In December, IFF closed loans totaling approximately $35.5 million for 19 community-driven projects in the Midwest. We’ve included information below about several of 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.
Chicago Advocate Legal
IFF closed a $52,000 loan that provided Chicago Advocate Legal (CAL) with the capital needed to acquire a 2,000-square-foot facility in Chicago’s South Chicago neighborhood. The facility will provide CAL with triple the space it had in an office the organization leased previously, enabling the organization to serve 200 additional clients per year after renovations are completed. The new facility will serve as the central facility at which the nonprofit provides services, while facilitating the expansion of the organization’s Preventative Law Initiative (PLI). Established in 2016, CAL provides legal representation in court to those with limited incomes and, through its PLI program, prevents or mitigates involvement with Cook County’s family courts by offering workshops, clinics, and psychoeducation group sessions. Serving roughly 175 individuals annually in its previous office, CAL’s clients are primarily residents of underserved communities. Additional sources of funding and financing for the acquisition of the new property include a loan from a different nonprofit lender, grant funding, and private donations.
Dalmark Group
IFF closed a $4.3 million loan that provided Dalmark Group (Dalmark) with financing for the acquisition and rehab of Brookridge Plaza, a 46-unit housing development for seniors (ages 62+) in Derby, KS. Brookridge Plaza was substantially rehabilitated in 2007 using 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs), and the current project will ensure that the property continues to provide quality affordable housing for seniors with limited income for years to come. The comprehensive renovation will address aging components of the property, including pavement, concrete walks, roofing, foundation repair, interior upgrades, and an elevator upgrade, among other updates.
Located between a highway and residential area, Brookridge Plaza provides residents with easy access to a commercial area that includes a grocery store, restaurants, theater, church, credit union/banks, and a post office. All 46 units are 972-square-foot, one-bedroom apartments that include a private patio, large pantry, and electric appliances. In addition, residents have access to an on-site game room, community room, library, and laundry room. As renovations take place, residents will be provided with temporary housing before returning to rehabbed units.
The $7.2 million rehab project is leveraging 9% federal and state LIHTCs. In June 2022, the State of Kansas passed legislation to match federal tax credits, and Brookridge Plaza is the first property in the state to receive the state tax credits. The project will create 51 local jobs during construction and support 13 permanent jobs after construction is completed.
Eagle’s Nest Academy
IFF closed a loan of approximately $1.06 million for Eagle’s Nest Academy (ENA) that refinanced a maturing New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) structure for the K-6 charter school in Flint, MI. Opened in 2015 and now operated by Phalen Leadership Academies, ENA offers a culturally relevant curriculum focused on unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, and more to 197 students. The school previously completed a rehab of its 33,295-square-foot school building for which IFF provided $1 million through our NMTC small loan pool and a separate small loan. Refinancing will provide ENA with greater financial flexibility as the remaining balance is paid off.
Fonseca Theatre Company
IFF closed a loan of approximately $156,000 that provided Fonseca Theatre Company (Fonseca Theatre) with the capital needed to pay off an existing loan from another lender and to resolve a roof drainage issue and repair the HVAC system in the nonprofit’s theater building in Indianapolis, IN, while also completing electrical work in an adjacent facility Fonseca Theatre renovated recently. Completing the work will enable the organization to expand its community and education programs, thus increasing revenue. Fonseca Theatre was founded in 2018 to amplify the voices and celebrate the underrepresented communities of Indianapolis through the prism of purposeful theatre and civic engagement. The organization exclusively produces works by, for, and about communities of color, thus increasing employment and educational opportunities for people of color, the LGBTQ community, and people with disabilities.
LIV Recovery Sober Living
IFF closed a $295,000 loan that provided Living in Victory Sober Living (LIV) with the capital needed to acquire a 2,586-square-foot property in Hillsboro, MO, that the nonprofit will operate as a Women’s Recovery House. Established in 2019, LIV offers a recovery housing program, a respite home program, and outpatient services for clients seeking to end chemical dependencies. The organization currently operates six facilities in Missouri, and the new home will be the first designed to exclusively serve women. The recovery home will provide a safe place for up to 14 clients at a time to continue their journey in sobriety with outpatient services, recovery housing, home, and respite programming. LIV’s facility will be the only recovery house in Jefferson County, MO. In addition to IFF’s loan, LIV will use grant funding and individual donations to complete the $310,000 project. IFF previously provided a loan to LIV in March 2023 that the organization used to purchase a facility the organization leased.
Safe and Sound
IFF closed a $100,000 loan that provided nonprofit Safe and Sound with financing for the completion of exterior repairs and upgrades to the organization’s facility in Milwaukee, WI. The work will include replacing a perimeter fence, parking lot repairs, security/technology upgrades, and exterior painting. Founded in 1998, Safe and Sound offers a comprehensive, community-based response to crime and violence in Milwaukee by creating partnerships with law enforcement, organizing communities, and engaging youth in programming.
Samaritas
IFF closed a loan of approximately $2.3 million to finance the construction of 53 units of affordable housing for Samaritas of Spring Lake in Spring Lake, MI. The complex will include one-and two-bedroom apartments to house residents earning between 30-80 percent of Area Median Income (AMI), including eight apartments reserved for tribal members or descendants of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians. The property will be the first affordable housing residence in Spring Lake and the first multifamily passive housing project in the state, and it will benefit from Low Income Housing Tax Credits from the Michigan State Housing and Development Authority. IFF’s loan was provided to Samaritas through the Michigan Affordable Housing Loan Program, a fund managed and administered by IFF that’s leveraging $27.5 million from Kent and Ottawa Counties and $64 million in private capital for a revolving loan fund designed to preserve and create high-quality affordable housing in Western Michigan.
Serenity Inns
IFF closed a $2.3 million capital campaign bridge loan that provided nonprofit Serenity Inns with the capital needed to develop a new residential treatment facility in Milwaukee, WI, for clients working to overcome substance use disorder. Founded in 2002, Serenity Inns offers 18 months of intensive wraparound support to clients that begins with residential treatment, followed by transitional and independent living programs that prepare participants to maintain their sobriety and help them build life skills like money management. Serenity Inns also offers outpatient services at an “alumni house” for residents who have completed programming at the organization’s residential treatment facility.
The 7,000-square-foot facility currently under construction will provide the organization with more space than it has in its current building, making it possible to serve an additional 60 clients per year. The new treatment facility will also enable Serenity Inns to attain licensing as a “Community-Based Residential Facility,” which will qualify the organization for Medicaid subsidies that will facilitate organizational growth. Additional sources of funding for the $2.5 million project include a grant from The Lynde & Harry Bradley Foundation and donations from individual supporters. Learn more about the project in our recent story, “New Residential Treatment Facility Expands Milwaukee Nonprofit’s Capacity to Combat the Opioid Epidemic.”
Urban Sprouts
IFF closed a $2.13 million loan that enabled Urban Sprouts Child Development Center (Urban Sprouts) to refinance a maturing New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) small loan pool structure that unwound in October 2023. Urban Sprouts is a child development center located in University City, MO, where children from economically and racially diverse backgrounds construct their own learning with the support and participation of teachers and parents. The original loan from IFF helped Urban Sprouts complete renovations after relocating to its current facility in 2016. Since then, the organization has continued to grow and will use the additional funds to expand into three adjacent properties that will add 3,750 square feet to the Urban Sprouts campus and allow more than 56 new children to receive early childhood services within the first year of the expansion.
West Point School of Music
IFF closed a $50,000 loan for West Point School of Music that provided nonprofit with a line of credit while awaiting grant funding awarded to the organization. Founded in 2011, West Point School of Music’s mission is to engage youth on Chicago’s South Side through music instruction and performance, cultivating artistically connected, socially conscious, and productive adults. One of 40 arts and culture organizations awarded funding through Chicago’s Cultural Treasures, West Point School of Music previously received a $500,000 loan from IFF in September 2022 for the acquisition of a 24,500-square-foot facility that enabled the organization to significantly increase the number of young people enrolled in its programs.