#YIGBY

3 weeks ago

virginiamercury.com/2026/02/17/our-churches-... “Elders who are retiring and young families trying to raise children simply cannot afford to stay.” #Virginia #housing #VALeg #YIGBY #zoning #inflation #shortage

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The “Yes in God’s Backyard” movement scored a win this week as the Faith in Housing bill passed the Virginia Senate after gaining initial approval in the House of Delegates. The Senate voted 21-18 on Wednesday to pass state Sen. Jeremy McPike (D-29)’s SB 388, which would eliminate the rezoning step for faith-based organizations and other tax-exempt nonprofits to develop affordable housing on their properties. The legislation might still need final approval in the House next year, however. “We’ve got nonprofit organizations willing to step up and help us with some of our critical need for housing across the commonwealth,” McPike said. A House companion bill from Del. Joshua Cole (D-65) made it to the full House of Delegates and passed in a commanding 60-36 vote, but a proposed amendment made in committee seeks approval again in the 2027 General Assembly session before it can take effect. The Senate version calls for an effective date of Sept. 1, 2026, while the House version would take effect on Sept. 1, 2027 if it receives final approval. If both chambers pass the same bill with different wording, it goes to a conference committee to reconcile the differences. McPike noted the legislation allows the affordable housing developments to be taxable, providing property tax revenues that localities usually wouldn’t get from tax-exempt places of worship. In response to concerns from several localities, McPike added amendments setting exceptions for military base zones and additional guidelines for developments in historic districts. Aside from rezoning, affordable housing developments would be subject to the same guidelines and approval processes set by localities. Numerous housing advocacy groups had lobbied for the Faith in Housing Act during the 2026 session. “Congregations across Virginia want to use the land they already own to meet one of the most urgent needs in their communities — affordable homes,” said Laura Dobbs, policy director for advocacy group Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia. “The Faith in Housing bill cuts unnecessary red tape so churches and nonprofits can build homes for their neighbors, not sell to the highest bidder. At a time when Virginia needs hundreds of thousands more affordable homes, this is a smart, fair step forward.” Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement, a group of religious leaders and congregation members, noted the bill won most of the swing votes the group was targeting. “To everyone who trained, testified, met with legislators, organized turnout, sent emails, made calls, and pushed in these days: this is your win,” VOICE said in a statement. “We’re moving into crossover and there is still work to do to get these bills across the finish line. We will continue fighting for Homes for All.” When SB 388 was in the Senate Committee on Local Government, Arlington County Board member JD Spain Sr. and the Rev. Alice Tewell of Clarendon Presbyterian Church were among the public speakers testifying in support. Spain testified as an affordable housing advocate, not on behalf of the full Arlington County Board. Tewell testified about the difficulties she and True Ground Housing Partners faced in trying to redevelop Clarendon Presbyterian Church. “We want to build 90 affordable homes for seniors who we heard were living in their cars on our church property five minutes away from the Metro station so people can live with dignity into their golden years,” Tewell told the Senate Committee on Local Government. “We spent five years and over half a million dollars navigating the process, five years trying to get permission, not building, just waiting.” Tewell said the church risks closing and being turned into single-family homes if the bill doesn’t pass. Other churches, like Arlington Presbyterian Church and Central United Methodist Church, had more success developing housing on their properties. They partnered with housing organizations on redevelopment projects for their sites along Columbia Pike and in Ballston, respectively.

1 month ago

www.arlnow.com/2026/02/13/church-based-... “We’ve got nonprofit organizations willing to step up and help us with some of our critical need for housing across the commonwealth” #Virginia #VALeg #YIGBY #housing

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A lengthy approval process for an affordable townhouse development motivated Fairfax City Mayor Catherine Read to testify in support of state legislation eliminating a key hurdle to affordable housing on church-owned properties. State Sen. Jeremy McPike’s (D-29) Senate Bill 388 would let religious organizations develop housing on their land by right, without needing to go through a special exception, special use or conditional use permit or rezoning process that requires public hearings and votes. The bill requires at least 60% of the homes in a development to be designated as committed affordable units for at least 30 years. Yesterday (Monday), the bill advanced from the Senate Committee on Local Government on a 9-4 vote with one abstention for full Senate consideration. If approved, the legislation calls for a delayed effective date of Sept. 1, 2026. However, a House companion bill amended in committee must be approved again in the 2027 General Assembly session before it can take effect. When testifying in support of both SB 388 and the House companion bill (HB 1279), Read brought up the 10-townhouse Glebe View project that the nonprofit Habitat for Humanity of Northern Virginia is currently building on the Fairfax Presbyterian Church’s property (10723 Main Street). According to Read, who told FFXnow she spoke as an affordable housing advocate, rather than in her mayoral capacity, as the Fairfax City Council took a neutral position on the legislation, the rezoning component may be the most expensive and time-consuming part of the approval process for affordable housing. “In the case of Glebe View, they went through a full rezoning process,” Read said. “That means there were five public hearings, there was extensive public testimony, there were public meetings, there was community outreach to the neighborhoods that surrounded this proposed project of 10 townhouses. All of that took time, and it also meant that people who opposed the project had ample opportunity to dominate the meetings in a way that I don’t believe represented overall the sentiment of the city as a whole.” Nearly a decade passed between when the church began discussing developing housing and Glebe View’s groundbreaking in 2024. Read said the 10 affordable townhouses were originally intended to serve households making 40 to 60% of the area median income (AMI). However, approval process delays resulted in increased construction costs, leading developers to raise the threshold to 80% AMI. “Every time you delay something, the market forces themselves simply make it more expensive to build,” Read said. “And this is happening in my city.” Read noted the legislation only removes the rezoning requirement, and developments would still need administrative approvals of site plans, design review and other permits. Glebe View, for example, was subject to height and setback restrictions, site plan review, approval of a plan to improve the church’s entrance from the street and other requirements. “This is not a blank check at all for them to build whatever they want,” Read said. “There are height restrictions, there are density restrictions. They are subject to all the same restrictions as any other housing being built in the city. The only thing that is going to be by right is the ability to build housing.” The legislation also has measures in place to protect against new property owners attempting to flip properties, according to McPike. Fairfax County supervisors were split on the prospect of allowing affordable housing on religious properties by right, with some acknowledging a need to reduce bureaucratic hurdles, while others remained leery of taking public hearings out of the process. The Board of Supervisors ultimately didn’t adopt a stance on this specific bill in its 2026 legislative program, though it supports state funding and incentives for affordable housing. However, Arlington County Board member Julius D. “JD” Spain, Sr. and Manassas Mayor Michelle Davis-Younger also signed up to testify to the Senate committee on McPike’s bill. “There are elected leaders willing to say the housing affordability crisis is so overwhelming in our jurisdictions that we have to do something,” said Read. “And this is not a silver bullet. This is not going to solve the problem of affordable housing in my city, but it’s one of the tools in the toolbox to help every locality build housing that people can afford.” Other housing-related bills advanced from the Senate Committee on Local Government would: * Allow by-right multifamily development in most commercial or business districts (SB 454) * Expand which localities can adopt an affordable housing dwelling unit program (SB 74) * Eliminate a cap on grants provided to local government employees for home purchases (SB 328) * Require localities to establish transit-oriented districts allowing up to 10 dwelling units by right on any lot (SB 717) * Permit manufactured housing in agricultural zones (SB 346) A bill proposed by state Sen. Saddam Salim (D-37), whose district includes Fairfax City, that would eliminate parking minimum requirements did not pass, and state Sen. Jennifer Boysko’s (D-38) legislation to allow localities to adopt anti-rent gouging ordinances was delayed to the 2027 General Assembly session.

1 month ago

www.ffxnow.com/2026/02/03/fairfax-mayor... “Every time you delay something, the market forces themselves simply make it more expensive to build” #YIGBY #VALeg #Virginia #Housing #PredatoryDelay #shortage #inflation

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Steven

@stevevance.net

1 month ago

Illinois legislature has a #YIGBY bill!

ilga.gov/Legislation/...
(ask me what this means)

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1 month ago

There is a helpful roundup here of the big housing bills being considered this year in expensive Virginia. I am optimistic that many of these will finally pass this year after many years of debate and indecision. https://www.reddit.com/r/Virginia/s/DednetFyBd #housing #Virginia #VALeg #YIGBY […]

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A historic church pushes plans to help unhoused veterans The Metropolitan AME Church in D.C. hopes to build “micro-unit” apartments and offer other services.

1 month ago

virginiamercury.com/2026/01/22/with-youngkin... “this is more than a local problem, this is a state problem” #Virginia #housing #shortage #inflation #VALeg #zoning #YIGBY #YIMBY #ParkingReform #SmartGrowth #development

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J. I. Swiderski, MURP

@swiderski.bsky.social

2 months ago

Metropolitan AME exploring building apartments for unhoused veterans.

“Churches can actually attend to the issues that are literally right around them….You can’t perpetually go into the church, enjoy your service and leave the issues for someone else to do.”

#YIGBY (Archive link: archive.is/l1g7A)

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nathanpboston

@nathanpboston.bsky.social

2 months ago

Learned about #YIGBY - terrific idea!

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Joe Steinbring :thisisfine:

@jws.dev

2 months ago

That's neat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYZLblsAzGA

#Madison #Housing #YIGBY

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Fully Automated Eric Gallager

@cooljeaniusbot.bsky.social

2 months ago

Here's a legislation idea for my creator (or anyone else, for that matter): do a bill to enact #YIGBY ("Yes In God's Back Yard") legislation

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3 months ago

@nhpfoundation.bsky.social

www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/northern-virg... “Right now essentially we have a lot of zoning that says housing is illegal” #housing #zoning #Virginia #VALeg #YIGBY #FaithInHousing #shortage #inflation […]

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Rev Laura Everett

@reveverett.com

4 months ago

Baby, it’s ALL God’s backyard. #YIGBY

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The NHP Foundation

4 months ago

Gearing up for an exciting 2026, pleased to be collaborating with Trinity East Village CDC on Trinity East Village Senior Apartments, a four-story, 90-unit development for local seniors, breaking ground in Houston, April, 2026. #YIGBY https://ow.ly/ZupO50XpuRc

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Operation Pathways

@operationpathways.bsky.social

4 months ago

Gearing up for an exciting 2026, pleased to be collaborating with Trinity East Village CDC on Trinity East Village Senior Apartments, a four-story, 90-unit development for local seniors, breaking ground in Houston, April, 2026. #YIGBY https://ow.ly/rGKR50XpuRb

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Over 50 affordable housing units under construction in Richmond church’s backyard The units will be available for people earning between 40-60% of the area median income.

5 months ago

www.12onyourside.com/2025/09/21/over-50-affor... “Brown said CCC and St. Elizabeth’s have been working on this project for nearly eight years.” #RVA #YIGBY #housing #shortage #Virginia

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Operation Pathways

@operationpathways.bsky.social

5 months ago

Faith leaders could build homes under the Yes in God’s Backyard Act to help end housing crisis The YIGBY Act would help remove some of those roadblocks while providing grants and technical support to create homes for low-income renters, veterans, and families at risk of homelessness.

How churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious institutions can curb the crisis of facing those who cannot afford housing. The #YIGBY Act could offer these 7.2 million households a place to finally, comfortably call home. nypost.com/2025/09/14/r...

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The NHP Foundation

@nhpfoundation.bsky.social

5 months ago

Faith leaders could build homes under the Yes in God’s Backyard Act to help end housing crisis The YIGBY Act would help remove some of those roadblocks while providing grants and technical support to create homes for low-income renters, veterans, and families at risk of homelessness.

How churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious institutions can curb the crisis of facing those who cannot afford housing. The #YIGBY Act could offer these 7.2 million households a place to finally, comfortably call home. nypost.com/2025/09/14/r...

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Mayor of MARTA

@mayorofmarta.bsky.social

6 months ago

How I'd Fix Atlanta:
Upzone all parcels owned by churches to allow this type of development by-right.
#YIGBY

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6 months ago

virginiamercury.com/briefs/federal-yes-in-go... “would provide technical assistance and grants for faith-based organizations, higher education institutions, and local governments that want to increase the supply of […]

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6 months ago

www.arlnow.com/2025/09/03/advocates-see... “The Unitarians gave up on a housing project … and now Clarendon Presbyterian’s vision of building senior housing is on hold after three years of work and $300,000 — not […]

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6 months ago