s backyard. And we just feel really blessed to join a number of other churches around this city and being a part of that movement.”

The deal between the church and DreamKey Partners was not finalized as of Wednesday, but Conner said the congregation is supportive of the town homes being built.

Selling for less than market value

About two-and-a-half years ago after the COVID pandemic, Conner brought the idea to DreamKey Partners for the church to use a portion of its property for affordable home ownership. The pandemic made the church reevaluate how space was being used after people came back outside, Conner said.

Newell Presbyterian wanted to be good stewards of the land, Conner said. Some of the previous ideas were to build a park, community garden or a student center since UNC Charlotte is close by.

But the congregation overwhelmingly voted for the DreamKey project.

And DreamKey Partners is grateful for the opportunity to build more homes on church owned land, said Fred Dodson, chief operating officer and executive vice president.

As church memberships decline around the Charlotte region, they are trying to find alternative uses for their property, according to Dodson. He added that it’s unusual for churches to sell land instead of having long-term leases.

Dodson hopes Newell Presbyterian offer serves as a model for other churches.

DreamKey provides education to first-time homebuyers and payment assistance through its programs. But there’s not a lot of opportunity to buy a home for less than than $300,000 because of market conditions, Dodson said.

“I’ve seen the transformative power of homeownership,” Dodson said. “Not just for the individual purchaser, but for their families and generations after that. It really changes lives.”

DreamKey and Newell Presbyterian declined to disclose the price for the land, but Dodson and Conner said it’s being sold for less than the market value. The appraised value of the land owned by the church is more than $520,000 according to Mecklenburg County property records.

Newell Presbyterian was approached by other developers, but they were turned down in favor of the affordable housing project.

The church doesn’t see it as a loss, but rather an investment for the community and families.

“We are absolutely leaving money on the table for the sake of mission,” Conner said. “We could sell this land for a lot of money. But we felt like as a church, we were positioned to really put mission first and try to be as faithful followers of Jesus.

And that meant doing something that we felt like the Spirit was calling us to do, even when on a business sheet, it may not make the most sense.”

What comes next?

During a community meeting last week for the rezoning process, Dodson said there was a lot of concern about traffic. But that’s not an unusual complaint for DreamKey in a growing city like Charlotte.

“When we develop in urban areas, there tends to be a concern about traffic,” Dodson said.

City staff members are reviewing the petition. A date for a public hearing hasn’t been scheduled. The earliest the hearing could be held would be Aug. 19, according to city spokesman Lawrence Corley III.

If the project is approved by city council — followed by other steps such as designing, financing and finalizing the deal with the church, DreamKey may begin construction late next year.

“I’m very grateful for Presbyterian Church,” Dodson said. “I think this project will be well received, and it’s definitely well needed in this market. We look forward to getting started.”