ASHTABULA TOWNSHIP – Angie Maki-Cliff stood before rows of people seated in the pews June 29 at the Ashtabula Pentecostal Church of God in Ashtabula Township.
But neither Maki-Cliff nor the people there had come to the church for a religious service.
Rather, they were at the church for the Lincoln Estates Community Engagement Event, where the public could learn more about the planned housing that will be built on the former Lincoln Elementary School property in Ashtabula Township.
Maki-Cliff, who is the chair of the Ashtabula County Land Bank Board of Directors, opened up the event by speaking about the purpose of the housing.
“It’s about bringing affordable workforce housing to Ashtabula County and Ashtabula Township,” she told the audience.
She said they’re giving people the ability to purchase a home and make their dreams come true.
She was joined by several other people, including Jon Sines, director of development for Marous Development Group; Jordan Torrance, executive director of the Land Bank; Shawn Carvin, the executive director of the Ohio Land Bank Association; and several others.
“We wanted to start this presentation off by giving everybody a little bit of information about the funding we received for this project,” Torrance said.
He noted that the Ashtabula County Land Bank received $900,000 in June from the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) Welcome Home Ohio Program. He said the state-funded housing initiative is aimed at increasing quality affordable, owner-occupied housing opportunities in Ohio.
“This program (the Welcome Home Ohio Program) supports neighborhood revitalization through property acquisition, rehabilitation and new construction,” he said. “So, obviously, this project is going to be a new construction project.”
According to the Land Bank, the development on the former Lincoln Elementary School property will take place on five contiguous parcels. This includes four parcels developed as duplexes, for a total of eight units, and one parcel that will be developed as a single-family home. Marous Development Group will be the development manager, and will oversee construction activities in collaboration with the selected construction firm, Marous Builders.
“Our funding this year will support construction of nine homes, which we consider to be the first phase,” Torrance said, when asked for comment by the Gazette. “The goal of this project was to create 34 homes, which was part of our original application for grant funding. We plan to apply for funding again in 2027 to continue construction beyond the original nine homes.”
During the presentation, there was information provided about who qualifies to purchase one of the homes that are being built.
“First of all, I just want to reiterate, make it very clear, that these are owner-occupied homes, these are not rental properties,” Torrance said.
According to the information presented, ODOD requires purchasers to occupy the home as their primary residence for a minimum three-year period and no portion of the home can be rented to another individual during that three-year period.
“That’s just a minimum set by the state,” Torrance said. “As the Land Bank, we have the ability to extend that period, which I think we intend to do.”
It was also noted that purchasers must demonstrate the financial means to buy the property.
“Essentially, what that means is whether you have the cash to buy this property, that’s great; if not, you’re most likely going to be needing to work with a qualified mortgage lender,” Torrance said.
He noted that there is also a requirement from the state for financial literacy counseling or home ownership counseling.
“That is pre- and post-purchase,” he added.
Torrance also said the program has a homebuyer income cap that cannot exceed 120 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), which is set annually by the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD).
“So, anybody up to that point qualifies for one of these homes,” he said.
A single person applying for the program can earn up to $73,725 a year. For a family of four, the figure is $105,225.
Sines said Marous was looking to begin building this Autumn.
“This Fall, we plan to start construction on at least the first home,” he said.
Sines spoke about the homes Marous is planning to build on the site.
“We are proposing 1,508-square-foot homes,” he said. “They are three bedrooms, two baths, large open floor plan with a large kitchen island.” He said there will also be a spacious attached two-car garage, for an additional 380 to 400 square feet.
“They are duplexes, so it would be two units per lot,” he added. “The average lot size is over a quarter acre.”
According to Sines, the project has been through a preliminary subdivision plat, and work will take place to file a final one in the next month to two months.
He said those at Marous Development Group have worked hard on the project and listened to the community, noting he was at past meetings that took place in the township regarding the development.
“You will continue to see me as we work through all the building approvals and permitting processes on the project,” he said.
Sines said Marous Development Group has a “three-pronged” approach by also having Marous Management Services and Marous Builders.
He said Marous likes to come into a neighborhood and really be a partner.
“We are here for the long run on these type of projects,” he said. He stressed that the company is a local developer in Lake County.
Sines said the housing is “workforce housing” and will be single story.
“They scale in with the neighborhood, which was some of the comments we received from the township,” he said of the homes.
The former Lincoln Elementary School property on which the development will take place has undergone some zoning changes.
Back in September 2025, the Ashtabula Township Trustees voted to re-zone the property from Institutional Government Lands (IGL) to Low Density Residential District (R-2).
Earlier in 2025, Marous Development Group requested the property, located at 1501 E. 31st St., be changed to RMF-24 (Medium Density Residential District).
The developer was seeking that type of zoning to build market-rate rental units that were to be a mix of 1-bedroom, 2-bedrooms and 3-bedrooms units.
However, on March 11, trustees voted to deny Marous’ proposed zoning change request following significant opposition from residents.
Then, at their May 14 meeting, trustees approved a resolution to change the zoning from IGL to R-2. On Aug. 11, the township’s zoning commission recommended approval of that request.
The subsequent Sept. 16 public hearing and vote was required to make the re-zoning official.
The purpose of the RMF-24 District that Marous Development Group had originally wanted is to encourage the establishment of medium- high density multi-family dwellings not to exceed 24 dwelling units per two acres, with the predominant housing type being townhouses, apartments and condominiums, according to the information from township zoning inspector Jaymee Vest.
By comparison, the purpose of the low density residential district (R-2) approved by the trustees in September 2025 is to permit the establishment of low-density single-family dwellings, but not to exceed two sing1e family dwelling units or one duplex per two acres with septic system or ¼ acre with sewers, the information states.
“I think it was the right vote for the neighborhood,” Ashtabula Township Trustee Joe Pete said after the public hearing and subsequent vote back in September 2025.
Look for an additional report in a future edition of the Gazette on the sanitary sewer/infrastructure information presented at the event.
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