2017

The Methow Housing Trust (MHT) was formed to address the need of affordable housing for Valley residents, following a six-month housing assessment involving a diverse committee of valley residents, sponsored by the post-fire Methow Valley Long Term Recovery Group. MHT gained it’s 501 (c)(3) status in May 2017 and hired Danica Ready as the Executive Director in August of 2017. MHT is one of over 250 community land trusts nationwide. The ribbon cutting ceremony pictured above, was held in 2017, after the purchase of the Canyon Street property in Twisp.


Lee Whittaker approached the MHT with a vision he and his late wife Marilyn had for their property in Mazama. A neighborhood with a mix of affordable and market rate homes. The generous support from the Marilyn Whittaker Fund was the beginning of the Methow Housing Trust’s McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama. Thanks to a significant donation from a private donor, MHT was able to purchase the Canyon Street property in 2017. Through a bridge loan from the Community Foundation of North Central Washington, MHT also purchased property in Winthrop.

2018

2018 saw the beginning of construction, applications for homeownership, development of policies and procedures to support the organization, hiring of additional staff and increased community outreach to share the Community Land Trust model of homeownership with the Methow Valley. In October 2018, the frames of the first homes were complete in both neighborhoods.

CAST Architecture designed the MHT homes. The prioritization of constructing these affordable homes amongst the building, business and broader community helped fast track the completion of nine homes within two years of MHT’s founding. With homes being built, MHT also began to work with applicants and lenders to get things ready for homebuyers to purchase their newly constructed homes in 2019.

2019

Phase one of both the Canyon Street and McKinney Ridge neighborhoods was completed in 2019. Homebuyers purchased their homes and began to form their communities.

Four homes were completed in the McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama by 2019.

Five homes were completed in the Canyon Street Neighborhood in Twisp by 2019.

2020

A total of 9 homes were completed and sold on Canyon Street by 2020. 4 final homes are under construction for completion in 2021.


The McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama was completed with a total of 8 homes built and sold by 2020. New homeowners were welcomed to the neighborhood with a parade in May.


In a year of uncertainty due to a global pandemic, 17 Methow Valley families had secure housing thanks to community support of the Methow Housing Trust.


A generous end of the year donation of ‘shovel ready’ lots to the Methow Housing Trust will enable the construction of 9 homes in the new Cascade Meadows neighborhood in Winthrop over the course of 2022 and 2023.

2021

Strategic Planning for Operational Growth

The Methow Housing Trust’s Board and Staff completed a strategic planning process to define our organizational growth. This plan includes values and strategies to address the increased demand for homeownership through MHT, and the need to be responsive to the changing landscape of housing needs within our broader community. One of these strategies included hiring two new leadership positions within our staff at the close of 2021.

Expanded Eligibility and Increased Demand for MHT Homeownership

After listening carefully to you the Methow Housing Trust expanded program eligibility and defined two pathways to homeownership that correspond to the economic realities of our community. As of March 2022, the MHT waitpool includes 51 households who aspire to homeownership. The demand for owning a Methow Housing Trust home continues to increase significantly year after year.

Completed the Canyon Street Neighborhood

Construction on the final Canyon Street homes in Twisp is complete. MHT’s neighborhoods in Twisp and Mazama now total 21 homes. The neighborhoods are home to: bakers, store clerks, artists, small business owners, educators, health care workers, and volunteers, providing stable, quality housing to local families at every stage in life.

New Partnerships to Expand Housing Opportunities

A new chapter of expanded housing service to our community began in 2021, with a formal partnership being announced with the Housing Authority of Okanogan County to include 22 permanently affordable rental units within MHT’s Cascade Meadows neighborhood in Winthrop. The planned community will also include 40 permanently affordable homes for ownership.

Community Engagement to Advance More Housing Solutions

The Housing Solutions Network, explored and vetted 26 housing solutions for the Methow Valley through community engaged stakeholder meetings during 2021. The next phase of work for this network continues through 5 subcommittees, made up of interested members of the community, focused on finding leadership and funding to move the most promising solutions forward. Learn more about these solutions and get engaged at www.methowhousingsolutions.org

Construction began at the future site of the Cascade Meadows South neighborhood, which would feature 16 affordable, quality MHT homes.

2022

The Methow Housing Trust broke ground at the Cascade Meadows North neighborhood in Winthrop, starting with completing some infrastructure work. There are 24 permanently affordable 1-4 bedroom single family homes planned for this neighborhood. In addition, MHT has signed a memorandum of understand with the Housing Authority of Okanogan County (HAOC) to develop 22 affordable rental units in the neighborhood as well.

We welcomed the first residents of the Cascade Meadows South neighborhood to their new homes!

2023

We broke ground at Evergreen Loop in Twisp, the future home of 12 homes with 1-4 bedrooms. The neighborhood is situated southeast of downtown Twisp at the end of Riverside Avenue, within Twisp town limits and will include road improvements. First home sales are slated for fall of 2023, with construction of the remaining homes wrapping up in 2024.

In June 2023, the last homes in Cascade Meadows South were completed and sold to the newest homeowners in this MHT community.