Neighborhood Transformation & Affordable Housing Innovations

• Critical Mass Homeownership (equity for working families)
• Private & Public Capital Aggregation
• Long Term Commitment to Place
• Comprehensive Re-Investment (Safety/Community Policing, Schools, Recreation Centers, Libraries, Jobs)
• Build from Strength/Blight Remediation/Anchor Institutions 

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Metro IAF NYC

• HOUSING: Over 4,200 affordable Nehemiah homes built in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Jersey City; Over 1,000 apartments rehabilitated or constructed, including hundreds in public housing; 1,300 more affordable apartments and homes on the way.
• EDUCATION: Founded four small, quality public high schools, and two charter schools; $300 million in new school construction.
• WORK: Passed first living wage bill in New York City.
• SAFETY AND QUALITY OF LIFE: Shut down hundreds of criminal sites; built accountable relationships with NYPD; improved unsafe traffic intersections; won millions of dollars in parks improvements.
• PUBLIC HOUSING: Challenging New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) to make more than 19,000+ repairs & to clean up toxic mold and housing code violations affecting thousands of low-income tenants citywide.

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East New York, Late 1970’s

After Nehemiah Development

Park in Bushwick, Brooklyn

After

Before

Mott Haven Campus, Bronx

Metro IAF NYC

4,200 Nehemiah Units

• CRITICAL MASS HOMEOWNERSHIP: Built 1,000+ units minimum to transform blight into a strong community & market that creates equity for working families.
• ORGANIZED PEOPLE & ORGANIZED $: Locally conceived & owned. IAF groups have political power to push the city & state to act: free land, infrastructure costs, subsidized 1st & 2nd mortgages. Metro IAF NY organized & repaid $8 million 0% construction loan fund from religious investors.
• FREE LAND & 0% SECOND MORTGAGES: Metro IAF NYC secured free land and 0% second mortgages, ranging from $10,000-$50,000, from New York City.
• LOW SOFT COSTS & TOP FLIGHT DEVELOPERS: I.D. Robbins, Ron Walters, Monadnock Development.
• POWERFUL ALLIES: Catholic, Lutheran, Episcopal Bishops; NY Daily News

East New York, Late 1970’s

After Nehemiah Development

3,200 units to date

South Bronx

1,000 units

After

Before

Nehemiah Groundbreaking, Brownsville 1983

Nehemiah Spring Creek

Metro IAF NYC, East Brooklyn Congregations

Spring Creek Development Overview

• 45-acre former Landfill
• Total Units: 1,818
• Homeownership: 618 units; 80% complete
• Affordable Rental: 1,200 units; 4 Phases, starting 12/2016
• Big Box Retail: 1.2 million Sq. Ft. Big Box Retail; Related Companies; Complete
• Developers: Monadnock Development, Nehemiah HDFC, East Brooklyn Congregations

Nehemiah Spring Creek

Metro IAF NYC, East Brooklyn Congregations

Nehemiah Spring Creek

Metro IAF NYC, East Brooklyn Congregations

REPLICATION STRATEGY

• Target Areas: Strong Metro IAF Organizations: NYC/NJ, Baltimore/DC/NOVA, Chicago, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Bridgeport/New Haven, Durham/Raleigh.

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• $30 Million Equity Fund: $6-$10 million in equity grants & $20-$25 million PRIs, 0-2%, Non-Recourse (equity like) 15 year loans.

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• $1.5 million/year for 10 years for Organizing & TA: 1-2 full-time organizers in each target city & Metro IAF TA.

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• $250,000 per site to create redevelopment/financing plans, including Reinvestment Fund’s Market Value Analysis.

NYC Nehemiah Development Continues

Durham NC: 20-Acre Nehemiah Site

• Long-Term Power Base of Institutions to Conceive, Sponsor, Fight For, and Complete Revitalization Projects. 
• Organize the Political Will and Deliver the Scare Public Subsidies as well as Private Capital to Support Projects and Broad-based Revitalization.
• Organize Local Knowledge and Community Support for Projects.  
• Identify & Secure Free/Underutilized Land/Properties and Social Investments To Make Projects Feasible and Affordable.  
• Identify & Partner With High Performing Planners and Developers to Conceive and to Complete Projects.

Strategic Advantages

Eden Place, DC: 49 Nehemiah Homes

149 Ft Dupont Nehemiah Homes, Washington DC

FUND�Current Pipeline & Strategies

New Jersey Together

New Jersey Together

JERSEY CITY: 200 ACRES OF OPPORTUNITY

•For decades, Jersey City’s development has been stymied in part because of extensive hexavalent chromium contamination across the city.

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•In 1989, ICO began a concerted campaign to clean up this contamination, focused on two sites, in part because of a desire to develop affordable housing

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•The campaign eventually included two lawsuits – against Honeywell & PPG – that resulted in more than $1 Billion of clean up and - now – 200 acres of clean land.

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• New Jersey Together has taken up the next stage of this campaign to determine who will benefit from the development of these 200 acres.

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•Jersey City Mayor & a majority of the city council have committed to work with Jersey City Together to increase the affordability requirement from 5-9% to 50% on both sites.

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•The two sites have the potential to create between 8,000-16,000+ housing units in the coming years.

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Reclaiming Chicago

United Power for Action and Justice, Metro IAF Affiliates

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• A recent WBEZ report found: “for every $1 banks loaned in Chicago’s white neighborhoods, they invested just 12 cents in the city’s Black neighborhoods and 13 cents in Latino areas.”

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• United Power seeks to rebuild, repopulate and reclaim the City of Chicago by building 2000 new homes on the south and west sides for and with working people and working-class families. In the last year United Power has focused on aligning key power players in the city and state governments and private sector to begin the initial phase of development. (Also covered by WBEZ)

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• West side anchor member institutions are in North Lawndale; South side anchor member institutions are: Southwest Organizing Project in Chicago Lawn, The Resurrection Project in Back of the Yards.

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Progress to date:

• $218 million in the state capital budget for affordable housing; $18 million directly allocated to Reclaiming Southwest Chicago and Reclaiming North Lawndale;

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• 1251 people met with newly elected Mayor Lightfoot in September 2019 and won commitment to work on Reclaiming Communities and other issues. As a result, the city is currently securing an initial commitment of 250 city-owned vacant lots.

Reclaiming North Lawndale

United Power/Lawndale Christian Development Corporation, Metro IAF affiliates

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• Early 2000’s: United Power and anchor member, Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC), completed Ezra Homes development, 100 single-family homes modeled after Nehemiah home ownership
• 2018: LCDC rejoins United Power, together, recruited six member institutions from which to build a base in target area.
• To date, members have secured $3 million in state’s capital budget for a 50-unit multi-family development, Lazarus Apartments (Pictured) and an additional $3 million in 2020.
• Currently working with city, state and private sector to: Build 250 Homes in phase 1 target area; Currently over 200 city-owned vacant lots and 20 LCDC owned vacant lots.

Reclaiming Southwest Chicago

United Power/SW Organizing Project, Metro IAF affiliates

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Before

After

Before

After

• Over 650 families saved their homes from foreclosures.
• Over 100 homes and apartments have been rehabbed into new rental and ownership homes.
• Vacant properties decreased from a peak of over 700 in 2012 to just over 300 as of Nov. 2019.
• Vacant properties decreased from 93 (2012) to 8 (2019) in initial target area; Project zero vacant properties in 2020
• More than 60% reduction in violent crime in the initial target area.
• Vacant properties re-habs have created hundreds of jobs & millions of dollars in local wages, income, taxes and tax base.
• Local schools have dramatically improved.
• Phase 2: Complete rehab of 35 homes and apartments in 2020; Rehab another 100 homes and apartments in next three years

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Affordable Rental Housing�Illinois Metro IAF affiliates in Cook, Lake, DuPage and Kane Counties

Since 2012, Illinois Metro IAF organize has led to the creation of 259 units affordable rental housing:

Fairhaven Crossing, Mundelein, (Lake County): 50 unit development in downtown Mundelein. 25% of the units set aside for people with disabilities. All the units will be affordable. Some units will be for families. Services will be provided by Lake County Center for Independent Living. Developer: Verigreen.

Lakefront Residences of Grayslake (Lake County): 70 units of affordable senior housing in Grayslake. 25% of units are set aside for seniors with mental illness. Lake County United led the effort rental subsidies from the Lake County Housing Authority, tax credit financing from the Illinois Housing Development Authority, and to secure the final zoning approval from the Grayslake Zoning Board and Village Board. The building opened in 2012.

Grove Street Apartments, Oak Park (Cook County): 51 units of affordable housing accessible to people with disabilities. Interfaith Housing Development Corporation’s developed the project returning a long vacant building to its original brick façade. Supportive services offered to residents. United Power led the campaign to secure local zoning approval, county and state funding. The building opened in early 2013.

PhilHaven, Wheeling (Cook County): 40 unit development in Wheeling. Supportive services provided by Alexian Brothers. Developer: UP Development.

1212 Larkin Apartments, Elgin (Kane County): 48 units of affordable rental housing; 38 units are 3-bedroom apartments for 30-60% of AMI; 10 for adults with disabilities w/on site case management provided by Association for Individuals with Disabilities; Full Circle Communities is the developer and engaged with Fox River Valley Initiative to organize broad-support from over 200 people resulting in a unanimous favorable vote from the Elgin City Council.

Fairhaven Crossing, Mundelein

Grove Apartments, Oak Park

Milwaukee Rising, LLC�Strategic Initiative

• Restore a housing market in the Sherman Park neighborhood of Milwaukee. 120 square blocks around St Joseph Hospital – the largest employer (2,000 employees) on the north side of Milwaukee.
• In four years, reduced the number of vacant, foreclosed properties from 300 down to 65. Increased property values from $30,00 - $50,000 to $80,000 - $150,000.
• 91 homes completed with 100 homes still to be acquired and rehabilitated.

A project of Common Ground the Metro IAF affiliate in Milwaukee, WI

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Durham CAN

Durham CAN has organized publicly owned land to be designated for affordable housing for residents at 60% AMI and below.

Development Partner: Self-Help Credit Union

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Fayette Place

• 20 acre blighted and vacant parcel for the last 12 years located in the Hayti District, a once vibrant historic African-American community.
• Potential development of hundreds of affordable housing units.

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Jackson Street, Durham, NC

• 2 acres Downtown Durham within walking distance from Central Bus Station with
• Potential for 120 units of affordable housing

300 & 500 E. Main Street, Durham, NC

• Two County-owned lots Downtown Durham
• Potential for 300 units of affordable housing.

Orange County Justice United

St. Paul Village

• 20.4 acres owned by Justice United member St. Paul AME Church in North Chapel Hill.
• Campus has potential to include 86 units of affordable housing.
• Connected by public transportation to third and tenth largest employers in North Carolina (only six miles away).

Greene Tract

• 104 acres owned by the Town of Chapel Hill, Town of Carrboro, and Orange County.
• 18 acres set aside for affordable housing development.
• Connected by public transportation to third and tenth largest employers in North Carolina (only six miles away).

Washington Interfaith Network

Reservation 13 is 67 acres, adjacent to the shuddered RFK stadium, and in DC’s Ward 7

RFK Stadium, closed in 2019, sits on 190 acres, is federally controlled, and in DC’s Ward 7.

The RFK stadium and Reservation 13 sites in DC have the potential for thousands of Nehemiah homeownership units as well as affordable apartments to keep black and brown working class and low income residents from being pushed out of the city and to have an opportunity to build wealth through homeownership and to be part of DC’s new found prosperity.

Accomplishments:

• 82 Independent Senior residences Completed
• 2015 Historic Preservation Award – DC Preservation Society
• 2016 AIA Design Award – DC Chapter
• 354 Multi-Family Units under Construction
• 402 Multi-Family Apartments Completed
• 538 Multi-Family Apartments Master Planned
• 29 First-Time Homebuyer Settlements

Established in 2008 as a District of Columbia Certified Business Enterprise, UrbanMatters’ mission is to develop and preserve signature affordable housing and strengthen the economic

stability of residents living in distressed communities.

House of Lebanon

Before and After

Independent Senior Living

82 units

Truxton Circle neighborhood

Washington, DC

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Eden Place

Before and After

First time homeownership

29 units

Historic Deanwood,

Washington, DC

Eastbrooke

Before and After

Multi family rental

39 units

Deanwood Heights

Washington, DC

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RESTORATION FUND

• $30 million Capitalization Goal
• Target Areas: (NY, NJ, MD, DC, VA, WI, IL, OH, CT, NC)

Raised to date: $4.65 million (BofA, GE, JP Morgan, Capital One, Presbyterian Foundation, Unitarian Universalist Association)

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• $6-$10 million Equity Grants & B Notes; First Loss Capital)
• Grants & loans: Financial Institutions, Foundations, Wealthy Individuals;

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• $20-$25 million from religious & social investors (A Notes)
• Target former Nehemiah Religious Loan Fund Investors, Wealthy Individuals, Foundations, Financial Institutions
• 0-2%, Non-Recourse (equity like) 15 year loans

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FUND PURPOSES

• Property & land acquisition in blighted areas
• Redevelop blighted properties
• Finance new Nehemiah projects
• Underwrite pre-development & financing costs for homeownership & rental housing as well as community facilities
• Leverage public & private $ to Metro IAF projects

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FUND

• FUND MANAGER: Reinvestment Fund, Philadelphia, nationally recognized CDFI
• GOVERNANCE: Metro IAF, Investors, Development Experts
• INVESTORS: Religious Organizations, Wealthy Individuals, Foundations, Financial Institutions
• DEVELOPERS: Local Decision with Fund concurrence