Good Next Step

Is your church exploring how to use its land or buildings for affordable housing or community-serving development?

The Good Next Step Grant Program is here to help! This unique, pay-it-forward initiative helps churches in Wisconsin move from vision to action with the funding and expert guidance needed to complete critical pre-development work.

Why Apply?

Receive up to $40,000 in grant funds to support feasibility and early pre-development work
Keep control of your property throughout pre-development and ensure it is used for community good
Partner with trusted, mission-aligned development professionals
Access tools and resources tailored specifically for churches
Position your project for success and future funding
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How It Works

Imagine

Complete the Good Futures Accelerator or some similar discernment process for how to use your land.

Apply

Complete the application process and contribute $20,000 towards pre-development costs.

Receive Grant

RootedGood matches your funds with a $40,000 grant. (2:1 match)

Complete Pre-Development

Your development partner completes a comprehensive feasibility and early pre-development process: site analysis, zoning review, massing, pro forma, and more.

Pay It Forward

When your project is completed, the full $60,000 of pre-development cost is paid forward out the value created in the project in order to support another church’s project.

An Example

First Church has completed the Good Futures Accelerator course and is ready to explore the feasibility of developing housing on their land in Wisconsin. Working with RootedGood, and a mission-aligned development partner like Threshold Sacred Development, they complete the Good Next Steps application process and receive a $40,000 grant. First Church contributes $20,000 for a total of $60,000 which is paid to the development partner for feasibility and pre-development services. The feasibility process shows what is possible on the land and helps the church move into the next phase of development successfully. When the project begins, and financial value is created through the development, the $60,000 is paid back to RootedGood out of the proceeds of a construction loan, land sale, or lease agreement. RootedGood recycles that money so that another church in Wisconsin can go through the same process. In this way as much as $450 million of community benefit development will happen in Wisconsin and thousands of people will have new places to live and experience community.

Who Should Apply?

Churches in Wisconsin that have completed the Good Futures Accelerator or a similar planning process, and who are ready to explore
development that includes community benefit—such as affordable housing, sustainability, or community gathering spaces.
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Ready to Take the Next Step?

Contact us at info@rootedgood.org to receive the full program description and application.

Let’s build a better future together—one church site at a time.