MCC Awarded $65 Million in New Markets Tax Credit Allocation
Groundbreaking of The Watershed in Sturgis, Michigan
Allocation will support projects in low-income census tracts within the State of Michigan
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 25, 2023
LANSING, Mich. – Michigan Community Capital (MCC) is pleased to announce their award of $65 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation from the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) on Friday, September 22, 2023. For the third annual funding round in a row, MCC has been awarded the highest allocation amount available which is reflective of MCC’s track record for deploying New Markets Tax Credits into impactful and transformative projects in rural and urban communities throughout Michigan.
“We are proud to continue to partner with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and S. B. Friedman & Associates to attract valuable federal resources to support Michigan,” said President and CEO of Michigan Community Capital, Eric Hanna. “We look forward to working together to deploy these valuable federal resources to support underserved communities in Michigan.”
With this latest award, MCC will provide much need financing to projects located in historically disinvested communities throughout the state of Michigan. Allocation will be directed to projects prioritizing:
Creating or expanding healthy food access
Developing mixed-use, mixed-income housing in low-income areas of opportunity
Supporting skilled training programs and/or expanding services for low-income families
Generating living-wage jobs through manufacturing or community-based projects
Since 2005, Michigan Community Capital has received $445 million in New Markets Tax Credit allocations and has remained the only Community Development Entity deploying efforts solely in Michigan at a state-wide level. To date, MCC has invested NMTC allocations into 39 projects across the state resulting in over 5,000 full-time jobs created or retained, more than 800 housing units established, and the development of 4.2 million square feet of commercial, retail, and industrial space.
To learn more about Michigan Community Capital’s impact or would like to explore leveraging New Markets Tax Credit for your project, click here.
Michigan Community Capital (MCC) is a non-profit diversified public-private partnership that supports the missions of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) by aggregating capital and facilitating the financing and development of low-income and attainable housing, and the redevelopment of complex brownfield sites within the State of Michigan. MCC is a U.S. Treasury certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and the only Community Development Entity (CDE) that deploys this resource solely throughout the entire State of Michigan. Since 2005, MCC has supported over $1.3 billion in project financing, successfully attracted $445 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits, and helped to create over 1,500 housing units, 4.3 million square feet of commercial, retail and industrial space to facilitate job creation and expansion, and has insured over 22,000 affordable multifamily doors. MCC drives community development impacts in four key areas: Real Estate Development, CDFI lending, New Markets Tax Credits, and affordable Property Insurance. michigancommunitycapital.org
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Welcome New Board Members
Michigan Community Capital recently welcomed two new board members to its Board of Directors. View the entire MCC Board of Directors here.
Stephanie Osterland
Chief Executive Officer HABITAT FOR HUMANITY DETROIT
Joined Michigan Community Capital Board of Directors in September 2023
After serving as Program Director at a neighboring Habitat affiliate for 8 years, Stephanie joined the Detroit team in 2020. In this leadership role, she works to fulfill the mission ensuring all Detroiters have a safe and affordable place to call home. Stephanie works alongside an amazing team and together they seek to improve quality of life through housing solutions focusing on homeownership, financial education and home repair services for seniors and military veterans. Stephanie has worked in the nonprofit sector for nearly 20 years and has extensive professional experience in human services, nonprofit program development, affordable housing, mental health counseling and social work. She is passionate about equitable community development and access to opportunity for marginalized groups. Stephanie holds a BS in Psychology from Michigan State University and a MA in Counseling from Oakland University.
Brad Heffner
Associate General Counsel MICHIGAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
Joined Michigan Community Capital Board of Directors in May 2023
Brad Heffner joined the Michigan Economic Development Corporation in January 2009 and currently serves as Associate General Counsel and Strategic External Relations Advisor for the organization. He has more than 30 years of experience in state and local government, issue advocacy and governmental affairs.
Prior to his MEDC role, Heffner served as City Manager for the City of Ithaca, Michigan. He has served on a number of statewide boards and organizations, including an elected term on the Ithaca School Board. He is a graduate of Albion College and obtained his law degree at the Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School.
July 14, 2023
Jim Ananich
President GREATER FLINT HEALTH COALITION
Joined Michigan Community Capital Board of Directors inJune 2023
Jim Ananich is President and CEO of the Greater Flint Health Coalition. Greater Flint Health Coalition (GFHC) functions as collective impact organization to serve as the neutral backbone and convening entity to lead and coordinate collaborative efforts to improve population health status, reduce and prevent disease, improve the quality and cost effectiveness of the healthcare system, and reduce health disparities. The GFHC is composed of a broad partnership of leadership from public health, physicians, hospitals, health systems, health insurers, safety-net providers (including federally qualified health centers and community mental health), business, education, community-based organizations, nonprofits, government agencies, policymakers, organized labor, faith-based partners, and committed citizens.
A Flint resident, Ananich previously served two-full terms leading the Senate Democratic Caucus. In this position – and even before – he found success advancing bipartisan legislation that helped workers through economic downtimes, families have access to healthy foods and clean water, and better resources for local communities to invest in services and infrastructure.
Broadway Lofts Named a Finalist for Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing Award
Broadway Lofts, a development led by Michigan Community Capital, has been named a finalist for the national Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing award from the Urban Land Institute (ULI).
The Kemp Award was established in 2008 in memory of Jack Kemp, a former secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and a national advisory board member of the Terwilliger Center. It recognizes developments that use innovative financing sources to provide attainable mixed-income housing, primarily focusing on households earning between 60 percent and 120 percent of the area median income.
The only Midwest or rural finalist, Broadway Loftsis a new mixed-use development on a brownfield site in the heart of Mt. Pleasant, MI. The project created 48 apartments with over 13,000 square feet of ground-level retail. It features 48 energy-efficient apartments targeted at Michigan’s workforce housing population. Local grocery cooperative GreenTree Co-op Market utilized the commercial space to expand their 50-year-old business.
Other nominees in this category include
201 Canal, Lowell, MA
Caton Flats, Brooklyn, NY
J-centrel, Philadelphia, PA
The jury for the two ULI awards is chaired by Ron Terwilliger, founder of the ULI Terwilliger Center and chairman of Terwilliger Pappas Multifamily Partners.
The winners will be announced in October during ULI’s Fall Meeting in Los Angeles.
Award winning month for Michigan Community Capital
Two national awards and one statewide award name Michigan Community Capital as recipient in May 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday, June 1, 2023
LANSING, MICH. – May was a monumental month for Michigan Community Capital (MCC) who accepted three awards from two industry organizations. Two (2) New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investments led to receiving the Real Estate QLICI of the Year and Small Business QLICI of the Year designation from the 2023 Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits Community Development QLICIs of the Year. Additionally, MCC’s Lofts on Rowe development received the 2023 Tax Credit Award from the Michigan Historic Preservation Network (MHPN).
For 18 years, Michigan Community Capital (formally Michigan Magnet Fund) has invested in transformational community development projects across the state of Michigan that create housing, jobs and access to fresh food through NMTC allocations. Since the organization’s inception, MCC has worked to advance these projects using the best tools possible, even if it means creating new tools or wearing new hats.
Starting in 2018, MCC has taken its lending and investment know-how and began development of projects starting with Cadillac Lofts. As of today, nine (9) properties developed and/or co-developed by MCC has led to investing more than $89 million in Michigan communities, creating 421 new residential units and 68 new permanent jobs, and activating almost 350,000 square feet of indoor real estate.
Being a community development lender has helped Michigan Community Capital become a diligent and lean developer, and their development experience has also influenced their lending and investment approach.
“We are honored to be recognized by our partners and friends at MHPN, and proud to be recognized nationally by Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits,” said Eric Hanna, president and CEO of Michigan Community Capital. “The MCC team works very hard to deliver projects that communities need, whether as a lender, developer, investor, or insurer. We are grateful to both organizations for recognizing our work and the impact it has on the communities we serve.”
Lofts on Rowe in Ludington, Michigan
2023 Michigan Historic Preservation Network Tax Credit Award
Lofts on Rowe
Michigan Community Capital’s development, Lofts on Rowe, was named the winner of a 2023 Tax Credit Award from the Michigan Historic Preservation Network (MHPN), and the award was presented in-person on Friday, May 12 at the 2023 MHPN Annual Conference on Mackinac Island.
After sitting vacant for nearly 30 years, the 1892-brick building fronting a full city block on the edge of a residential neighborhood just north of Ludington’s downtown was rehabilitated into 67 residential units. The building housed a series of manufacturing businesses, including Carrom wooden games and Haskell Canoe Company, and served as the headquarters for the Civilian Conservation Corps Camp Ludington in the 1930s.
The building’s industrial character is featured in the exposed interior brickwork and original wood beams. Amenities available to residents include a fitness room, bike storage, and on-site parking, and the ground level offers a commercial suite for local small businesses.
Utilizing historic tax credits, the $14-million project revitalized a long abandoned and neglected historic building in the heart of the neighborhood, giving the city and region a historic asset that will serve residents and community members for decades to come.
Michigan Community Capital served as the developer on the Lofts on Rowe project, and additional partners included Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Pennies from Heaven Foundation, PNC Bank, West Shore Bank, the City of Ludington and Mason County.
Two awards from the 2023 Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits Community Development QLICIs of the Year Awards named Michigan Community Capital.
Real Estate QLICI of the Year
The Freelon at Sugar Hill
The Freelon at Sugar Hill is an inclusive community for all Detroiters, reinforcing urban vitality in Midtown Detroit’s Sugar Hill Arts District. The $35-million project co-developed by the Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and Develop Detroit, replaced a vacant lot across the street from the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center with 68 apartments, 11,900 square feet of retail space, and a 160-space parking garage. Of the 20 affordable housing units, 14 were created for veterans served by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HUD-VASH program through the Dingell VA Center. Another six apartments are set aside for those earning up to 80 percent of area median income. The mixed-use building supports inclusive growth within the historic district as a cultural, commercial, and residential destination.
MCC provided $6 million in NMTC allocation in partnership with PNC Bank, Building America CDE, and Cinnaire.
Small Business QLICI of the Year
Detroit Food Commons
The Detroit Food Commons is a new-construction development on the southeast corner of Woodward Avenue and Euclid Street in Detroit’s North End neighborhood. The two-story, 31,000-square-foot building will house the Detroit People’s Food Co-op – a community-owned grocery selling healthy, locally sourced food, a deli and bakery, and a neighborhood café – on the first floor. The second floor will house four teaching kitchens, a banquet hall/community meeting space and office spaces for nonprofit organizational use.
Located within a CDFI-qualified severely distressed census tract, the ground-level grocery will provide healthy, affordable options to more than 31,000 low–income community members and over 19,000 food desert residents within a 1.5-mile trade radius.
The nearly $20-million project spearheaded by non-profits Detroit Black Community Food Security Network (DBCFSN) and Develop Detroit (DDI) received $7 million in New Markets Tax Credits allocation from Michigan Community Capital in partnership with New Markets Support Company, and U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance.
The Novogradac Journal of Tax Credits Community Development QLICIs of the Year Awards recognize community development entities (CDEs) that made exceptional qualified low-income community investments (QLICIs) in the past year. The in-person award ceremony will be held at 9 am Eastern, Thursday, June 8, at the Fairmont Washington, D.C. Georgetown, during the Novogradac 2023 Spring New Markets Tax Credit Conference.
About Michigan Community Capital
Michigan Community Capital (MCC) is a non-profit diversified public-private partnership that supports the missions of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) by aggregating capital and facilitating the financing and development of low-income and attainable housing, and the redevelopment of complex brownfield sites within the State of Michigan. MCC is a U.S. Treasury certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and the only Community Development Entity (CDE) that deploys this resource solely throughout the entire State of Michigan. Over its 18-year history, MCC has supported over $1.2 billion in project financing, successfully attracted $380 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits, and helped to create over 1,350 housing units, 1.3 million square feet of commercial, retail and industrial space to facilitate job creation and expansion and insures over 22,000 affordable multifamily doors. MCC provides products in four key pillars: housing equity, bridge and gap lending, New Markets Tax Credits, and property insurance for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit projects.
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ALDI Coming to Two Rural Michigan Communities
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 28, 2023
Iron Mountain and Sturgis soon to welcome ALDI Grocery
LANSING, Mich. – ALDI Inc. is investing approximately $9.5 million to bring two new locations to rural communities in Michigan. A former Kroger location will be renovated at 811 S Centerville Road in Sturgis, and a new facility will be constructed at 2025 South Stephenson Avenue in Iron Mountain. Each store will be approximately 18,000 square feet and will feature a range of products including fresh meat and seafood, organic produce, and pantry essentials. The developments are being supported with a $7 million New Markets Tax Credit allocation from Michigan Community Capital.
ALDI Inc. is a leader in the supermarket retailing industry that offers discounted healthy groceries to customers in nearly 2,200 stores in 38 states. ALDI focuses on the groceries commonly purchased by shoppers, primarily under its exclusive brands, and is committed to providing customers with the highest quality products at the lowest possible prices. ALDI strives to reduce the company’s impact on the environment through energy efficient store design, including state-of-the-art lighting and refrigeration systems that have reduced energy features and environmentally friendly building materials.
ALDI will bring full-service grocery stores to Sturgis and Iron Mountain, both rural Michigan communities where increased affordable, fresh food is greatly needed due to high rates of food insecurity resulting from barriers to access (e.g., lack of transportation, rising food costs, etc.). Approximately 18 new full-time equivalent positions will be created to support the new stores. All positions will be accessible to individuals without a four-year degree and will pay a living wage.
“Michigan Community Capital is committed to leveraging our tools to bring healthy fresh food to underserved communities in Michigan,” said Eric Hanna, president and CEO at Michigan Community Capital. “Iron Mountain and Sturgis have both identified bringing more grocery options to their community as a high priority, and we are proud to partner with ALDI as they expand their footprint into Michigan rural markets.”
New Markets Tax Credits are a federal subsidy tool administered by the U.S Department of Treasury and designed to attract capital to projects that support low- and moderate-income households and communities. Michigan Community Capital (MCC) is the only Community Development Entity (CDE) that deploys this resource entirely in the state of Michigan. Since the organization’s formation in 2005, MCC has secured a total of $380 million dollars in tax credit allocation through competitive rounds to support Michigan businesses and communities. MCC uses NMTC’s to support job creation, access to healthy food, and mixed-use projects that include mixed-income housing and commercial businesses that benefit low-income households.
PNC Investment Partners is serving as the New Markets Tax Credit investor on this project.
Michigan Community Capital (MCC) is a non-profit diversified public-private partnership that supports the missions of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) by aggregating capital and facilitating the financing and development of low-income and attainable housing, and the redevelopment of complex brownfield sites within the State of Michigan. MCC is a U.S. Treasury certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and the only Community Development Entity (CDE) that deploys this resource solely throughout the entire State of Michigan. Over its 16-year history, MCC has supported over $1 billion in project financing, successfully attracted $320 million in federal New Markets Tax Credits, and helped to create over 750 housing units and 1.3 million square feet of commercial, retail and industrial space to facilitate job creation and expansion. MCC provides products in four key pillars: housing equity, bridge and gap lending, New Markets Tax Credits, and property insurance for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit projects.
