Ann Arbor’s affordable housing crisis has prompted the city to look at creative ways to address the shortage. A retiring U of M real estate professor has started a nonprofit called the Equitable Ann Arbor Land Trust with a goal of creating 1,000-5,000 affordable and market-rate housing units in the next 5-10 years. It’s job would be to match the developer to the project. The land trust would get advance zoning change approvals, site planning, utility taps and other public approvals and negotiate the land sale or lease terms so the site would be “shovel ready.” The advance legwork would help eliminate some of the risk of real estate development. The land trust would earn a fee based on the developed land value from the land owner and possibly earn a long-term partnership interest in the development. The land trust’s revenue would be reinvested in further deals to improve Ann Arbor’s sustainability and affordability concerns. It benefits the city and the developer, too. The city increases its tax revenue, and the developer lowers its risk.