About OUR Work

  We develop housing across West Michigan, affordable and market rate, rental and for sale, and help others do the same. 

Development and Construction

We build and renovate housing across the price spectrum: affordable rentals, market rate apartments, and homes for sale. We take on sites others pass on, including brownfields, vacant lots, and aging buildings, and partner with nonprofits, municipalities, and local businesses to carry projects from concept through certificate of occupancy.

Affordable, mixed income, and market rate rental · For sale and attainable homeownership · Adaptive reuse and brownfield redevelopment · Site acquisition and feasibility · Capital stacks and gap funding · Owner's representation · Construction management

Developer Advisory

We help emerging developers get their first projects built. Many have the vision and the site but not the track record lenders want to see. We sit on their side of the table through underwriting, entitlements, and closing.

Pro formas and deal structuring · Lender and investor packages · Entitlement and permitting support · Project oversight

Grants and Funding

We find the money that makes hard deals pencil. That means brownfield TIF, MCRP, municipal, and philanthropic capital, plus the reporting and compliance that follow.

Funding research and strategy · Application and proposal writing · Brownfield plans and TIF applications · Grant management and reporting

Policy and Advocacy

We work on the rules, not just the buildings. We research, draft, and advocate for policy that expands housing supply at every price point and opens the development field to more people.

Policy research and analysis · Program design · Coalition building

 Kurt Reppart is a seasoned leader focused on community, inclusivity, and sustainability, serving as City Commissioner for Grand Rapids' 1st Ward from 2018 to 2022. He launched key initiatives like the Affordable Housing Trust Fund and the Homeless Outreach Team. Previously, as Executive Director of The Other Way Ministries, he led community development efforts, showcasing his leadership skills marked by empathy, adaptability, and a commitment to equity. Kurt, a Taylor University graduate, excels in strategic visioning for non-profits, backed by extensive experience in board involvement and coalition building.

Jon Van Keulen brings more than two decades across construction, development, and nonprofit leadership to Collectiv Ventures, where he leads development from site selection through closeout. He co-founded 3:11 Youth Housing, now AYA Youth Collective, building housing and community space for young people experiencing homelessness. That work shapes how he approaches development today: projects measured by who gets to live in them, not just what they pencil at.

His day to day runs from pro formas and capital stacks to job site walkthroughs. He structures deals using tax increment financing, PILOTs, tax abatements, and other state and local incentives, advises emerging developers working toward their first project, and advocates for housing policy that opens the field to more people.