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THOMPSON: When it comes to landholdings, religious organizations are one of the largest ownership groups in the country.

Should they use it to help with the housing crisis?

SPEARE-HARDY: Why not make use of the land to affect the lives of those who are in need?

THOMPSON: On today's show, a look at the potential and the challenges for congregations like this one in Dayton, looking to create housing for the communities they serve.

Plus, for thousands impacted by the justice system every year in Ohio, once you're released, the stigma of being locked up can often mean being locked out of housing and more.

LAGUERRE: What do you think would have happened if you didn't have a place to stay?

JEWELL: I'd probably be dead by now or back in jail.

THOMPSON: We explore a local reentry program, reducing recidivism by finding stability for second chance citizens.

Let's get into it.

This is Brick by Brick; Solutions for a Thriving Community.

Hello and welcome to Brick by Brick, where we're exploring solutions at the intersection of neighborhoods, housing, health and the environment.

As usual, I've got the team with me to help kick things off.

Multimedia journalist Emiko Moore and Hernz Laguerre, Jr.

And we're taking a look at a few more housing solutions with specific populations in mind.

And Hernz, tell us about housing for former inmates.

LAGUERRE: Yeah.

You know, Ann, there's multiple reports that show when formerly incarcerated individuals reenter society, they often face hardships in securing employment, getting housing, and enjoying the rights of a free individual.

But as you see in our report, if they're able to establish safe and secure housing, that can be the difference between recidivism and rehabilitation.

THOMPSON: Yes, stability is definitely important when it comes to reintegration, so we'll look forward to hearing about that.

So from the prison to the pulpit, there is an acronym, YIGBY, that could be summarized by that.

Emiko, can you explain to our viewers about that?

MOORE: Sure.

You've probably heard of NIMBY, which means not in my backyard.

It's a label which is used for those who oppose most development in their neighborhood.

But in this instance, we're talking about YIGBY, yes, in God's backyard, which is a strategy that many faith based organizations use.

They see a need, jump in to create more housing, and often use the land that they already have, and often can be very substantial land.

THOMPSON: In our reporting, we do talk a lot about land use, and you have to find just the right piece of property to build, obviously.

With churches, I would think they could have it a little bit easier and not as much pushback because they are already in the neighborhood.

MOORE: Right, this strategy definitely has some potential, but as with any development, there are big hurdles.

But the folks behind these developments are still very committed, as we'll see in a bit.

THOMPSON: All right.

Sounds like a full docket to me.

Shall we get started?

MOORE: Let's go.

THOMPSON: Emiko and Hernz, we'll see you soon.

Faith based development can take many different forms.

The most straightforward one will focus on is where the church builds housing on its property, which requires changes to zoning.

Another way is for churches to buy land in the community and build housing.

A third option is for developers to buy church land or a boarded up church building and redevelop it.

With attendance in decline and enormous parking lots sitting empty, religious groups are realizing the land they own can add value both to the neighborhood and to their own sustainability through rent.

But the process to build housing is expensive and complicated.

How many houses of worship are successfully doing it?

Rutgers University researchers who are working to track U.S.

faith based developments have found at least 100 projects over the past decade where congregants have led the charge to turn underutilized church property into affordable housing.

Researcher Nadia Mian says it's a positive sign for the trend.

We've connected with her over the phone.

MIAN: The movement is definitely taking hold.

I mean, it started kind of in California, in San Diego with, you know, a church that wanted to build affordable housing using their parking lot and came up against some, you know, zoning regulations.

And San Diego ended up changing some of those for them.

And then it kind of spread, you know, Oregon had been doing this, and Washington state.

But now it's, you know, a lot more states are looking at different ways to make it easier for houses of worship to do this work.

THOMPSON: We'll get to the policy part in a bit.

But first, how about some examples of this solution in practice?

Arlington Presbyterian Church in Virginia tore down its main church and sold the land at below market value to a nonprofit who built 173 units of affordable housing.

The church now rents worship space on the ground floor of the apartment building.

In Brooklyn Ebenezer Urban Ministries Center bought two city blocks and turned them into more than 500 affordable apartments.

And First Baptist Church in Vancouver, Canada, sold its air rights and one of its parcels to a developer who built a 57 story apartment tower right behind the church.

With the proceeds, they build a brand new sanctuary with a daycare, a 7 story affordable apartment building, community space, and a gym that can also house people during the cold winter months.

Faith based development is slow to catch on in Ohio, but that doesn't mean there's not an interest.

In fact, as Emiko Moore shows us, one Dayton effort began decades ago.

MOORE: St .Margaret's Episcopal Church in the Trotwood neighborhood of Dayton, sits on a 61 acre property lined with trees, 28 acres of farmland, natural springs and a grove of black walnut trees.

Father Benjamin Speare-Hardy became the priest of this congregation in 2001 with the mission of building a senior affordable housing community around the church.

SPEARE-HARDY: We have been blessed because we have the land to do it.

And why not make use of the land to affect the lives of those who are in need?

MOORE: At his previous church in Columbus, Georgia, Father Speare-Hardy built a 48 unit affordable senior housing community and was called to Dayton to build another community, working with developers to create a seven phase plan.

SPEARE-HARDY: The senior population is growing.

The baby boomers need a place to retire, a place to live, and so there is a great need.

We know there's a need for housing.

MOORE: St.

Mary's Development Corporation is a nonprofit organization that focuses on real estate development in affordable housing and services for seniors.

According to the President, Wes Young, 60% of residents in the Dayton area only have Social Security, which is about $15,000 a year.

And every day in the US, 10,000 people turn 65.

YOUNG: You could blindfold me, give me a set of darts and a dart board and I could throw the darts and you could find a need where there's -- Where you need affordable housing.

It's everywhere.

Every single part of Ohio needs affordable housing.

MOORE: But as Father Speare-Hardy geared up for his mission, a series of unforeseen national and regional crises took precedent, setting the project back repeatedly.

SPEARE-HARDY: And I was at Sinclair Community College negotiating for us to have our program, a banquet for fundraising.

And I was looking at a monitor, and there were the planes going in the building in New York and the World Trade Center.

And everything just went crazy from there.

MOORE: After a few years, they completed the new church and started on phase one.

But the 2008 housing crisis put things on hold.

And in 2019, a tornado devastated the Trotwood area.

SPEARE-HARDY: So the church became the epicenter during the during the tornado for resources.

MOORE: Still recovering from the devastation as the pandemic hit, the church pivoted to help the community.

SPEARE-HARDY: And so we begin to advocate for testing and for vaccine, so the church again became a clinic.

MOORE: When many members of the congregation who supported the project passed away, Father Speare-Hardy's faith was tested even more.

SPEARE-HARDY: One of the things I had to learn was to be patient, because I got very frustrated and I even fussed at God.

And what in the world you got me doing here?

I mean, you brought me here.

I'm going through all this stuff.

Especially when I started losing members.

I had to take two weeks off.

I mean, can you imagine burying over 200 people in the congregation?

And I knew all of them.

MOORE: After the pandemic and continued disinvestment in the area, St.

Margaret's began working with St.

Mary's Development Corporation to revise their plan to put two 100 unit homes near the church.

YOUNG: Father Ben's parishioners are like a lot of churches these days where they have older and older population.

So there's a ready made population that would love to live there near their church, real near their community, real near their friends.

And that's why we became interested in it.

MOORE: Well, St.

Margaret's assets include land, zoning, built in utilities, a bus stop nearby.

They still were not able to score high enough for the highly competitive government tax credits so that affordable housing developers would take on the project.

YOUNG: Right at the moment, it's not, you know, the rules for the various funding sources are not lining up for us to allow us to do that.

MOORE: While the housing plans are on hold again, the various roadblocks, such as the tornado and the pandemic, forced Father Speare-Hardy and his church to shift gears to serve other community needs.

SPEARE-HARDY: We may have all the plans, but being with those families during the times of need are so important.

And so once I surrender all to God and say, "Lord, You're in charge.

I'll just follow Your lead.

Wherever You lead, I'll follow."

And then I became better after that.

MOORE: Today, Father Speare-Hardy remains steadfast to help build more affordable housing.

SPEARE-HARDY: I'm just excited, and I hope that this would somehow spark the interest of someone out there who say, who may have an interest in what-- In our vision for our community and would be willing to come and partner with us to make this happen.

THOMPSON: Back in the studio now with multimedia journalist Emiko Moore.

And Emiko, it would seem that St.

Margaret's has all the elements for a good development, but it's still an uphill climb.

MOORE: That's right.

It can seem like funding is almost everything sometimes.

These projects compete for the same tax credit that many other developments do across the State of Ohio.

So when the scoring hurts because of other neighborhood challenges, for example, lack of a medical center nearby or grocery stores, it can seem like a heavy lift.

St.

Margaret's, like many congregations in this region, are resilient though, so we'll see.

THOMPSON: Good point.

Keeping the faith.

MOORE: That's right.

THOMPSON: We'll see you later for the takeaways.

St.

Margaret's is not the only local church development facing roadblocks.

People's Church in Cincinnati's Corryville neighborhood has plans for a $60 million mixed use development, including a new sanctuary, retail, and a four story market rate apartment building.

But earlier this year, the church told Brick by Brick it decided to table the project with the uncertainty of various government funding sources.

However, People's Church is hopeful it may still move forward.

And in Avondale in Cincinnati, plans are moving forward with the redevelopment of the historic Grace Church property.

Developer 8K is working with the Avondale Development Corporation to turn the church and its annex into commercial space and up to 20 affordable apartments along Glenwood Avenue.

It's clear funding can be a limitation as in any development.

But zoning can also be a challenge in many places.

That's how the YIGBY term, yes, in God's backyard, was originally coined back in 2019.

It was created as part of a petition for zoning changes in San Diego.

Since then, California and the State of Washington have passed YIGBY laws.

In California, nonprofit colleges and religious institutions now have the power to build 100% affordable housing projects on their properties by right, bypassing any special zoning requirements the city might have as long as the project meets state mandated criteria.

Other states considering YIGBY laws include New York, Virginia, and Hawaii.

Cities adopting the fast track laws include Atlanta and San Antonio.

Shifting gears now, let's talk about a different set of numbers.

Every year, more than 600,000 people in the U.S.

are released from state and federal prisons, another 9 million from local jails.

In Ohio it's 18,000 from state prisons annually and another 75,000 released from county jails, according to a 2024 reentry report by the Ohio Supreme Court.

That's a lot of people who need stable housing to get things back on track.

Simply having jail attached to your record, regardless of the length of the sentence, creates barriers and especially for housing.

And since there's already a shortage of housing, the problem is exacerbated.

So let's hear from the inmates themselves.

Brick by Brick's Hernz Laguerre, Jr.

visited a local jail.

Its reentry program helps incarcerated individuals find work and get their life on track.

But as the program director shares, without housing, the efforts for the formerly incarcerated individuals might get derailed.

FULCHER: All right.

All right.

Everybody find a seat.

Got a little thing going on today.

LAGUERRE: Inmates enter the M.A.N.A.

program at the Hamilton County Jail in Cincinnati.

FULCHER: Hey, man.

Good to see you, brother.

You're in here?

LAGUERRE: M.A.N.A.

stands for Mentoring Against Negative Actions.

It's a prison ministry run by former Bengals safety David Fulcher and his wife, Judy.

David started the prison ministry back in 2002, in collaboration with local prisons GED programs.

He has helped countless individuals get their lives back on track.

FULCHER: And most of these guys are really smart.

I think some of these guys are probably smarter than me, but I think that the difference between me and them is the choice.

All I do is try to put them on the track of making better choices when they get out.

LAGUERRE: Travis Jewell was recently released from the Butler County Jail, where he spent five months for a substance abuse related offense.

After he was released, he immediately called David to let him know he was ready for work.

JEWELL: I called David.

I called him probably twice a day for three months.

He was a big part of my recovery when I was incarcerated as well.

LAGUERRE: How long did it take you to get a job after you left jail?

JEWELL: Um, about two months time I actually got situated and got everything under control, my living arrangements and then transportation of where we could work and so forth.

LAGUERRE: Since being released from jail in December of 2024, he has remained clean, graduated with his GED, works as an equipment operator for a local company, and even plans on marrying his long time girlfriend this summer.

But there was one essential thing that made his second chance at life possible.

Did you know where you were going to stay after you left jail?

JEWELL: Yes.

LAGUERRE: What options did you have.

JEWELL: Either here or the streets?

JACKSON: People that we have worked with that have stable housing, their employment history is much longer.

LAGUERRE: That's Trina Jackson, director of the Hamilton County Office of Reentry.

The organization helps returning citizens get the essentials they need to thrive.

Trina says one of the core basic elements those individuals need is housing.

JACKSON: It's very difficult to even move on to something a little bit higher level, like employment, if they're not sure where they're going to lay their head.

LAGUERRE: Do you think there is a clear path to housing for formerly incarcerated individuals?

JACKSON: I don't think there's a clear path because there's a stigma that's associated with incarceration.

You know, when someone runs your background, they're going to see you, you know, you were incarcerated, then you're denied housing because of your background.

And so that whole stigma just kind of goes along with you.

You're carrying it through your lifetime.

FULCHER: We got to understand what society is asking these guys to do.

They're asking them to be Superman without a cape.

LAGUERRE: In the spring of 2025, Trina shared that the Office of Reentry is looking to create opportunities for those that don't have a solid support system when they are released.

JACKSON: So we're in the process now of working with one of our housing partners, a landlord.

She actually purchased a property.

Her name is Doctor Hamilton.

She is in the process of applying for a grant to cover the rehab cost.

And those units will be available to our clients.

LAGUERRE: In October 2025 we met with Doctor Bennyce Hamilton at the apartment that's being rehabilitated.

Two of the four units are complete and the other two are still being worked on.

This project was made possible through the collaboration of the Office of Reentry, the American Rescue Plan Act, and the nonprofit lending institution, the Cincinnati Development Fund.

She said this building represents more than just housing.

HAMILTON: It represents hope.

It represents stability.

It represents new beginnings for our returning citizens.

LAGUERRE: Antoine Lightman became the first tenant of Dr.

Bennyce's apartment building after going through the Office of Reentry.

He thanks the office for allowing him to focus on his passion.

LIGHTMAN: I started school at Cincinnati State, coming up for culinary.

That's one of my goals.

I thank the Office of Reentry, a lot I do, and all the accomplishments that I have accomplished, you know, just by having a support system and them on my side, it means a lot.

It does.

LAGUERRE: Examples like Travis and Antoine show that a better life is possible for returning citizens if they're given the adequate support.

HAMILTON: In order to change the trajectory, you have to give someone hope.

You have to show them what it looks like.

You can't just say, "You need to have hope.

You got a chance.

You're out now."

It doesn't work like that.

But I think in finding a building like this, they get to see what it looks like to live in a building that is absolutely beautiful.

It's just absolutely wonderful.

It just gives them hope.

THOMPSON: Back in the studio now.

Hernz, you reported that Doctor Bennyce Hamilton is one of the first landlords to partner with the Hamilton County Office of Reentry to house returning citizens.

I'm wondering, is this a growing trend?

LAGUERRE: In short, it has the potential to be.

Now, Trina Jackson from the Office of Reentry told me that on top of getting funding for affordable and available housing, we need to address the stigma.

Now, if I were to ask you, the audience, and even myself if we would house a formerly incarcerated individual, I am confident that there will be hesitation.

Understandably so.

And the Office of Reentry is aware of this stigma, which is why they work so hard to vet their individuals that go through their program to make sure that they are law abiding citizens.

And that's one of the reasons why Dr.

Bennyce Hamilton felt more than confident.

She had no hesitation with pioneering this program with the Office of Reentry.

THOMPSON: Yeah, the stigma is just so tough.

Well, thanks for that story, Hernz.

We'll talk to you later in the takeaways.

LAGUERRE: Yes, ma'am.

THOMPSON: The Housing Solutions Lab at New York University's Furman Center in the center for Justice Innovation, took a deep dive into the difficulties and possible solutions around housing and former inmates.

Their 2024 report, called Housing is Justice, points to these barriers, some of which Hernz just told you about.

The challenge of applying for housing while still incarcerated, unstable finances due to missed work and fines and fees, and private landlords screening out tenants with criminal records.

Aisha Balogun is a special project associate with the Housing Solutions Lab.

BALOGUN: A lot of tenant screening processes look for criminal justice history and some, including some publicly funded housing projects will not house people with specific criminal justice backgrounds or specific criminal justice histories.

THOMPSON: Some public housing authorities consider criminal histories as far back as 20 years.

The Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority says potential residents have to be out of jail for at least three years before they can live in public housing.

Greater Dayton Premier Management cites a HUD policy on its website, saying it can deny admission to certain applicants with unfavorable criminal histories.

One response to this issue was passed into law last year in Ohio.

It's called a Certificate of Qualification for Housing.

Inmates leaving prison can earn them and use them to help ease landlord concerns.

The certificate vouches that the inmate is a rehabilitated safe tenant and gives landlords some financial liability protection should anything happen.

It's still a bit early to tell how impactful it will be, but since it works alongside other solutions, it will be worth keeping an eye on.

Another promising national effort that may have local impact is called the Housing Justice Peer Network.

Montgomery County and Dayton are participating in the 16 month program with several other midsized communities.

This initiative is also organized by the Housing Solutions Lab, and its purpose is to help cities build capacity around reentry support, learn from each other, and innovate.

BALOGUN: We really were looking for cities that are, you know, interested in fostering these collaborations but may not have the time or the infrastructure or the framework to understand, like, how these separate agencies can piece together their efforts to make a collaborative program or, you know, embark on some sort of collaborative policy making.

THOMPSON: A rep with the Office of Reentry in Montgomery County shared with us that housing is a core part of support they offer to reform citizens, and participation in the peer network will help to improve that service, as well as collaboration internally and externally to reduce recidivism.

Here on Brick by Brick, we'll be staying in touch as they go through the Peer Network Program and we'll share about new improvements to their efforts as we learn more.

One thing is for sure, if overall change is going to happen here or across the country, Aisha Balogun with the Housing Solutions Lab says all parties must be at the table.

BALOGUN: And one thing that I want to highlight there in building political will is the importance of engaging people with lived experience in the, you know, formation of solutions.

And the importance of making sure that their voices are at the table and are kind of the main -- One of the main folks advocating for these types of solutions.

THOMPSON: If you're interested in the Housing Justice report and learning about other innovative second chance housing solutions, or want to share your own thoughts on these responses, just head to the Brick by Brick Show page at thinkTV.org or CETconnect.org.

Click on one of the green buttons to tell us what you think.

We learned a lot in this episode.

I hope you did too.

It's time for takeaways.

Hernz, what are your thoughts?

LAGUERRE: Yeah.

You know, not only is it important to help returning citizens with housing, but I think it's also important to help them with employment.

Trina Jackson from the Office of Reentry said there's a skills gap in Hamilton County and really all over the country.

So she begged the question, who is going to fill that gap?

Well, then an answer could be returning citizens, because, you know, she gets so many good reviews by her employment partners about how these returning citizens are some of the best employees that the job has ever had, that the company has ever had.

So I think not only can helping with housing and employment help the returning citizens, but it can also help the community thrive.

MOORE: Can you imagine what it's like to kind of come out of incarceration after 5 or 10 years and kind of revisit what the society looks like today with skyrocketing housing prices, with technology that's changed so rapidly.

I mean, that would be a challenge in itself just to try to find housing or work.

So I would think a lot of support would be needed.

THOMPSON: Yeah, there are just so many hurdles and there's not enough housing for them.

So I'm thinking about Doctor Bennyce Hamilton, who you interviewed in your piece.

And there just needs to be more of her or a way of promoting what she's doing locally and nationally.

LAGUERRE: Agreed.

THOMPSON: Emiko, you have some thoughts when it comes to faith based development?

MOORE: Right.

I see that there's a natural pairing that happens with faith based organizations and the needs in the community.

Often the mission of a faith based organization is to feed the hungry and house the poor and really take care of our most vulnerable populations, which are often the ones who need the housing the most.

Seniors face isolation, loneliness, and they're really about building community.

That's the mission of the St.

Margaret's Episcopal Church is about building community.

That's what they want to do.

And they also have -- churches often have stronger volunteer bases that can also add another layer of help to these communities.

THOMPSON: You know, there are just so many great examples nationally where they have not just created a few units, but hundreds of units, and there's also more available land, I think.

LAGUERRE: Yeah.

And to that point about the land, I think, you know, there's reports that show from Connecticut to California, there's declining church attendance and even some church closures.

And I think some of that land can be reallocated for affordable and available housing.

THOMPSON: Good point.

Well, we'll have to leave it there for time, but thanks for these great thoughts, team.

We hope you enjoyed this exploration of some of the challenges and solutions around housing.

If you want to go deeper on the issues, head to our web page or share the episode with a friend or neighbor and see what they think.

For Emiko Moore and Hernz Laguerre, Jr., I'm Ann Thompson.

We'll be back with more solutions soon.

Take care.