25 Years. A mission built to last, made to grow.

A look back at the people, partnerships, and pivotal moments that built the Affordable Housing Trust - 2001 to 2026.

$560M+

LOANS FUNDED

Over the life of the organization

25

YEARS OF IMPACT

From one borrowed desk to a certified CDFI

1,965

UNITS IN 2024

Produced or preserved in our record year

$494M

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY

Regional impact generated in 2024

OPENING OVERVIEW

A quarter-century of closing the gap.

2026 marks a landmark year for the Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus and Franklin County (AHT) as we honor our 25th anniversary.

Twenty-five years ago, a Mayoral task force set out to close a persistent gap in Central Ohio's housing market: too few homes affordable to the working families powering our region's growth. That effort became AHT.

In the quarter-century since, we've grown from two employees and one borrowed desk into a certified Community Development Financial Institution that has funded more than $560 million in loans and helped create or preserve thousands of units of affordable housing across Columbus and Franklin County.

THE MODEL SINCE 2003

"Lend, get repaid, lend again - stretching public dollars with every cycle."

To mark this milestone, we're taking a look back at some of the people, partnerships, and pivotal moments that built AHT into what it is today. What follows isn't a comprehensive history it's a highlight reel of the accomplishments we're most proud of from 25 years of serving our community.

A LOOK BACK | 2001 - 2026

Twenty-five years, told in moments.

From a single task force in 2000 to $560 million in loans today, here are the moments that shaped the Affordable Housing Trust - a quarter century of impact, told year by year.

THE FIRST ERA

2000-2010

THE FOUNDATION

A task force idea becomes a public-private partnership — and the first dollars go out the door.

2000

A TASK FORCE IS BORN

  • On February 24, 2000, Mayor Michael Coleman announces the creation of the Columbus Housing Task Force, charging a 16-member group of citizens to design the city's first housing trust fund.
  • The Task Force presents its final report and recommendations to the Mayor on September 21, 2000, laying the foundation for what would become the Affordable Housing Trust.

Former Mayor Michael B. Coleman

2001

THE TRUST IS ESTABLISHED

  • The Affordable Housing Trust is formally established. An eleven-member Board of Directors holds its first meeting, with Donald B. Shackelford as founding Chairman.
  • Franklin County joins the City of Columbus as a funding partner, contributing $1 million per year to the trust fund marking a public/private partnership unique in Ohio, and possibly the nation. The organization is renamed the Columbus/Franklin County Affordable Housing Trust.
  • August 1, 2001 is recognized as AHT's official "start date," and Warren W. Tyler is hired as the organization's first President.

2002

FIRST LOAN CLOSED

  • AHT closes its very first loan. Within the first year, loan commitments reach $5 million.
  • Offices move to a location on Mound Street

2003

THE MODEL PROVES ITSELF

  • AHT produces its first Annual Report. To date, loan commitments total $7.5 million, supporting the creation or improvement of 1,000 housing units and leveraging $86 million in additional public and private capital.
  • Loan repayments begin, fulfilling AHT's founding strategy: dollars loaned, repaid, and recycled into new projects. The model that has held for 25 years: lend, get repaid, lend again — stretching public dollars with every cycle.

2004

FIRST MILLION-DOLLAR LOAN

  • AHT disburses its first $1 million loan, supporting Waggoner Woods, 175 rental housing units in the Blacklick area of Franklin County. Total loans and land investment surpass $8.3 million to date.
  • Warren Tyler retires as President.

Waggoner Woods

2005

THE COUNTY TRIPLES DOWN

  • Mark K. Milligan becomes President. The organization is renamed the Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus & Franklin County. Total investment surpasses $10 million to date.
  • Franklin County Commissioners vote to increase the real estate conveyance fee by $1 per $1,000 of sales price — more than tripling the County's annual support for AHT.

2006

SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND HOME AGAIN

  • AHT funds its first supportive housing loan, helping Community Housing Network acquire a 24-unit property on Livingston Avenue.
  • Milligan joins Mayor Coleman to launch the Home Again initiative, a partnership to combat vacant and abandoned housing in Columbus. The Board designates the City County Holding Company (CCHC), a new AHT subsidiary, to manage Home Again projects.
  • Milligan retires; Steven D. Gladman becomes President. Offices move to a Fifth Street location.

Former AHT President,
Steve Gladman

2007

REBUILDING FRANKLINTON

  • Rehab work begins on Home Again houses in the Franklinton neighborhood. Total loans and land investment surpass $20 million to date.
  • The Ohio Housing Finance Agency commits $1.5 million to AHT for acquiring, demolishing, constructing, and rehabilitating vacant properties in Columbus. By year's end, CCHC rehabilitates and sells sixteen houses.

2008

EXPANDING TO THE EASTSIDE

  • CCHC's Home Again work expands from Franklinton to Columbus's near Eastside. Total loans and land investment surpass $33 million to date.
  • AHT, State Senator Charleta Tavares, and Enterprise Community Partners convene a summit to develop a Foreclosure Prevention and Recovery Plan for the region.

Home Again Housing

2009

COME HOME CENTRAL OHIO

  • AHT receives a grant from the City of Columbus and Franklin County to launch Come Home Central Ohio, marketing the sale and rental of affordable housing.
  • AHT sells its final Home Again home. 32 houses fully rehabilitated and sold to moderate-income families over the life of the program.
  • AHT assists the City and County in securing Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) funds, allowing nonprofit partners to rehabilitate additional vacant houses.

Come Home Central Ohio

2010

NEARING THE $50 MILLION MARK

  • Total loans and land investment surpass $47 million to date. New loans totaling $8.38 million are made during the year, producing more than 870 new or rehabilitated housing units. By year end, AHT commits an additional $1.85 million toward 72 more units.

THE SECOND ERA

2011-2018

PROVING THE MODEL

Ten thousand units and counting: the model proves it can grow, adapt, and build beyond its first decade.

2011

A DECADE OF IMPACT

  • AHT celebrates its 10th Anniversary. Since 2001, the Trust commits more than $47 million to workforce housing, translating into the creation or preservation of 5,440 housing units across Columbus and Franklin County.

Cornerstone Commons

2012

THE CHARLES OPENS

  • Construction is completed on The Charles, a mixed-use building at East Long and 17th Streets in the King-Lincoln District, built with $2.2 million in Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds. The building houses AHT's relocated offices, ten Columbus Scholar House apartments for low-income residents, and ground-floor retail space.

The Charles

2015

A NEW HOME ON SOUTH THIRD

  • AHT moves its offices to its current downtown location on South Third Street, allowing the former office space in The Charles to be converted into an onsite daycare facility for Scholar House residents.

2016-18

CDFI Certification + PIVOTING TOE WORKFORCE HOUSING

  • AHT becomes a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) marking a transformational step that opens access to federal capital and new institutional relationships.
  • As federal grant equity declines and land and construction costs rise, AHT raises its maximum loan amount, lengthens loan terms, and expands its focus into workforce housing.

THE MODERN ERA

2019-2026

SCALE & REGION

New capital tools, new leadership, and an eight-county footprint - the era that takes the Trust from city to region.

2019

THE HOUSING ACTION FUND

  • AHT works with Huntington Bank and thirteen business and nonprofit investors to form the Housing Action Fund (HAF), a new financial tool to help close the affordable housing gap in Franklin County. As of January 17, 2020, HAF closes on $100 million of committed capital, significant not only for its size, but for the diversity of investors who came together to build it.

2020

SERVING THROUGH THE PANDEMIC

  • AHT navigates a year of fully remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, continuing to serve Central Ohio's affordable housing needs throughout.

2021

20 YEARS AND 13,000 HOMES

  • After 15 years of service, Steve Gladman retires. AHT welcomes new leadership as Lark Mallory becomes the 4th President and CEO in the organization's history.
  • AHT celebrates its 20th Anniversary. Over 20 years, AHT funds more than $252 million in loans, assisting in the creation or preservation of 13,000 units of affordable housing.

Past, Present, Future Event

2022

EDAP AND THE GRANT PROGRAM LAUNCH

  • AHT launches the Emerging Developers Accelerator Program (EDAP), a minority developer cultivation and training program creating pathways to development careers for historically underrepresented groups, and the AHT Grant Program for Housing Innovation, funding home repairs and housing-related initiatives for nonprofits.
  • AHT's first EDAP-adjacent grant awards go to MORPC and Lifecare Alliance for home repair programs; Creative Living, Homeport, Huckleberry House, and Star House receive nonproduction grants.

EDAP 1st Cohort Kick-Off

2023

A NEW CHAIR AND A
$60 mILLION REGIONAL REACH

  • In November, AHT celebrates the retirement of Robert Weiler, Sr. as Board Chair, capping a tenure on the Board dating back to 2001 and as Chair since 2018. AHT welcomes Lauren Hagan as the next Board Chair — the third person to serve in the role, and the first woman.
  • AHT announces the launch of the Regional Impact Fund (RIF), a $60 million initiative developed with key investors to expand affordable housing investment across an eight-county region, including Franklin, its contiguous counties, and Knox County — extending AHT's mission to a larger footprint across Central Ohio.

Regional Impact Fund Launch with Investors

2024

THE BIGGEST YEAR ON RECORD

  • AHT records its biggest year on record: $76 million in loans, 1,965 housing units produced or preserved, and an estimated $494 million in regional economic activity generated.

2025

THE FIFTH PRESIDENT

  • AHT hires Ian Labitue to serve as the organization's 5th President and CEO.

Incoming President & CEO, Ian Labitue

2026

25 YEARS, $560 MILLION, AND COUNTING

  • Today, AHT's impact spans 25 years of serving Central Ohio, having funded a total of $560 million in loans over the life of the organization.

LOOKING FORWARD

Here's to the next 25.

Twenty-five years ago, AHT set out to prove that public and private partners, working together, could close Central Ohio's affordable housing gap. Today, that partnership is stronger than ever.


As we look toward the next chapter, AHT remains committed to the mission that founded us: creating pathways to homeownership, preserving affordable rental housing, and investing in the neighborhoods that make Columbus and Franklin County a place families are proud to call home. With new leadership in place, an expanded regional footprint through the Regional Impact Fund, and a growing pipeline, we are more prepared than ever to meet the housing needs of a growing community.

Thank you to the funders, partners, developers, and community members who made the last 25 years possible.