Florida Community Loan Fund Awarded $3.5 Million For Low-Income Communities

Two awards from U.S. Treasury CDFI Fund will spur community development and increase access to healthy foods statewide.

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Sep 11, 2015, 12:11 ET

ORLANDO, Fla., Sept. 11, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Florida Community Loan Fund (FCLF) will invest $3.5 million in new construction, rehabilitation, and expanding access to fresh and healthy food in low-income communities.

The $3.5 million award combines two awards from the U.S. Treasury Department's Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Fund: $2 million in Financial Assistance plus $1.5 million for Healthy Foods Financing Initiative (HFFI). FCLF's is the largest of the 5 Florida organizations to receive an award through this competitive process.

Florida Community Loan Fund has supported a total of $735 million in projects over 20 years, netting over 3700 housing units and 1.5 million square feet of community facilities; and creating over 8,000 jobs. As the 3^rd most populous state, Florida's need for affordable housing and social services in low-income neighborhoods continues to grow. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a Florida household would need to work 126 hours per week at minimum wage to afford the fair market rent (no more than 30% of income for housing). An emphasis on affordable housing is not new for Florida Community Loan Fund. To date FCLF has financed 1,600 units of multifamily rental housing, 1,000 single family homes and 1,000 supportive housing units.

"Our 20 years of history and extensive knowledge of Florida communities established FCLF as a leader in community development," said CEO Ignacio Esteban. "The CDFI award augments our current financing to build strong communities, and allows expansion of our young but promising healthy food financing initiative which aims to increase access to fresh foods in food deserts."

Florida Community Loan Fund (FCLF) is a statewide, nonprofit, multifaceted financing entity providing flexible capital and expertise to low-income communities. FCLF became Florida's first certified statewide Community Development Financial Institution in 1996, was certified as a CDE in 2003, and in 2014 was one of three U.S. Community Development Financial Institutions awarded the national Wells Fargo NEXT Opportunity Award which recognizes mission-driven community lenders with innovative strategies to preserve and expand affordable housing. www.fclf.org

Twitter: @FCLFOrg, #CDFI, #FCLF20

Media Contacts: Janet de Guehery, [email protected], or Lisa Junkerman, [email protected]

SOURCE Florida Community Loan Fund (FCLF)