Luke Lingle is a United Methodist pastor, placemaker, and practitioner with more than 15 years of experience working at the intersection of faith, community development, and economic activation. He co-founded New Chapter Ventures to translate a decade of hands-on adaptive reuse work into a transferable model — one that equips faith-based organizations to reimagine their properties as civic infrastructure rather than maintenance liabilities.

Luke previously led the Church and Community Placemaking Lab at the Ormond Center at Duke Divinity School, where he developed curriculum and guided faith communities through structured discernment and asset assessment processes. As Executive Pastor at Central United Methodist Church in Asheville, he helped lead one of NCV's anchor projects — the transformation of Bethesda UMC into Haw Creek Commons, a community hub now supporting 80–100 jobs and generating $1.2–2.2M in annual economic impact.

His approach is grounded in a core conviction: that churches are not primarily property owners, but community stewards — and that the assets they hold carry significant unrealized potential for neighborhood impact. Luke's work integrates theological discernment with practical project execution, guiding partner organizations from initial alignment through validation, financing, and activation.

Luke has also led pilgrimages to Iona, Scotland, drawing on global models of faith-rooted community life to inform local placemaking practice. He holds an MBA alongside his ministerial credentials, bringing financial fluency to the strategic and relational dimensions of his work. He lives in Asheville, NC with his wife and four children.