Southside Renaissance Fund
Key Facts
Location: Columbus, OH
Partners: Ohio Capital Finance Corporation, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Community Development for All People, and various funders
Summary: The South Side Renaissance Fund is a $20 million loan fund for the financing of community development projects and the acquisition, construction and permanent financing of affordable single family and multifamily rental housing in South Side Columbus neighborhoods.
About
The South Side Renaissance Fund is the first of its kind, providing a mix of low-interest loans and community development grants to improve neighborhood housing quality and homeownership. The $20 million loan fund provides long-term funding for the acquisition, construction, and permanent financing of up to 170 units of affordable single family and multifamily rental housing. The new loan fund was established in June of 2018, expanding the previous boundaries of the Healthy Homes program into two additional Columbus neighborhoods.
$15 million of the fund is comprised of low-interest loans going towards renovation and construction of affordable rental units. The remaining $5 million is designated for community development grants, used for transformative community development projects, such as small business development along the Parsons Avenue corridor.
Since 2009, the Healthy Neighborhoods Healthy Families Realty Collaborative, a nonprofit partnership between Community Development for All People (CD4AP) and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, has built, renovated, or repaired over 300 homes, developing $80 million in affordable housing and restoring over 75% of vacant blighted homes. Two years later, a coalition of former South Side residents joined with CD4AP to form the South Side Renaissance LLC, providing philanthropic contributions that accelerated the redevelopment of substandard properties for homeownership and long-term affordable rental. Since CD4AP and Nationwide Children’s have lead efforts in the South Side, property values have gone up dramatically and vacancy is decreasing across the area, while social determinants of neighborhood health, like reported homicides and high school graduation rates, have also improved dramatically in the neighborhood. The South Side Renaissance Fund will allow the Healthy Neighborhoods and South Side Renaissance programs to ensure the area remains a vibrant, mixed-income community and continue their mission of making a significant, positive difference to the neighborhoods of the South Side.
The fund is made possible with low-interest loans from financial institutions interested in the future of the South Side. Funders include Fifth Third Community Development Corporation, First Financial Bank, First Merchants Bank, Huntington Community Development Corporation, JPMorgan Chase, PNC Bank, The Union Bank, The Affordable Housing Trust for Columbus and Franklin County, and the Ohio Capital Finance Corporation. As an incentive for the lenders to provide below market financing, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Ohio Capital Finance Corporation are also providing limited guaranties to the fund.
Additional Information
“Nationwide Children’s, partners expand South Side housing program,” Columbus Dispatch
“The South Side Renaissance Fund Expanding Healthy Homes and South Side Renaissance Homes,” Nationwide Children’s press release
“Why hospitals are getting into the real estate business,” NPR
“Getting Ahead of Gentrification in the South Side of Columbus,” Shelterforce