In March, IFF closed loans totaling approximately $6.8 million for community-driven projects in the Midwest, while also closing funding to a New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) project that provided a nonprofit with a $6 million federal NMTC allocation. We’ve included information below about the loans and what the organizations that received them are doing with the capital. To learn more about IFF’s lending, visit our Capital Solutions page.
Covenant Missions
IFF closed a $280,000 loan that provided Covenant Missions with the capital needed to acquire a 2,715-square-foot building in Roseville, MI, that will serve as a permanent home for the Covenant Missions Food Bank. The move-in ready facility was recently upgraded and is equipped with a kitchen, dining area, offices, restrooms, and storage. Covenant Missions was established in 2012 as a grassroots effort by Covenant Missionary Temple Church to address local food insecurity and has since evolved into a full-scale food rescue operation that has distributed more than 15 million pounds of surplus and soon-to-expire groceries from local stores to 550,000 families. Covenant Missions’ new facility will provide it with a stable base for its operations that will enhance financial stability and expand the organization’s reach. In addition to the food bank, Covenant Missions also provides free school supplies and winter coats for children, home goods and supplies for families, and regularly hosts community health fairs.
Family Centered Educational Agency
IFF closed an $850,000 loan that provided Family Centered Educational Agency (FCEA) with financing for the acquisition and renovation of a 10,000-square-foot facility in South Holland, IL. Founded in 1996, FCEA serves more than 3,000 families on the south and west sides of Chicago and in the city’s south suburbs annually through a variety of programs that focus on college preparation, tutoring, and financial literacy. FCEA has placed more than 25,000 students in colleges and universities all across America, helped students to secure millions of dollars in Title IV and scholarship aid and, since 1998, over 6,500 students have received post-secondary degrees. The nonprofit’s new location will provide FCEA with more than triple the space it currently has, enabling the organization to expand its programs and community outreach. Planned renovations to the facility – which is across the street from a high school from which FCEA will draw program participants – include the installation of new flooring, paint, bathrooms, and an HVAC system, among other upgrades.
Inspire Academy
IFF closed a loan of approximately $202,000 that provided public K-8 charter school Inspire Academy with financing for roof repairs and the repaving of the parking lot for its facility in Muncie, IN. Opened in 2013, Inspire Academy was Muncie’s first public charter school and has since increased its capacity from 124 to 199 students as it has focused on fostering students’ natural inclination toward curiosity, discovery, and adventure. IFF previously provided the school with a $555,000 loan for earlier phases of the roof replacement and repair project, which has also been funded by a Charter Schools Facilities Incentive Grant.
Lawndale Christian Health Center
IFF closed funding on a New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) project that provided Lawndale Christian Health Center (LCHC) with $6 million in NMTCs to develop a 35,000-square-foot Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood, serving the greater West Side. The project will expand LCHC’s Family Medicine Residency clinic, provide a permanent home for LCHC’s increasing range of services to senior patients, and include high-quality space for optometry services.
LCHC is a nearly 40-year-old FQHC that currently operates ten locations in Chicago communities that historically have had limited access to affordable, quality health care services and significant inequities in health outcomes. Once complete, the new facility will enable LCHC to increase the number of patients it serves annually, growing by 11,000. As part of the project, the new facility will provide space to grow LCHC’s residency program, which is expanding access to medical careers for groups historically underrepresented in the health care industry.
The $24.5 million project will create 49 construction jobs and 102 new permanent jobs. The funding is being facilitated by NMTCs allocated by IFF, the Chicago Development Fund and JPMorgan Chase, which is also serving as the NMTC investor. Additional sources of funding for the project include agency equity and a Health Resources and Services Administration grant.
Micah 6 Community
IFF closed two loans totaling $5.34 million that provided Micah 6 Community with financing for a $34 million renovation of a former elementary school in Pontiac, MI, closed in 2007 that the nonprofit has operated as a community center since 2021. The 53,000-square-foot facility, which the nonprofit owns, will be renovated to include a community gym, small business incubator, indoor farmer’s market, early childhood education center, dedicated space for cooking classes, and more – all of which will enable much needed services in a community that has experienced long-term disinvestment. Once complete, Micah 6 Community expects to serve 16,000 people annually who will make 200,000 visits to the Webster Community Center per year. IFF’s loans will bridge grant funding awarded to the organization but not yet disbursed. Additional sources of funding and financing for the project include agency equity, an Opportunity Fund loan, and New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocations from Michigan Community Capital (MCC), National Trust Community Investment Corporation (NTCIC), and PNC Community Partners.
Read Muskegon
IFF closed a $94,400 loan that provided Read Muskegon with financing to acquire a 5,544-square foot building in Muskegon Heights, MI, that will serve as the future headquarters for the organization. Gaining site control of the property will enable the nonprofit to proceed with predevelopment activities while conducting a capital campaign to fund renovations to the facility. Founded in 2005, Read Muskegon works to break intergenerational cycles of illiteracy in Muskegon County by providing one-on-one tutoring, literacy programs for incarcerated adults, workplace programming, and a health literacy program. The organization currently leases a 1,600-square-foot facility that is no longer sufficient to support its programming. Once relocated to its new location, Read Muskegon plans to create a functional workspace for staff, classroom, and meeting space that can be used for the organization’s activities and other community partner initiatives.
Tags: : Capital Solutions, Community Development, Health Care, Healthy Foods, Loan Round-ups, Schools