About Us

Image courtesy Ross Chapin Architects.

Our commitment

At our core, we are motivated to build better communities. Our goal is to strengthen community bonds by guiding faith-based communities to build beautiful, dignified housing in their neighborhoods. We work to empower communities of faith to execute their visions. We are faith-filled designers, community activists, and builders who believe that together we can—and must—develop life-giving, community-nourishing places.

Meet the Team

Ralph Plaskett

is a self-motivated and driven IT Professional with executive leadership experience focused on transformational work where Information Technology meets Culture and Personal/Professional Development. He possesses nearly 20 years of experience leading complex projects, managing cross-functional geographically dispersed teams, and delivering effective solutions.
Aaron Lubeck

is a designer and builder. He is the author of Green Restorations: Sustainable Building and Historic Homes and a former adjunct at Duke University’s Nicholas School, where he lectured on sustainable home building. In 2012, Aaron developed Durham’s first net-zero-energy home, an infill project designed to fit seamlessly in its historic neighborhood.
Sara Joy Proppe

is a real estate development and placemaking consultant and founder of Proximity Project. She is dedicated to helping churches and missional organizations steward their properties to foster neighborhood flourishing. Her experience includes urban planning, private real estate development, and placemaking. She is co-host of The Embedded Church podcast and writes and speaks on design for dignity and the theology of the built environment.

Eli Smith

serves as the Director of the Faith-Based Housing Initiative. Drawing on his deep knowledge of case studies, best practices, and innovative models within this burgeoning movement, he works with congregations to design and implement housing projects on historically underutilized property. He has also consulted on faith-based housing legislation at both the state and local levels. Eli is a graduate of Dartmouth College, where he studied Religion.
Allison Quinlan

is an Architect, Landscape Architect, and Small-Scale Developer who focuses on building lovable, walkable, and economically sustainable towns and cities. She is a former member of the City of Fayetteville, AR Planning Commission and Construction Board of Appeals, a CNU member, and the Executive Director of the Incremental Development Alliance.
Thomas Dougherty

is a graduate of the Architecture School at Notre Dame, where he focused on the inner-block urbanism of traditional European and early American cities and its relevance to the incremental infill development of modern American cities - especially in light of new faith-based housing legislation. He is the author of The American Alley and writes on Faith-Based Housing for Southern Urbanism.