Along Chicago’s Division Street, the energy of Paseo Boricua is apparent. Bookended by two massive steel flags spanning the width of the street that serve as neighborhood gateways, the iconic half-mile corridor is a testament to the vibrant Puerto Rican community that has long been a fixture in the area. At the heart of it all is the Puerto Rican Cultural Center (PRCC). For more than 50 years, the nonprofit has worked to foster self-determination, self-management, and self-sufficiency among the Puerto Rican and broader Latine community in Chicago’s Humboldt Park, Logan Square, and Hermosa Park neighborhoods.
PRCC accomplishes this through an interconnected set of programs focused on education, housing, economic development, and health and wellness. This includes robust initiatives designed to create a seamless pathway for young people from Pre-K to college and careers, including a bilingual child care center. PRCC also helps community members prioritize health and wellness through mental health support, a food bank, urban agriculture, HIV prevention, and more. Furthermore, the organization provides local residents with quality affordable housing and the support needed to secure sustainable employment, while also creating an enabling environment for small businesses that form the economic backbone of the community.
As PRCC’s programming has grown and evolved to better serve the community, so too have the organization’s facility needs. And for nearly 20 years, the nonprofit has partnered with IFF to access the flexible capital and real estate expertise needed to create the physical spaces that support its multifaceted work.
“IFF is the only financial institution that provides services directly to organizations like the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, offering a way to meet financial needs and grow without having to go through all the red tape that the banking system imposes on our community—and especially on nonprofit organizations.”
This long-term relationship began in 2007 with a critical educational need. While a bank had financed PRCC’s purchase of a former church building in Humboldt Park, the organization needed another lender to provide the capital required to renovate a portion of the facility to serve as a satellite location for Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos High School—an award-winning alternative school that re-engages young people who have dropped out of the traditional school system. A $700,000 loan and real estate support from IFF enabled PRCC to proceed with the renovations, ensuring the school had the space needed to continue to play a vital role in Humboldt Park as an alternative option for secondary education. The rehab also provided PRCC with additional space for its education programs, amplifying the positive impact of the project.
“Back then we had a lot of problems with the banks, and IFF helped us,” recalls José López, PRCC’s executive director and co-founder. “Without IFF, it would have been impossible for us to rehabilitate that building.”
In 2014, PRCC again turned to IFF when a maturing loan from the bank that financed the organization’s purchase of the Campos High School auxiliary facility needed to be refinanced. While the bank had provided PRCC with the original loan, it had since been acquired by a larger competitor with whom PRCC had no relationship. Recognizing that it was in the organization’s best interest to work with a lender that understood its work, operations, and vital role in the community, PRCC secured a $1.74 million loan from IFF that refinanced the organization’s debt and strengthened its long-term financial position.
Most recently, last October, a $627,000 IFF bridge loan helped PRCC continue to expand its physical footprint by facilitating PRCC’s purchase of a 4,640-square-foot building in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. In addition to providing permanent space on the first floor for PRCC programming focused on serving community members experiencing homelessness and helping young people develop the skills needed to succeed in the workforce, owning the building will enable PRCC to create new affordable housing on the second floor specifically for community members returning from incarceration.
“Acquiring this property would have been very difficult without IFF, and it’s going to make it easier for us to provide affordable housing to members of our community,” says López. “IFF is the only financial institution that provides services directly to organizations like the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, offering a way to meet financial needs and grow without having to go through all the red tape that the banking system imposes on our community—and especially on nonprofit organizations. I can’t overemphasize the importance of having a partner like that who’s attuned to the needs of our community.”
Watch the video below to learn more about the decades-long partnership between PRCC and IFF:
Categories: Stories
Tags: : Community Development, Early Childhood Education, Health Care, Housing, Schools
Tags: : Community Development, Early Childhood Education, Health Care, Housing, Schools