BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 28, 2013--
U.S.
Bank is partnering with Massachusetts
Housing Investment Corporation (MHIC) to provide $2 million of New
Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) equity to help Roxbury
Tenants of Harvard (RTH) build a new community center in Mission
Park, a diverse community of more than 2,000 residents. Construction of
the 28,000 square foot development is underway and will be completed in
early 2014.
U.S. Bank is partnering with Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation to provide $2 million of New Markets Tax Credit equity to help Roxbury Tenants of Harvard build a new community center in Mission Park, a diverse community of more than 2,000 residents. (Photo: Business Wire)
“RTH has a strong record of serving the neighborhood throughout its over
40-year history,” said Laura Vowell, vice president for U.S.
Bancorp Community Development Corporation (USBCDC), the community
investment of U.S. Bank that made the investment. “We’re thrilled to
help RTH construct a community center in Mission Park, as it will
provide the space needed to dramatically increase the organization’s
impact.”
RTH staff already operates a wide range of programs designed to meet the
varied interests and needs of the residents of Mission Park and the
surrounding area, but the programs are limited in size due to the lack
of adequate facilities and are always oversubscribed. Currently, the
largest indoor area in the neighborhood is a community room with a legal
capacity of 111 people.
“In a community with over 500 children under the age of 18, most living
in high-rise apartment buildings, there are only limited areas where
children can play outside safely or in cold or rainy weather,” said
Carol Menton, president of the RTH Board of Directors. “Kids, desperate
for a place to play, improvise. They ride bikes in hallways. They ride
skateboards down stairways. Parents, in need of feeling their kids are
safe, struggle to find safe, appropriate activities. As a community with
a strong desire to offer a better variety of programs to meet the varied
interest and needs of the residents, we look forward to the day when we
can open the doors to this much needed center.”
The new community center, which replaces an outdoor basketball court and
parking lot, will contain space for recreational activities and
community gatherings and house a gym, fitness facilities, a teaching
kitchen, classrooms for educational, childcare, healthcare, and social
services programs, and related office space.
According to Karen T. Gately, executive director of RTH, upon
completion, RTH will be able to expand its youth development and after
school programming and senior services. The gym will enable youth to
exercise and participate in a wide variety of indoor sports and games.
The Health and Wellness Center will allow RTH to offer a variety of
programs to address many of the wellness needs of residents of all ages
and abilities. The community space will provide enough space for large
numbers of residents to meet for community celebrations and cultural
events, movie nights, political events, and community dinners and
meetings. When the Community Center opens, RTH will provide services and
facilities that will markedly improve the quality of life for some of
Boston’s citizens most in need.
“We applaud RTH’s commitment to the project and the strong outpouring of
support from the residents of Mission Park,” said Joe Flatley, president
of MHIC. “This project is at least a decade in the making, and we’re
proud to partner with U.S. Bank to help finally bring it to life.”
Harnessing the benefits of the NMTC Program, MHIC and U.S. Bank have
previously partnered to finance other significant community development
projects in the region, including Generations Family Health Center,
Boston Carpenters Training Center, and Lowell Community Health Center.
About Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation
MHIC is a
private, nonprofit lender and investor specializing in financing
affordable housing and community development throughout New England. It
was founded in 1990 by a consortium of banks and other corporate
investors to fill a critical gap in meeting the credit needs of
developers who could not get financing for certain projects from
traditional lenders. To date, MHIC has provided more than $1.8 billion
in financing. That financing represents the preservation or creation of
nearly 16,683 housing units and more than 3.4 million square feet of
commercial space. For more information, see www.mhic.com
About New Markets Tax Credit Financing
New Markets Tax
Credits (NMTC) were established by Congress in 2000 to encourage the
investment of private capital in designated low-income communities in
order to create jobs, generate economic activity and improve the quality
of services in low-income communities and to low-income persons. NMTCs
attract investment capital to low-income communities by permitting
individual and corporate investors to receive a tax credit against their
federal income tax return in exchange for making qualified equity
investments in specialized financial institutions called Community
Development Entities (CDEs). In turn, CDEs provide below-market
financing to transformative development projects in low-income
communities across the country. The credit totals 39 percent of the
original investment amount and is claimed over a period of seven years.
For more information, visit www.cdfifund.gov.
About Roxbury Tenants of Harvard
Since 1969, RTH has served
as a multi-purpose, resident-controlled neighborhood, grassroots,
non-profit corporation. RTH has long represented community residents and
has held strong local support throughout its over 40-year history. RTH
has created a safe and racially diverse neighborhood noted for its
strong community participation, numerous services, and high quality of
life. www.roxburytenants.org/
About U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation
U.S.
Bancorp Community Development Corporation, a subsidiary of U.S. Bank,
has invested more than $10.9 billion of tax credit equity in community
development projects across the country as of March 31, 2013, using
state and federally sponsored tax credit programs. USBCDC's commitments
provide capital investment to areas that need it the most and have
contributed to the creation of new jobs, the rehabilitation of historic
buildings, the construction of needed affordable and market-rate homes,
the development of renewable energy facilities, and the generation of
commercial economic activity in underserved communities. Visit USBCDC on
the web at www.usbank.com/cdc.
About U.S. Bancorp
U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $355
billion in assets as of March 31, 2013, is the parent company of U.S.
Bank, the 5th largest commercial bank in the United States. The company
operates 3,080 banking offices in 25 states and 5,056 ATMs and provides
a comprehensive line of banking, brokerage, insurance, investment,
mortgage, trust and payment services products to consumers, businesses
and institutions. Visit U.S. Bancorp on the web at www.usbank.com.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20130628005100/en/
Source: U.S. Bancorp
Nicole Garrison-Sprenger, U.S. Bank Public Relations
(612)
303-0731, nicole.sprenger@usbank.com