Living Cities Bolsters Cleveland Neighborhood Survival Efforts
$500,000 grant to Neighborhood Progress, Inc. recognizes local
organization as one of ten promising models for combating the national
foreclosure problem with market-based, yet community-driven approach.
CLEVELAND, June 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Foreclosures, like the
subprime lending that precipitated them, have been heavily concentrated in
vulnerable neighborhoods. Cleveland has been particularly hard hit,
resulting in an estimated 17,000 vacant properties that threaten values of
neighboring homeowners, invite crime, and discourage further investment.
In response, Living Cities, the longest standing consortium of the
nation’s largest foundations and financial institutions, has announced the
awarding of its first round of grants, $3,750,000, to support innovative,
locally driven responses to combat the crisis.
As part of this multi-city pilot, Neighborhood Progress, Inc. (NPI), a
non-profit organization that works to ensure the prosperity of Cleveland’s
neighborhoods, will receive a $500,000 grant to buy foreclosed homes in
low-income neighborhoods and dispose of them in ways that maintain the
integrity of neighborhoods.
Mayor Frank G. Jackson notes that, “We are thrilled that Living Cities
is making this significant investment in what we think of as an aggressive
self-help approach to overcoming the devastation caused by subprime
lending. Between my administration, Neighborhood Progress Inc. (NPI), the
state, local foundations and banks and Living Cities, we are undertaking
what may be characterized as the most comprehensive program in the country
to restore neighborhoods threatened by the foreclosure crisis.”
NPI has also reached an agreement with major loan servicers in
Cleveland that will literally freeze the foreclosure process for ninety
days to allow borrowers to work out alternatives to foreclosure, thus
preventing vacant properties from coming onto the market and lowering the
“critical mass” of properties required to stabilize neighborhoods.
The grants are going to models being built in strong, moderate and weak
housing markets, using mechanisms as diverse as New Market Tax Credits,
land trusts, and non-profit real estate brokers. “We expect our support to
help build scalable models that will serve as blueprints for communities
around the country when and if federal aid for such activities is made
available,” says Ben Hecht, President and CEO of Living Cities.
In addition to grant funds, Living Cities will be considering requests
from these grantees for up to $5 million in patient capital, long-term,
low-interest rate loans from Living Cities Catalyst Fund, a new pool of
funds provided through program related investments from Living Cities’
members. Decisions on these loans will be made later this summer.
About Living Cities
Living Cities is the most enduring philanthropic and private sector
collaborative in the world, with investments in America’s cities totaling a
half billion dollars over the past 15 years, leveraging over 15 billion
dollars to revitalize Urban America. Living Cities supports bold, promising
approaches that take advantage of cities’ unique roles in America’s
economic prosperity and that have the potential to transform the lives of
low-income people and the communities in which they live. For more
information, please visit: http://www.livingcities.org.
Living Cities members include: AXA Community Investment Program, Bank
of America, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, J.P. Morgan Chase & Company,
Deutsche Bank, Ford Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight
Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The McKnight
Foundation, MetLife, Inc., Prudential Financial, The Rockefeller
Foundation, Surdna Foundation, US Department of Housing & Urban
Development. Affiliate Member: The Cleveland Foundation.
CONTACT: Eric Henderson, 646-442-2200, ehenderson@livingcities.org
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[Via Real Estate Newswire]