The trust has embarked on a campaign to create a grove memorializing within the Sterling Community where part of the school once stood.  Sterling High School was the first African American High School in Greenville County, serving young people of both the community and surrounding areas for many decades. This professionally designed memorial grove proposed for the community will consist of twenty-six trees, four corner landmarks, four architecturally designed benches, and a symbolic torch mounted on a column, which will memorialize this space into perpetuity. 

A key part of Sterling Land Trust’s mission is to help combat gentrification and fight against the forced displacement of residents in Sterling.

The Sterling Land Trust cut the ribbon on its first affordable rental home in November of 2019. The brand new home is 1,200 square feet, has three bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths. The home will rent for $750 a month, which is almost half of the average rent in the area according to Rentcafe.com

The Land Trust partnered with the City of Greenville, Bon Secours St. Francis Health Systems, and Greenville County. The Land Trust hopes to expand its housing program, looking to create multi-family options in the future.

Food access and sustainability are a key focus for the Sterling Land Trust. One of the trust’s signature projects is the Sterling Pride Farm. The current iteration of this urban farm provides free fruit and vegetables to community members who struggle to access healthy food. Eventually, SLT hopes to expand the farm into a multisite operation that will train and employ community residents, paying them to grow and produce food for the surrounding neighborhoods.

Odessa Garden: A 6,000-square-foot vacant lot, donated by Peggy Baxter, has been transformed into a community garden. Residents and volunteers grow a variety of vegetables and herbs in the garden.

Sterling Tiger Trail: SLC turned a donated plot of land into a multi-use trail, connecting to the Swamp Rabbit Trail.

Quilt Trail Exhibit: As part of a partnership with the landscape architecture and urban design program at Clemson University, four large reproductions of historic quilts were installed on the exterior of the Sterling Community Center. 

While the Sterling Land Trust has endeavored to be a fully resident-led and operated organization, its success has required partnerships with several agencies and funders. The Land Trust has had challenges finding traditional funders, as it lacks an extensive track record of real estate development. As such, they have worked with a variety of philanthropic and public entities to complete their projects.