The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund has awarded Cinnaire $825,750 in grants through the 2020 round of the CDFI Program. The award will advance Cinnaire’s work bringing capital, development capacity and expertise to communities and people in need, especially those often left out of the economic mainstream. The CDFI Fund recently awarded more than $204 million to support economic growth in low-income and economically distressed communities across the nation.
“In the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd and so many others, we at Cinnaire have recommitted to doing our part to dismantle a system of institutional racism, break barriers to creating generational wealth and to deploy capital to advance the causes of equity and justice,” said Donsia Strong Hill, Cinnaire Lending Director of Development. “This award will create meaningful opportunities for the people and the communities that need us the most. We are grateful to our partners at the CDFI Fund for continuing to provide funding critical to advancing the needs of diverse communities.”
A $557,000 Financial Assistance (FA) grant was awarded to support Cinnaire’s efforts to advance economic opportunities for developers of color. As part of the organizations strategic plan, Cinnaire is committed to delivering a range of flexible, competitive loan products to meet the needs of communities of color and to ensure equitable access to resources to support healthy, vibrant communities. The CDFI Fund FA award will be used to launch Cinnaire’s Emerging Developer Loan, a loan product designed to connect minority led community development organizations and developers of color to capital. The Emerging Developer Loan will strengthen the organization’s recently launched Jumpstart Wilmington program, a free mentorship and training program empowering community members to become developers of their neighborhoods.
Additionally, Cinnaire was awarded more than $268,000 through the CDFI Fund Disability Fund–Financial Assistance (DF-FA) program, an initiative to address the challenges of individuals with disabilities. This funding will grow Cinnaire’s focus on providing affordable, supportive housing for vulnerable individuals throughout the Midwest and MidAtlantic regions. Cinnaire, in collaboration with the Michigan Governor’s office, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA), and the Michigan Treatment Courts, recently developed the nation’s first model for permanent supportive recovery housing designed to address the opioid crisis through supportive recovery housing. Andy’s Place in Jackson, MI, is the first of several permanent supportive recovery housing projects Cinnaire has planned in Michigan to address recovery holistically.
The CDFI Fund invests in and builds the capacity of CDFIs to serve low-income people and communities lacking access to affordable financial products and services. As a full-service CDFI, Cinnaire Lending works with socially conscious investors and mission focused organizations to create out-of-the-box lending options to support housing and community development work.
About the CDFI Fund
Since its creation in 1994, the CDFI Fund has awarded more than $3.6 billion to CDFIs, community development organizations, and financial institutions through: the Bank Enterprise Award Program; the Capital Magnet Fund; the Community Development Financial Institutions Program; the Financial Education and Counseling Pilot Program; and the Native American CDFI Assistance Program. In addition, the CDFI Fund has allocated $61 billion in tax credit allocation authority to Community Development Entities through the New Markets Tax Credit Program, and closed guaranteed bonds in the amount of $1.61 billion through the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program.
