Special Education School to Get Permanent Home with Help from Enterprise Community Investment
Investment Meets Critical Need, Demonstrates Enterprise Role Beyond Housing
Columbia, Md. (December 19, 2006) – Nearly 250 special-needs children will receive comprehensive educational services at The Bathgate Early Learning Center, thanks in part to Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. and the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program. Enterprise closed a $14.8 million New Markets Tax Credit deal with JPMorgan Chase to help establish a permanent home for the center, a school for developmentally disabled students in The Bronx, New York.
Enterprise, the largest allocatee of NMTC in the nation, brings over 20 years of real estate finance expertise and a full range of community development products and services to help revitalize and sustain communities nationwide. The Bathgate project is Enterprise’s first use of New Markets Tax Credits in New York City.
“The center is a powerful example of how Enterprise can impact communities, beyond its traditional role in the housing market,” said Joe Wesolowski, senior vice president. “The school will provide essential educational services in a permanent facility. The local community benefits and because of its proximity to the Cross Bronx Expressway, this school will also reach many more families with autistic children.”
Volunteers of America—Greater New York is the sponsor and developer of the project, which will rehabilitate a 30,000-square-foot office building into a 20-room modern school building. The sponsor will also operate the school, which is expected to open its doors by the start of the 2007-2008 school year. Volunteers of America is one of the nation’s oldest and largest faith-based community service organizations. The Greater New York affiliate administers a spectrum of programs for the homeless, people with mental health and/or substance abuse problems, developmentally disabled children, at-risk youth and former prisoners. The organization’s Early Learning Centers have received the “Outstanding Early Childhood Education Award” from the New York State Department of Education.
"It has been a pleasure to partner with Enterprise on this effort," said Richard Motta, Volunteers of America's president and CEO. "The ability to fund and operate the Bathgate Early Learning Center will now allow us to consolidate two other educational centers, centralize our services and then offer expanded space and a customized environment for the children," Motta said.
The Bathgate Early Learning Center will be located in the Bathgate Industrial Park, an eight-block area with an active commercial shopping corridor and more than 100 businesses. The industrial park is considered the foundation for economic revitalization of this area.
“The Bathgate project demonstrates how JPMorgan Chase partners with leaders in the community to strengthen our neighborhoods,” said Vice President Matthew Reilein. “It also illustrates how the New Markets Tax Credit program helps revitalize communities.”
“New Markets Tax Credits are a key piece of the financing for the project, which will bring construction-related jobs as well as 50 permanent jobs to the community. It’s about enhancing the quality of life for people in low-income communities,” Wesolowski said.
JPMorgan Chase, Enterprise’s investment partner, provided a loan as well as equity.
Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. (Enterprise) is a leading provider of the development capital and expertise it takes to create decent, affordable homes and rebuild communities. Enterprise leverages low-income housing, new markets and historic rehabilitation tax credits, short- and long-term debt, and development services to capitalize projects that make a catalytic difference in communities. For over two decades, Enterprise has privately raised $7 billion in capital to finance affordable housing, create vital communities and help transform the lives of low-income Americans, particularly those at the lowest end of the economic scale. Currently, Enterprise is investing in communities at a rate of $1 billion a year. Visit www.enterprisecommunity.com to learn more about Enterprise's efforts to build communities and opportunity.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $1.3 trillion and operations in more than 50 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset and wealth management, and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. has its corporate headquarters in New York and its U.S. retail financial services and commercial banking headquarters in Chicago. Under the JPMorgan and Chase brands, the firm serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients.
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