The New Haven Board of Alders unanimously approved the transfer of nine city-owned properties to the New Haven Land Bank on February 18, 2026, at a price of $1 each. The properties, spread across the Hill, Jocelyn Square, and Fair Haven neighborhoods, represent the second batch of city lots transferred to the Land Bank since its creation.
In a separate vote at the same meeting, the alders also approved the sale of four vacant Hill neighborhood lots to Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven for a total of $6,000. The nonprofit housing organization plans to build three two-family homes on the properties and sell them to first-time homebuyers.
Nine New Haven Properties Transferred to Land Bank for $1 Each
The nine properties approved for transfer include six lots in the Hill neighborhood, two in Jocelyn Square, and one in Fair Haven.
The Hill properties are 3 Arthur Street, 8 Dewitt Street, 14 Dewitt Street, 26 Dewitt Street, 56 Button Street, and 105 Greenwood Street. In Jocelyn Square, the city is transferring 156 Humphrey Street, a single-story garage that the city purchased for $51,000 in 2018, and 158 Humphrey Street, a vacant lot. The Fair Haven property at 285 James Street was formerly used as a community garden but has since been abandoned.
No alders or members of the public spoke in opposition to the transfers during the February 18 meeting. The vote was unanimous.
Land Bank’s Mission and New Haven Development Strategy
The New Haven Land Bank, an initiative first proposed by the Elicker Administration in 2022, is designed to acquire blighted and vacant properties throughout the city, bring them up to legal housing standards, and transfer them to affordable housing developers for rehabilitation.
The nine-property transfer is the second batch the Land Bank has received from the city. The first transfer, approved in October 2025, included five vacant lots. With this latest approval, the Land Bank now holds 14 former city-owned properties in its growing portfolio.
The $1 per-property pricing reflects the city’s priority of enabling affordable housing development rather than maximizing revenue from the sales. The properties being transferred are largely vacant lots or structures that have sat unused for years.
For the James Street property in Fair Haven, Alders Caroline Tanbee Smith and her predecessor Claudia Herrera have envisioned combining the city’s lot at 285 James Street with the adjacent privately owned parcel at 287 James Street, owned by Vincent Quinto, to develop a single affordable housing complex on the combined site.