Since CILBA is a new organization with limited programmatic funding from the Illinois Housing Development Agency (IHDA), the land bank will seek to do pilot initiatives during 2020-21 in member communities such as demolitions, rehabilitations, and strategic land/building acquisitions.
Three focus areas of CILBA in 2022:
Help local governments sell surplus property: work with member communities interested to convert surplus land owned by local government into productive reuse through sale to responsible parties or redevelopment by the land bank. Assist members in identifying appropriate properties to acquire or preserve going forward.
Technical Assistance and pursuing grants jointly: pursuing partnership approaches with local governments, including demolitions, planning activities, and realignment of government processes (code enforcement, tax sales, and abandonment), that increase the overall capacity of local governments to drive positive investment.
Catalytic Projects: engage in data-driven and market-sensitive catalytic development to attract new investment. This means developing specific plans or strategies for each of the member communities and recognizing that one plan may work in one community, but not in another.
