Contact: Colleen Roche (212) 788-2958, Deirdra L. Picou (212) 788-2971, Sheila Greene (212) 386-8069, or Cassandra Vernon (212) 386-8076
Joining the Mayor were Walter Shipley, Chairman and CEO of Chase Manhattan Corporation; Frank Newman, Chairman and CEO of Bankers Trust Co.; Walter Weiner, Chairman and CEO of Republic National Bank; Robert Denim, Chairman and CEO of Salomon Inc.; Thomas Renyi, President and CEO of Bank of New York; Bart Harvey, Chairman of The Enterprise Foundation, Paul Grogan, President of LISC; David Pagan, Executive Director of Los Sures/Southside United HDFC; Fran Reiter, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Planning; and, Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, Commissioner of Housing, Preservation and Development.
"The check represents far more than dollars," said Mayor Giuliani. "It represents the corporate community's commitment to opportunity--for families to have a better life, for neighborhoods to rebuild, for our City to once again be the gateway to a better future."
The $147 million will be matched with an equal amount from the City and will be used to reclaim more than 3,200 residential units and transform them into affordable rental housing. In NRP, non-profit community-based development corporations take ownership of and redevelops city-owned properties as part of their community redevelopment work. In NEP, for-profit developers will be given title to city-owned properties and, with community input and concurrence, redevelop the properties under private ownership, but with a guarantee of affordability.
"With these funds we are able to set loose the city's strongest forces, its community-based organizations and neighborhood entrepreneurs--both of which have the vision and the determination to rebuild the communities in which they live and work," said Mayor Giuliani. "Most importantly, it represents the power of public-private partnerships, nonprofit community developers and local entrepreneurs working with dedicated city officials and business leaders with vision. Together, we have the power to reclaim neighborhoods, block by block."
In presenting the $147 million check on behalf of the New York Equity Fund, Walter Shipley, Chairman and CEO of the Chase Manhattan Corporation, praised the City, LISC and Enterprise for their work. Shipley said, "What the City of New York and LISC and Enterprise are doing has changed the way corporate America thinks about inner-city investing. We have learned that with strong partners in government and the community and with thoughtful investment counselors in LISC and Enterprise, our investments in housing can be the springboard for revitalization for entire neighborhoods. The New York Equity Fund is both good policy and good business."
Launched in 1994, the Mayor's Building Blocks! initiative offers one of the nation's most innovative approaches to neighborhood redevelopment and preservation. The program targets neighborhoods of several blocks containing up to 2000 units of City-owned housing. The fundamental elements of the Building Blocks! strategy include rehabilitation of all City-owned building, low-cost loans to private owners, targeted housing inspection and intensified patrols the New York City Police Department. The program is already underway in five communities: Central and East Harlem in Manhattan, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights in Brooklyn and the South Bronx.
"The strong support of Mayor Giuliani and his Administration, coupled with the commitment of corporate investors and hard-working community-based development groups in every borough, has made New York a national model of successful public-private partnership," said Bart Harvey, Chairman and CEO of The Enterprise Foundation. "The Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, which serves as a financial catalyst for neighborhood revitalization nationwide, enables the New York Equity Fund to provide financing critical to developing thousands of decent homes that otherwise would still be on the drawing boards."
Paul S. Grogan discussed the successes of the joint venture. "When we began this partnership there were many skeptics who wondered whether community groups had the capacity and the corporate community had the tenacity to make a dent in this city's housing challenge," said Grogan. "Walk around New York and you will see areas like the South Bronx that have been transformed by community development corporations."
While LISC and Enterprise jointly operate the New York Equity Fund, each organization has its own national fund. Enterprise operates the Enterprise Social Investment Corporation with 35 state affiliates, that in aggregate have raised more than $1.7 billion in corporate equity. LISC operates the National Equity Fund in 35 program areas throughout the nation, raising $410 million in 1995, bringing its seven year total to nearly $1.7 billion.
Mayor Giuliani concluded the announcement saying that Building Blocks! evidenced a dramatic shift in New York's housing policy. "The assumption that the city is responsible for whatever development is to take place has been replaced with a new spirit of entrepreneurialism and community empowerment," said the Mayor. Public-private partnerships are the best vehicles for creating the kind of housing that leads to real and long-lasting development. With the energy of community-based nonprofits and entrepreneurs, we can meet the challenges ahead and get the job done."