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IN THIS ISSUE
Monster Mash at Impact Capital
Donor Profile: Washington State Housing Finance Commission
Local Spotlight: YWCA of Pierce County
QUICK LINKS
Impact Capital Newsletter
December 2009
MONSTER MASH AT IMPACT CAPITAL
On October 30, 2009, Impact Capital hosted a "Monster Mash" for our staff and their families. View the festive decor and creepy costumes on our Flickr photostream by clicking here.
OUR CURRENT PROJECTS
Lending
Impact Capital provided a $275,000 loan to Spokane Baptist Association Homes help create the newly opened Lilac Terrace, a 50 unit affordable senior housing complex in Spokane.
Community Building
Impact Capital recently hired MetroEdge to conduct a market analysis for Capitol Hill Housing and their 12th Avenue project. MetroEdge's work will be critical to helping Capitol Hill Housing work successfully with private developers along 12th Avenue by providing the data and information they need to build and attract small, independent businesses.
Success Story: CASA LATINA
NEW BUILDING ENABLES CASA LATINA TO BETTER SERVE IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY
Through a partnership with Impact Capital, Casa Latina was able to expand their capacity to serve Latino immigrants by providing education and employment opportunities which empower individuals to participate in their community and contribute to the economy.
In February, 2007 Impact Capital provided Casa Latina a $1,076,022 acquisition bridge loan. This money was used to purchase and renovate a building, consolidate their administrative functions, provide versatile facilities for their clients, and construct a new Day Workers’ Center. “We got a lot of heat for it,” says Heyward Watson, CEO of Impact Capital. “But we knew it was the right thing to do.” The completion of this project in March of this year represents a significant improvement to Casa Latina’s capacity to adapt and better serve the needs of the community. “Their new building is a great example of what doing the right thing, even when facing mounting pressure, can do to benefit the entire community.”
Marica Almquist, Casa Latina’s director of finance and development highlights the importance of Impact Capital’s involvement: “All our grants are program related; we had no ability to purchase property, so it was crucial that Impact Capital made that loan commitment early on.” Not only was the loan necessary to begin renovation immediately instead of needing to wait for funding, but fundraising became significantly easier once they had a permanent building from which to operate.
The services and programs provided by Casa Latina have dispatched 7,996 temporary jobs with an average wage of $13.97 per hour, placed 114 immigrants in permanent work, and dispatched 479 domestic workers’ jobs through their Household Helpers Project. Casa Latina’s ESL classes have significantly improved the English skills of 164 adult students, and their Worker Defense Committee has recovered over $50,000 for workers who were not paid by their employers.
One service that Casa provides the Latino immigrant community is a system for matching day workers with employers, giving workers the security of knowing that their right to personal and financial safety will be protected. “If they go out of here, they know that, as an agency, we stand behind them,” explains Almquist, “if they seek work somewhere else they know that there is a greater risk of getting an employer who isn't concerned with their safety, and they will most likely not get as high a wage, and run the risk of not being paid at all.”
Their new building accommodates day workers who wait for employment during the day, providing shelter from the elements and a place to socialize and build community. Their new building even provides enough space for a store run by the Women’s Program, where workers waiting for employment can purchase refreshments. The proceeds from the store support the Women’s Program job training. This represents a vast improvement from their previous location, a temporary trailer outside which clients had to wait, exposed to the elements and with no place to sit. Manuel, a program participant who remembers the old location said, “Here it is different, this is much better.”
The greatest advantage that the new facility provides is adaptability. “Architecture of the building allows for flexibility; in the mornings when there are more workers waiting the room opens up to make more space, and later in the day it can be divided, providing a classroom for English classes,” Almquist tells us.
Every room of the newly renovated building is multi-purpose, and constantly being put to use for skills training, job safety classes, English classes and women’s support groups, depending on the time of day. One of the exciting opportunities for community building afforded by the new facilities is the inclusion of English-speaking neighbors by providing Spanish language classes through which the English and Spanish-speaking students can interact, enhancing each-other’s understanding through guided conversations.
Flexibility is not just beneficial, it’s crucial. The current economic climate has changed the types of jobs that are available, and Casa Latina has had to adapt accordingly. Currently, their most successful program, is their domestic workers project, “Household Helpers.” This program helps women achieve economic independence and stability, and consists not only of placement in domestic jobs, but English language and financial literacy classes, with an emphasis on aiding women to build relationships with employers and transition away from dependence on the program. None of which would had been possible without their new building and Impact Capital’s financial support.
In fact, Impact Capital is looking forward to potentially working with Casa Latina on the second phase of their building and to helping create a brighter future for these workers and the community.
Impact Capital helps build and sustain vibrant neighborhoods in underserved communities throughout Washington.
Donor Profile: WASHINGTON STATE HOUSING FINANCE COMMISSION
Click here to read a profile on Impact Capital supporter Washington State Housing Finance Commission.
Local Spotlight: YWCA of PIERCE COUNTY
Click here to read the story on one of Impact Capital's borrowers work in Pierce County.
CDFI MARKET CONDITIONS REPORT
The CDFI Market Conditions Report for Third Quarter was published in December. The report found the following:
- Nearly half (48%) of respondents reported that they were capital-constrained.
- Demand continues to increase but at a slower pace; 57% of respondents reported an increase in the number of financing applications received in the 3rd quarter of 2009 over the 2nd quarter of 2009.
Click here to download a PDF of the full report.
UPCOMING EVENTS AT IMPACT CAPITAL
Salud to Success: Impact Capital's Annual Meeting and Reception to reflect on 2009 will take place on January 21, 2010 at the Seattle office of Impact Capital in Pioneer Square.
Please click here to find out more and RSVP.