crowdsourcing and beta community if you will.

They formed an LLC, named it the Curtis Park Investors Group, and sold $5000 shares, with each share garnering a vote. There was enough collective talent within the neighborhood to provide all the expertise needed, resulting in the contemporary four-townhouse Champa Terrace (lower image), which sold out within a month. Not only that, the resident investors enjoyed both a 65% return on their investment along with enhanced property values.

The logical next step for Bellem was to establish a development company, Grassroots Neighborhood Development, and completed a second project - a $2.5 million, award-winning six-townhouse development called Merchant’s Row (upper image), achieving that rare balance of human-scaled modern design. Attainability for both owner and renter is key - the homes feature a rentable basement, and a fully integrated Building Information Modeling (BIM) process cut subcontractor bids by almost a third in some areas.

The group is now seeking a third project. Read more about this phenomenal process and its resulting buildings here.