1,100 Faith Properties on 2,000 Acres: San Diego Churches Look to Their Land to Ease the Housing Crisis

• San Diego County identified about 1,100 faith community properties on more than 2,000 acres
• Clairemont Lutheran Church planned 16 to 21 apartments on its parking lot
• St Paul’s Episcopal Church in Walnut Creek built St Paul’s Commons with 45 affordable apartments
• A San Diego “Yes in God’s Backyard” working group was formed to unlock faith land

In California, where the median home price had reached $549,000 and median rent $2,800, churches were beginning to ask what their land could do. A Religion News Service report carried by The Banner in November 2019 described a growing “Yes in God’s Backyard” movement.

In San Diego County, officials identified about 1,100 properties owned by faith communities on more than 2,000 acres. A YIGBY working group was formed to help congregations activate underused sites, and the county tax collector, Dan McAllister, was among those involved in the discussion.

Clairemont Lutheran Church planned 16 to 21 apartments on its parking lot. Its pastor, Jonathan Doolittle, put it simply: “Jesus very clearly tells us to keep our eyes open to those who are in need.” Tom Theisen, a retired attorney and former chair of the Regional Task Force on the Homeless, argued for scale: “It’s hard to create any change when you’re talking about individual small projects.” He added: “The idea is to start building housing and start putting people in houses.”

In Northern California, St Paul’s Episcopal Church in Walnut Creek had already built St Paul’s Commons, a mixed-use development with 45 affordable apartments. “This is just one part of how we live out our faith,” said the Rev Krista Fregoso.

The report captured the early stage of a movement that has since spread across the United States. The key insight was that churches collectively control a large amount of well-located land, often car parks and yards used only once or twice a week, and that coordination between congregations and public agencies can turn scattered plots into a meaningful supply of homes.

Jamaica has no county-by-county inventory of church land, but congregations sit in almost every town. The San Diego approach of mapping faith-owned sites and then helping willing churches plan projects is one that church bodies, housing agencies and diaspora-backed groups in Jamaica could study before deciding what their own land might contribute.

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