A church parking lot could become affordable housing. A nonprofit may envision a childcare center or neighborhood clinic. But for Miami organizations that own property, deciding what to build is only the beginning. They must also weigh costs, find trustworthy partners and protect the mission that brought them there.<\/p>\n
That is the focus of \u201cDevelop to Serve,\u201d a free, two-day summit taking place Oct. 5-6, hosted by the City of Miami in partnership with Collective Empowerment Group of South Florida (CEG). Led by Mayor Eileen Higgins, the initiative will help faith-based and nonprofit leaders explore whether developing property they own or control could serve their communities.<\/p>\n
Higgins said the idea grew from conversations with pastors and nonprofit leaders who wanted to help address Miami\u2019s housing crisis but lacked development experience. More than 500 faith-based and nonprofit organizations own property in the city, she said, and more than 20% of that property is vacant or substantially underused.<\/p>\n
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(L-R) CEG President Emeritus Rev. Dr. R. Joaquin Willis, City of Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins and CEG President and CEO Bernard Phanord.\u00a0<\/p>\n
(Courtesy of Mayor Eileen Higgins’ Office)<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is an opportunity, but it also comes with some risk for these organizations. They\u2019re all mission-driven organizations. Whether it\u2019s a church serving a community or a not-for-profit helping seniors or kids, that\u2019s not their core competency,\u201d Higgins said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Bernard Phanord, CEG\u2019s president and CEO, said the partnership unites various organizations that people already turn to for different kinds of help, bridging resources together.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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CEG President and CEO Bernard Phanord.<\/p>\n
(Bernard Phanord)<\/p>\n
\u201cSome people that may simply go to their houses of worship, their pastor, their clergy leader for support, and then you have those that may not be as familiar with the houses of worship, and they only just go to their elected official for support,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re really merging two worlds together to be able to provide the most good to the most amount of people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Learning before building<\/p>\n
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Mayor Eileen Higgins during a city budget hearings.<\/p>\n
(Mayor Eileen Higgins via Instagram)<\/p>\n
The summit will explain how projects move from ideation to construction, how financing works and how organizations can separate existing operations from development. City and county staff are expected to answer zoning and permitting questions. Attendees can book 20-minute sessions with professionals in land use, architecture, law and finance, Higgins said.<\/p>\n
An opening conversation will feature Pastor Robert Jackson III of St. Paul AME Church and a representative of Trinity Church in New York, which runs a faith-based housing initiative. Other participants include local nonprofits, lenders, developers and University of Miami design faculty.<\/p>\n
A session entitled \u201cMoney vs. Ministry\u201d will address concerns pastors have already expressed to Higgins, including whether development could jeopardize a church\u2019s mission or tax status. Experts will discuss ways to structure a project.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have spoken to pastors and leaders of nonprofits that are very interested in doing this, but they\u2019re not experts. These organizations are also organizations residents trust, but the complexity and cost of early-stage work \u2014 stuff like site analysis, feasibility, financing strategies \u2014 can be intimidating,\u201d Higgins said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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CEG President and CEO Bernard Phanord and CEG President Emeritus Rev. Dr. R. Joaquin Willis at a previous summit held in 2025.<\/p>\n
(Amelia Orjuela Da Silva for The Miami Times)<\/p>\n
Phanord said participants should leave better equipped to decide whether to pursue development.<\/p>\n
\u201cAbove all, it\u2019s just to provide information and knowledge for people to make a wise and educated decision regarding their real estate asset,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
That information could help a pastor bring an idea to the people who would need to approve it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pastor might have a vision, may have to go through a board, also present it to the congregation, and then from there they can then move forward with the next steps,\u201d Phanord said.<\/p>\n
He added that many houses of worship already have plans to expand services for their neighborhoods but need support to carry them out.<\/p>\n
Affordable housing will likely be a major focus, Higgins said, but participants may also consider childcare centers, schools, business incubators and other land uses.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe state changed the law to allow faith-based communities to build housing by right, but that makes them very vulnerable to developers. If they don\u2019t have their city watching out for them and trusted partners watching out for them, they could get ripped off.\u201d -City of Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins<\/p>\n
(City of Miami)<\/p>\n
An opportunity with risks<\/p>\n
A change in Florida law has made the discussion more timely. House Bill 1389<\/a>, effective July 1, extends provisions of the Live Local Act to certain religious properties. The provisions can apply to property larger than three acres that a religious institution owns and that has contained a house of public worship for 10 years. Developments must still meet other requirements; church ownership alone does not guarantee approval.<\/p>\n Higgins said the change increases the need for congregations to understand their options before negotiating with developers.<\/p>\n Grand Bahamas Place is a project spearheaded by a partnership between Prospera Real Estate Collective, the Collective Empowerment Group (CEG) and Believers of Authority Ministries.<\/p>\n (Borges Architects)<\/p>\n \u201cThe state changed the law to allow faith-based communities to build housing by right,\u201d she said. \u201cBut that makes them very vulnerable to developers\u2026 If they don\u2019t have their city watching out for them and trusted partners watching out for them, they could get ripped off.\u201d<\/p>\n She described a pastor whose church signed a contract with a developer who still has not developed the land after five years. The church did not seek competing proposals, Higgins said.<\/p>\n \u201cWorking with the first person that says \u2018I can do this\u2019 is not always the way to do it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n CEG President and CEO Bernard Phanord speaks at a summit held in 2025.<\/p>\n (Amelia Orjuela Da Silva for The Miami Times)<\/p>\n For a small church, an agreement involving its land can carry especially high stakes. Phanord said leaders may worry about spending money on a stalled project, entering a poor deal or losing their property.<\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest risk I would think most pastors and clergy are thinking of is, am I going to lose this asset?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The city has also considered a broader local route for housing on institutional land. In January, commissioners voted<\/a>4-1 against a zoning change that would have allowed qualifying affordable housing on land owned by or affiliated with religious, educational and nonprofit institutions without a public hearing.<\/p>\n From summit to cohorts<\/p>\n After the summit, interested organizations can apply for a technical assistance cohort led by the CEG, Phanord said. A small group will receive focused training and, after completing the cohort, technical assistance funding toward proposed projects.<\/p>\n Higgins expects the cohort to work on up to five projects, including feasibility studies, partnerships and connections to financing and development teams. The city can help with planning, zoning and permitting once organizations decide to proceed.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, what success would look like is that by the end of 2027, we have three to five projects that are really moving along,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd ready to enter permitting and be breaking ground very, very quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n Faith Place Village has 37 townhomes available for prospective homeowners. Groundbreaking is expected before the end of fall 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n (Faith Place Village )<\/p>\n CEG has experience with houses of worship considering development and is even pursuing some of its own housing projects. Phanord said aWest Coconut Grove project<\/a> is undergoing entitlement and site-plan review, with a hoped-for 2027 groundbreaking, while 37 townhomes at Faith Place Village<\/a>are expected to break ground before the end of this fall. He expects five homes on infill lots to be finished between late September and December, with more targeted for completion by the end of 2027.<\/p>\n For Phanord, progress could mean a congregation considers a clinic, school, business incubator or gathering space. It could also decide against developing after reviewing the facts.<\/p>\n \u201cThe goal would be, did you guys have an honest conversation amongst your leadership?\u201d Phanord said. \u201cAre you taking that next step to say, \u2018Hey, we\u2019re ready, willing and able to go along with this process\u2019? Because even in the event you choose to decide not to do anything with that site, it would at least be based on the information that you would have obtained.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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