COMMUNITY LAND TRUST
Land Has Always Determined Power
Land — who controls it, who profits from it, and who gets displaced from it — has shaped human history.
In the United States, systems like slavery, redlining, and real estate speculation have all revolved around land.
The South Bronx sits on Lenape land, and like so many places across this country, it has been shaped by decisions made without the people who live here.
For decades, the land we sit on has been used for
Mott Haven and Port Morris have endured:
Highway construction that cut through our communities, locking us into generations of poor air quality that kills us.
Redlining, which denied residents access to loans and investment. This trapped the neighborhood in cycles of disinvestment.
Industrial zoning that prioritizes warehouses and truck traffic over parks and housing.
These decisions shaped our neighborhood without our consent or input. And they continue to shape our future today.
Today, The Pressure Against Us Continues
With a neighborhood median income of ~$24,086, and 54% of children living in poverty, thousands of new luxury units have risen around us, marketed with rooftop lounges and indoor pools.
The question is not whether development happens. It’s not even what gets developed, who it’s for, who benefits, and who suffers.
The question is: who decides?
For Too Long, Decisions About Our Land Have Been Made Without Us
Governments and corporations have treated our neighborhood as a site for extraction.
In the mid 20th-century, government at all levels bulldozed our neighborhoods to build highways through our community. Even today, more than 80% of traffic in the South Bronx is “drive-through” traffic. That means it doesn’t start or end here, but drives through.
In 2012, the City and State granted over $130 million in taxpayer subsidies to FreshDirect, an online grocer, to relocate their diesel trucking warehouse to the South Bronx waterfront.
This decision meant an influx of 1,000 diesel truck trips through our community every day.
Government and corporations alike have used our land to harm us.
Meanwhile, the people who live here have had little say over how our land is used, developed, or protected. We reject that model. Self-determination is non-negotiable.
Decisions About Us Must be Made By Us
Our fight for the land is not about profit. It is about reclaiming our ability to shape what nourishes our community. It is about fighting for clean air, dignified and affordable housing, green spaces and parks, culture, art, and education.
A Community Land Trust Helps Us Take That Power Back
What Is a Community Land Trust?
A community land trust is a nonprofit organization that…
Acquires land
Removes it from speculative real estate markets
Holds it in perpetuity
Governs it democratically with community participation
The land is never flipped for private profit.
Instead, it is protected for long-term community benefit.
That can mean affordable housing, green space, health centers, cultural institutions, or climate-resilient infrastructure.
A CLT creates stability in neighborhoods that would otherwise be vulnerable to displacement.
It turns land into a community asset.
We Are Stewards of the Land
In 1626, the island now known as Manhattan was famously “sold” to Dutch colonizers. But the Lenape people did not share the European concept of private land ownership. Land was not something to be bought and sold. It was something to be cared for.
That understanding still resonates today.
We see ourselves as stewards.
A community land trust is a tool that allows a neighborhood to remove land from the speculative market and hold it permanently for public good.
It shifts land from being a commodity to being a shared responsibility.
The Mott Haven–Port Morris Community Land Stewards (The Land Stewards) is that tool for our community.
How the Mott Haven–Port Morris Community Land Stewards Works
The Mott Haven–Port Morris Community Land Stewards (The Land Stewards) is a nonprofit community land trust.
The Land Stewards is the legal entity that can acquire and hold land. South Bronx Unite organizes, advocates, and builds the community power to push forward the projects of The Land Stewards.
South Bronx Unite builds the movement. The Land Stewards anchors it in the land.
Become a Member and Steward the South Bronx
The community land trust belongs to the community.
If you live or work in Mott Haven or Port Morris, you can become a member of the Mott Haven–Port Morris Community Land Stewards.
Members participate in democratic governance to help shape land acquisition and stewardship decisions.
This ensures our land is guided by the people who call it home.
What We’re Stewarding
The Waterfront Plan
For over a century, the South Bronx has been cut off from its own waterfront access. Industrial zoning and waste facilities made the waterfront something to avoid.
The Mott Haven–Port Morris Waterfront Plan seeks to change that.
Developed by local residents and advocates, this community vision calls for transforming our waterfront into a network of parks, gardens, and resilient shorelines. We envision places where people can breathe, gather, and reconnect with our waterfront.
The HEArts Center
Through The Land Stewards, we’re building a community center designed by us, for us. It will provide holistic health, education, and the arts (HEArts) for South Bronx residents.
This project reimagines unused public infrastructure as a community-controlled hub.
Reclaiming Vacant Sites and Green Spaces
Across Mott Haven and Port Morris, we’re identifying other vacant or neglected lots that could become the next generation of green spaces.
Through The Land Stewards, we’re able to secure these sites for public good.
Learn more through our Green Space and Land Reclamation Program
Development Watch
Real estate speculation is reshaping our neighborhood.
Our Statement of Principles on Private Development sets clear expectations for accountability, affordability, environmental responsibility, and community benefit.