Chicago Community Loan Fund - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

CCLF redirects here. It can also refer to the Coordination Council of Leftist Forces

Coordination Council of Leftist Forces

The Coordination Council of Leftist Forces is a left-wing political alliance in Azerbaijan founded by initiative of Musa Tukanov, a member of the Baku City Party Committee of the United Communist Party of Azerbaijan ....

Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF) is a certified Community development financial institution

Community development financial institution

Community development financial institutions are financial institutions which provide credit and financial services to underserved markets and populations, primarily in the USA but also in the UK...

(CDFI), providing low-cost, flexible financing to community development organizations engaged in affordable housing

Affordable housing

Affordable housing is a term used to describe dwelling units whose total housing costs are deemed "affordable" to those that have a median income. Although the term is often applied to rental housing that is within the financial means of those in the lower income ranges of a geographical area, the...

, social service and economic development initiatives benefiting low and moderate-income families and neighborhoods throughout metropolitan Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

Mission & Focus

CCLF's mission, as stated on its website, is "to provide low cost, flexible financing to community development organizations... throughout metropolitan Chicago." Its focus is on providing loans to agencies engaged in planning and building affordable housing. It also lends money to other types of community development organizations and organizations that support environmental sustainability

Sustainability

Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...

, such as Chicago's nonprofit car-sharing program, I-GO

I-GO

I-GO is a Chicago-based not-for-profit car sharing organization.- Overview :I-GO is an independent 501 established in 2002 by the Center for Neighborhood Technology, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating and implementing new strategies that make urban communities more livable and...

, Logan Square Kitchen, a commercial shared-use kitchen and 75-seat event space, and Whistler-Crossing in Riverdale, IL, the first LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) in Illinois.

The loan fund is distinguished from traditional banks by its track record of taking on "risky" projects, such as affordable housing and cooperative housing, and by its high level of assistance to borrowers. One of the unique technical assistance programs it offers is the Project Readiness Workshop, occurring about four times a year, which it describes as "intensive" all-day "sessions that provide an overview of the complexities and requirements involved in launching and sustaining a successful real estate development project,". CCLF also organizes a yearly "Building for Sustainability" seminar at the Chicago Center for Green Technology

Chicago Center for Green Technology

The Chicago Center for Green Technology is a US Green Building Council LEED Platinum certified building located on a plot of in Chicago’s East Garfield Park Community built to showcase green technologies. This was the first municipal and brownfield site to win a LEED Platinum award . This...

.

Over the next four years CCLF aims to increase lending volume and accelerate the rate of business development, social service provision, and job growth in the communities of Englewood, North Lawndale, and Woodlawn on the South and West Sides of Chicago and in parts of two high-poverty suburban corridors.

CCLF is certified by the US Department of Treasury's CDFI Fund and is an active member of the Opportunity Finance Network.

History

CCLF was founded in 1991 by a small group of Chicago investors, with an initial investment of $200,000. It has since grown to more than $21 million in total capital under management. The fund's loan history comprises 160 loans totaling over $36 million. The fund has been led by executive director Calvin Holmes since 1998.

In 2009, CCLF was a recipient of the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, and will use its $500,000 award to enhance its current lending in low-income communities and encourage the incorporation of sustainable building technologies into community development strategies and projects.

At a celebration to mark 20 years of CCLF's existence, Chase Bank

Chase (bank)

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase, is a national bank that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of financial services firm JPMorgan Chase. The bank was known as Chase Manhattan Bank until it merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. in 2000...

announced a $2 million permanent capital award. This partnership with CCLF would support the increase in demand for CCLF’s lending to community development organizations throughout the Chicagoland area and channel critical financing to communities in need and borrowers who can make a difference.

Sustainability

CCLF's culture involves a heavy emphasis on environmentalism and sustainability. The agency actively encourages the use of energy-efficient building standards and materials in the construction of community real estate developments.

Project example: In 2007, CCLF provided nearly $1.2 million in pre-development funding to the Historic Pacesetter LP / Whistler Crossing project in Riverdale, Illinois

Riverdale, Illinois

Riverdale is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,055 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Riverdale is located at ....

. The money went to support the first phase of mixed-use, mixed income subdivision redevelopment (housing for rental and ownership, as well as new commercial space). The project featured the following design features: solar water heating

Solar water heating

Solar water heating or solar hot water systems comprise several innovations and many mature renewable energy technologies that have been well established for many years...

systems, low-VOC materials, energy-efficient appliances, recycled and locally-sourced building materials, bioswales, and transit-oriented design.

CCLF has organized an annual Building for Sustainability workshop since 2006, and regularly hosts a Sustainable Builders Working Group for community development professionals interested in supporting sustainable community projects. CCLF has published several editions of "A Guide to Building for Sustainability," a booklet of techniques, resources, and case studies of affordable housing. In 2009, the agency released a new website dedicated to sustainable building resources in the Chicago area.

External links

Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF) official site
2009 MacArthur Award for Creative & Effective Institutions, accessed June 16, 2009
"Green building program targets affordable housing," Chicago Tribune, October 7, 2007
"Workshops offer help to novice developers," Chicago Tribune, February 18, 2007
"Community Lender Seeking Spotlight," Crain's Chicago Business, September 18, 2006 (PDF version here)
"Federal CDFI Fund gives $1.4M to three local lenders," Crain's Chicago Business, August 25, 2006
"Chicago Community Loan Fund Meeting Human Needs," SocialFunds, January 12, 2001

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Mission & Focus

History

Sustainability

See also

External links