News/Blog

4446 Entrepot Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32310

Second Harvest of the Big Bend was founded in 1982 and first focused on collecting and distributing perishable food. An affiliate of the nationwide Feeding America food bank network. Second Harvest’s service area consists of an expansive, sixteen-county region in the central Florida Panhandle. Last year, SHBB distributed a record 13.8 million pounds of food donated by national manufacturers, food wholesalers and distributors, other regional food banks, local food retailers, regional farmers, local food drives and individual donors. SHBB also routinely purchases some foods at a wholesale rate and distributes U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Commodities through The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). In 2022 SHBB served over 120,000 individuals, 59.4% of whom were members of ethnic or racial minorities.

SHBB has developed several programs tailored to its clients, many of whom live in remote rural areas (51.5% of all clients). Twelve mobile pantries, known as “Just in Time” distribution vehicles, are often located in church or nonprofit parking lots in a farmers’ market-style distribution, while the Senior Grocery Program provides low-income seniors with supplemental nutrition at the end of the month, when seniors’ financial resources are often depleted. (Over a quarter of those SHBB serves are seniors.)

Despite last year’s record level of food distribution, the end of pandemic-era assistance programs has triggered an explosion in demand, and SHBB estimates that a near-doubling of its annual capacity, to 25 million pounds, is required to adequately serve those struggling with food insecurity.

In March of 2024, in partnership with Hampton Roads Ventures, CCG Community Partners, and Truist Bank, Crescent closed on a $13.0M Federal NMTC financing to upgrade and expand its existing facilities, technology, programs and staff. An $11 million facility expansion will fund:

• Volunteer Hub – a dedicated food-loading workspace to separate volunteers from forklift operators and improve safety;
• Community Training Center – a space for training food safety and nutrition education specialists;
• Community Wellness and Education Center – a demonstration kitchen to educate food-insecure persons in gardening, nutrition, food preparation and cooking – resulting in self-sufficiency and better nutrition;
• Agricultural Education Center – a new, outdoor education area for demonstrations and workshops, to include a greenhouse, room for additional gardens, raised beds and row crops, plus a composter to generate soil and reduce landfill waste.

Eight new full-time staffers will be leveraged to supervise the planned aggressive expansion in output, new equipment will ease the difficulties SHBB encounters in serving its rural clients, and new technology will support both better internal performance and improve cooperation with the 135 nonprofit partners SHBB collaborates with to serve its highly-disadvantaged, “majority-minority”, mostly rural client base within its sixteen-county service area. SHBB’s significantly improved capability in its designated role as the North Florida Disaster Hub will also greatly benefit its clientele, whose poverty renders them especially vulnerable to climate change-induced extreme weather events.

500 N. Custer Street, Aberdeen, WA 98520

Circle Seafoods (“Circle”) is revitalizing Alaska’s wild salmon industry – one of the most healthy, sustainable natural resources in the world – by simplifying and streamlining the cold chain.  Consumers want premium wild salmon year-round at farmed salmon quality and consistency but can’t get it due to a cold chain that hasn’t changed since the early1900s. Wild salmon today is low quality, inconsistent, and only available a few months per year.  Circle is solving this by building and operating mobile, cost-effective, ultra-low temperature fish freezing and cold storage facilities on the water. This results in higher-quality wild salmon produced at a lower cost (-65%), a lower carbon footprint (-50%) and wild salmon supply that is available year-round.

In December of 2023, in partnership with Hampton Roads Ventures, Alaska Growth Capital, CEI Capital Management, and US Bank, Crescent closed on a $23.0M Federal NMTC financing to construct a cold storage facility and a salmon processing facility on top of a barge.  Wild salmon will be purchased and frozen on the barge in Bristol Bay, Alaska and SE Alaska from June to September.  The salmon will then be processed on the barge from September to June in Aberdeen, Washington.

Circle’s model can bring substantial benefit to Alaskan communities by providing year-round processing jobs. The state has supported significant investments in processing throughout Bristol Bay and along Alaska’s west coast. Outside of the salmon fishing season, land-based plants are either shuttered or underutilized because of lack of access to salmon. Circle’s ability to preserve fish quickly during the season and then provide access to supply year-round maximizes these existing investments and offers compelling year-round employment opportunities for the members of these communities.

The mobile infrastructure and business model create additional revenue for Alaskans and their communities through four primary channels:

• Increased income for all fishers, tied to quality,
• Increased year-round employment opportunities in economically distressed and rural communities in Alaska,
• Increased tax revenue
• Direct fisher education on quality and thus income enhancing practices.

Assuming 20% of Circle’s total supply stays in Alaska for processing, Circle will generate 120 full-time jobs in 2024, 400 full-time jobs in 2025, 840 full-time jobs in 2026, and 1,120 full-time jobs in 2027. Circle estimates that 134 direct jobs and 113 indirect and induced jobs will be created in Aberdeen, WA as a result of the project. Fishers will receive a pay increase, and the project will especially benefit the historically-disadvantaged native populations.

Circle will work with local institutions to train its labor force and in doing so, enable low skilled workers to access higher wage employment opportunities, whether with Circle or elsewhere in the community. Circle will partner with Grays Harbor Technical and to implement and support programs that prepare enrollees to fill high wage and technical jobs (e.g. fabrication, accounting, welding & construction).

2801 General DeGaulle Drive, New Orleans, LA and 1629 Westbank Expressway, Harvey, LA

Ascension DePaul Services New Orleans (ADSNO) operates 11 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) as DePaul Community Health Centers (DCHC) in the greater New Orleans area that offer an array of primary and preventive services, optometry, dental, pharmacy, and behavioral health. ADSNO has more than 190 years of experience and a very sound relationship in the Metropolitan New Orleans Area, which brings a wealth of knowledge to provide services, care, and best practices for outreach to meet the needs of our vast multicultural community. ADSNO has provided health screenings and outreach services built on health literacy and access to health care for all people, particularly for those who are underserved or experience linguistic and cultural barriers to care and services.

ADSNO’s success is built upon its history and experience in health care in New Orleans since 1834. ADSNO’s history in New Orleans began with its founders, the Daughters of Charity, and their management of Charity Hospital from 1834-1992, ownership and management of Hotel Dieu Hospital from 1859-2015, and ownership and management of DePaul Hospital from 1865 to 1973.  In 2019, Daughters became Ascension DePaul Services of New Orleans.

DCHC’s plan is to create long-term and sustainable ambulatory campus rooted in delivering high quality healthcare and improving the health and well-being of the Metro NO community members. The sites will include primary medical services, behavioral health services, pharmacy, after hours care, urgent care, as well as imaging and lab services. This financing will greatly assist in bringing needed healthcare services to the low-income population.

In May of 2023, in partnership with Stonehenge Community Development, PB Community Impact  Fund, The Community Business Investment Fund, and US Bank, Crescent closed on a $23.0M Federal NMTC financing, to construct two new facilities:.

• Algiers – A $15.8 million clinic will include primary care, behavioral health, pediatrics, a pharmacy, urgent care, and outpatient diagnostic imaging and laboratory services. This new 20,000 SF facility will replace a nearby leased facility possessing only 1,944 SF, growing ten-fold in size.
• Harvey – A $4.2 million clinic will include primary care, behavioral health, pediatrics, and a pharmacy. This new 9,400 SF facility will replace a nearby leased facility possessing only 3,750 SF, representing a nearly triple increase in size.

DCHC’s new facilities plan on creating 34 jobs during the entirety of the NMTC Compliance Period.

2000 Magazine Street, 3500 Holiday Drive, New Orleans, LA

St. Thomas Community Health Center (“St. Thomas”) was founded in 1987 by a small group of members of the Catholic and Episcopal religious communities, including Dr. Donald T. Erwin, who continues as the CEO today. The clinic began operations in the former St. Thomas Housing Development in the Irish Channel, moved to its current main clinic location on Magazine Street in 1991, and today has expanded to multiple locations throughout the Greater New Orleans area, on both the East and West banks of the Mississippi River.

STCHC offers a full range of healthcare services that includes primary care, pediatrics, perinatal care, mental health counseling, optometry services and women’s health care. STCHC also offers specialty care in the areas of child and adult psychiatry and counseling, gastroenterology, rheumatology, and cardiology. Of the community-based health care centers in New Orleans, St. Thomas is one of only a few providers with a dedicated team of infectious disease specialists, working to treat and prevent the spread of diseases like HIV and Hepatitis C. STCHC patient base is 86% minority, and 6 out of 10 board members are minority as well.

True to St. Thomas’ mission of providing health care services for those who need it most, St. Thomas’ overall clinical payer mix is 60.1% Medicaid, 19.1% Medicare, 9.2% commercial insurance, and 11.6% uninsured.  The vast majority of St. Thomas’ patients are Black, with a growing Latinx patient population.  Annually, St. Thomas (STCHC) serves approximately 20,000 distinct patients and handles approximately 76,000 patient visits.

In May of 2023, in partnership with Gulf Coast Housing Partnership and US Bank, Crescent closed on a $5.5M Federal NMTC financing, and in March of 2024, in partnership with Enhanced Capital Partners and US Bank, Crescent closed on a $5M Louisiana State NMTC financing to construct two new facilities to significantly expand services and improve accessibility:

• Garden District – A $5.1 million clinic will include primary care, behavioral health at the site, pediatrics, access to the pharmacy next door at 2010 Magazine, women’s health, access to other services located across the street at 1936 Magazine Street and 1020 St Andrew including infectious diseases, optometry and mammography services. This new 6,092 SF facility is expected to serve 7,680 patients and handle approximately 19,200 visits on an annual basis.
• Algiers – A $1.8 million clinic will include primary care, behavioral health at the site, pediatrics, and women’s health. This new 4,596 SF facility is expected to serve 4,800 patients and handle approximately 12,000 visits on an annual basis.

Without the NMTC financing it may otherwise be less fiscally viable to pursue such an initiative.  This financing will greatly assist in bringing needed healthcare services to the low-income population. St. Thomas’s two new facilities plan on creating 17 to 22 new jobs as a result of the project.

535 Bandera Road, San Antonio, TX 78228

Autism Community Network (ACN) was founded in 2008 through a consortium of healthcare funders led by Palmer Moe and the Kronkosky Charitable Foundation. The primary purpose of ACN is to improve the health and quality of life of children with autism by providing early, uniquely tailored diagnostic services to children suspected of having autism, therapies to families impacted by autism, and support through training for caregivers and providers whose interaction with autistic children is critical to their success.  Additionally, ACN works diligently to educate the community about autism and to the best of their ability, the experience of the impacted family and autistic individual.

ACN serves children ages 0-7 through its clinical diagnostic program, and ages 0-9 for occupational therapy and speech language therapy.  The organization currently offers the following programs (a) diagnostic services for children, (b) therapies for children and families affected by autism, (c) classes for caregivers affected by autism, (d) professional development for professionals serving children with autism, (e) continued care coordination, (f) community outreach and awareness, (g) quality of life programming (Camp AUSOME!, Family Events, Community Collaborations). 

ACN is currently one of two agencies serving the Medicaid populations in Bexar, and surrounding counties, with clinical diagnostic services. ACN’s current waitlist is 6 months for their Earliest Connection Clinic (0-29 months of age) and 18 months for their Diagnostic Clinic (30 months to 6 years of age). 

Since its inception in 2008, ACN has served over 27,000 individuals – an estimated 75% of whom are Medicaid eligible.  In 2021 alone, ACN served 2,150 children, caregivers and other professionals through its unique programming options, 85% of whom are below the poverty line. 

In March of 2023, in partnership with Broadstreet Impact Services (formerly Local Initiatives Support Corporation), Crescent closed on a $5.5M Federal NMTC financing to purchase, renovate and expand an existing facility into the new home of the Autism Community Network (“ACN”).  The new 10,346 sf ACN headquarters facility will provide the organization with adequate clinical space to serve a growing referral base, as well as a large sensory gym, a playground and a community center. 

The new facility will decrease ACN’s diagnostic waitlist by 3-6 months, increase the amount of therapy offerings, expand education and training for autism service providers and caregivers and improve upon quality-of-life offerings by including appropriate play areas, both indoor and outdoor, for the autistic community, all in a safe, sensory-friendly and warm facility.

The NMTC net benefit will provide ACN with the ability to reduce its fundraising target by nearly $650K and facilitate ACN’s expansion of its existing programming by 63% over the next five years.  The project is expected to create at least 10 FTE’s over the next 7 years.

2214 Basse Road, San Antonio, TX

The mission of national non-profit Girls Inc. and its affiliates is to serve girls and young women ages 6-18 by fostering long-term mentoring relationships within safe spaces for girls to develop their strengths and take charge of their futures. Girls Inc. deploys an evidence-based, pro-girl model to address the systemic barriers that hold young women back today. Within pro-girl, girls-only safe spaces, Girls Inc. teaches young women to be Strong, Smart and Bold.

• Strong – Programming that teaches nourishing habits, including stressing the importance of positive choices, a healthy diet, rest and self-care, to create the resiliency essential for future accomplishment.
• Smart – Programming that prepares girls for fulfilling work and economic independence. Specific career opportunities and pathways are described, with a focus on STEM fields that experts believe will offer the largest number of highly-remunerative professions for which demand is growing – professions in which women continue to be underrepresented. Girls Inc. also provides access and opportunities for young women to meet and learn from female role models and community leaders. This exposure demonstrates to young, underprivileged women that women can and do succeed in all realms.
• Bold – Programming that fosters positive self-image and intellectual confidence, encouraging girls to develop and use their voices. Girls Inc. wants to see young woman become comfortable taking risks, learning from mistakes, and growing.

In 2004, Girls Inc. inaugurated its San Antonio chapter. A majority of its participants come from impoverished communities of color, with program attendees almost exclusively Hispanic.  These young women struggle, growing up in neighborhoods affected by violence, in under-resourced schools, and without access to adequate nutrition or healthcare. Birth rates among teenage young women of color are twice as high as among white teens.

In 2020, sixteen years after its establishment in San Antonio, Girls Inc. acquired a permanent headquarters facility, enabling a quantum leap in its capacity and capabilities.

In September of 2022, in partnership with Texas Mezzanine Fund, and Chase Bank, Crescent closed on a $9M Federal NMTC financing which will enable Girls Inc. of San Antonio – eighteen years after its establishment – to complete and fully equip its new headquarters and youth activity campus, providing a safe space for San Antonio’s underprivileged young woman of color to develop their strengths, learn from mistakes, and take charge of their future, according to the proven Strong, Smart, Bold model.

The completed campus will rank as a vanguard initiative designed to recover ground lost during the pandemic, during which time narrowed horizons, academic underperformance, violence and abuse have proliferated among San Antonio’s disadvantaged young women of color. The new Girls Inc. campus will double the number of young women attending the evidence-based programming offered by Girls Inc., from 2,500 annually to 5,000 annually. FTE staff numbers will double as well from 15 to 30.

1304 N. Kenosha Avenue, Tulsa, OK

CFBEO is Feeding America’s designated food bank for the twenty-four county region of eastern Oklahoma centered around Tulsa. In 2019, the food bank distributed a record 28.9 million pounds of food.

In 1981, in response to the rising number of people struggling with hunger, Tulsa’s Neighbor for Neighbor feeding program evolved to become the Tulsa Community Food Bank. Operating from a small, donated warehouse space, in year one the food bank provided food assistance to 25 partner agencies and distributed 90,000 pounds of food, the equivalent of 75,000 meals.

In 2006, the Food Bank opened its current facility, the Donald W. Reynolds Food Distribution Center. That year the Food Bank distributed 7.5 million pounds of food, a record at the time.

Since its founding, the food bank has also steadily grown its service area and has continued to expand the scope of its services. Programs include on-site feeding programs, emergency shelters, emergency food pantries, children and senior feeding programs, veterans’ outreach initiatives, disaster relief and other low-income programs that have a meal component. All of these programs provide food free of charge to people who struggle with hunger in the community.

The food bank’s work also includes direct feeding programs such as Cooking Matters, Food for Kids, and Senior Servings, as well as clinic pantries, mobile pantries, and culinary center and college campus pantries. Collectively the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma coordinates more than 380 direct feeding sites.

In 2019, the food bank distributed a record 28.9 million pounds of food, the equivalent of more than 24 million meals, to the hungry. The food bank distributes food via both direct programs and through 350 partner agencies, located in the 24 counties of eastern Oklahoma that comprise nearly 30,000 square miles and contain a population of more than 1.5 million people.

Despite these ongoing successes, CFBEO’s distribution center has been bursting at the seams for years. At 78,000 square feet, the facility was designed to have the capacity to distribute 20 million pounds of food annually.

In February of 2022, in partnership with Hampton Roads Ventures, Heartland Renaissance Fund and Capital One, Crescent closed on a $16M NMTC financing to construct the new Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma.

CFBEO will add 66,000 SF to CFBEO’s existing 78,000 SF facility, increasing its design capacity from 20 million pounds of food distributed annually to nearly 52 million pounds of food distributed annually. Even though improved workflows will greatly boost the productivity of CFBEO’s existing workforce, additional hiring will be needed, resulting in nine permanent new positions. Approximately 250 construction jobs will also be generated by the facility expansion component of the Build Hope campaign. A new 12,500 SF food preparation kitchen will enable the growth in prepared meal distribution, and fresher, more nutritious offerings will be made available.