“The Lorain County Land Bank applied Jan. 12 for the Welcome Home Ohio grant, a state-funded program that awards counties and municipalities grants to increase access to affordable housing. The land bank applied for 65 lots owned by the Cities of Oberlin, Elyria, and Lorain, as well as the Greater Cleveland Habitat for Humanity. Should the grant be fully funded, Oberlin would receive $100,000 for each of its 10 lots to lower the cost of constructing affordable housing on the site.” – The Oberlin Review, March 6, 2026.
The Review explained, “If funds are awarded, CBP will be developing modular homes for Oberlin lots — houses that are built off-site and then assembled on the lot. The application estimates that it will take around 90 days to build each unit, with a two-year total construction period. These numbers are based on Welcome Home Sandusky, a set of WHO-funded housing units developed in Sandusky by CBP.
“CEO of Community Building Partners Joe Recchie confirmed the similarities between the two projects. ‘Our plan is to replicate the strong collaborative experience that we had in Sandusky and capitalize on the refinements in the state’s Welcome Home program to accelerate the process of home building and delivery,’ Recchie wrote in an email to the Review.”
Community Building Partners would like to provide a small correction for interested buyers about the sale price: The homes will be sold for around $206,000, significantly less than the home’s value.
Read the complete article in the Oberlin Review here.
Pictured above: A home from the successful Welcome Home program in Sandusky, Ohio, similar to what will be constructed in Oberlin if the grant is awarded.
