Fostering Small Business Growth Through Affordable Office Space
Wondwosen’s Journey to Homeownership Growing up in Ethiopia, Wondwosen Gebrehiwot’s family owned a home. As a father of three, Wondwosen wanted the same for his three children when he moved to the United States six years ago—but he simply couldn’t afford the high cost of homeownership in the Twin Cities, where affordable homeownership opportunities were scarce. “We were living in an apartment in Roseville, and it was very difficult living there,” he said, “really hard raising three children in an apartment.” But then someone he knew said he’d bought a house, with the support of Rondo Community Land Trust. “That’s when I found out there was such an option,” Wondwosen said, “so I directly contacted them and saw they have a one-hour orientation. I registered right away.” Soon, Wondwosen and his family were looking for a home in Ramsey County. Before long, they found the perfect three-bedroom, “Everything I was wishing for, it had,” he says. A large living room, three bedrooms together on the second level, and even a big backyard with playground equipment. How Rondo CLT Made Homeownership Affordable Through Rondo CLT’s Homebuyer Initiated Program, households earning at or below 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI) receive homeownership assistance in the form of affordability grants to purchase homes in Ramsey County. The process length varies but, for Wondwosen it took just seven months — from applying to the program to closing on his home. Benefits of Homeownership: Space, Freedom, and Peace of Mind “The day we moved in, it was the happiest moment of our lives,” Wondwosen recalls. “We were all running all over the place. We were very excited about it. We cannot wait until the weather gets warmer and spend the day out in the backyard.” And he’s able to rest assured that, after he’s been in the home for six months, Rondo CLT will be there to assist with necessary rehabilitations. For Wondwosen and his family, homeownership is so much more than a roof over their heads. “The first thing is freedom,” he says. “It’s a free space. My kids can play in whatever area they want to play in. I was thinking about their freedom.” Learn more about the Homebuyer Initiated Program or contact Rondo CLT to explore your own homeownership journey. Feeling inspired? Support Rondo CLT and help more families thrive in Saint Paul.
As many Organization's celebrate Black History Month in February, Rondo Community Land Trust is proud to be making Black history every day of the year. As we lift up everywhere we go, the community land trust model in the United States was born of Black brilliance. Last February, we wrote about the origin of CLTs in the American South with the establishment of New Communities — a model created explicitly so Black folks could own and control land to shape their own collective futures. In 1993, Rondo became the first CLT in the state of Minnesota, and for the past three decades we’ve embodied principles of cooperative stewardship. In deep collaboration with our community, we’ve secured and preserved property and land so that the Black families and businesses that were dispossessed by the destruction of the I-94 freeway can return — and new Black families and businesses can put down roots. Like our Rondo ancestors who made history with cooperative endeavors like the Credjefawn Social Club and grocery store, Rondo CLT is breaking new ground, gaining international recognition for its innovative Reparative Development Framework that incorporates principles of culture, healing, democratic labor and shared ownership. So as we honor Black History this month, we’re looking back at how our efforts in 2024 contributed to the past and future prosperity of Rondo, Saint Paul, and greater Ramsey County. Advancing Black leadership As an organization, we’ve gathered tremendous momentum in recent years. Since the arrival of our current Executive Director (and daughter of Rondo), Mikeya Griffin, our budget has increased from just $300,000 in 2021 to more than $2.4 million in 2024, and from 1.5 full-time staff in 2021 to 7 FTE in 2024. But it’s more than just financial capacity. Appointed in 2022, Mikeya continues to be the first Black chair of the Minnesota Community Land Trust Coalition and, in 2024, our staff was more than 50% Black. By spring 2025, we aim to grow to 10 staff, increasing our outreach and impact of our innovative reparative framework.