Hampton Roads Ventures, Dudley Ventures Break Ground on Jazz @ Walter Circle Senior Living Facility

PRLog (Press Release) - Apr. 27, 2011 - Hampton Roads Ventures (HRV), one of the nation’s leading community development and New Markets Tax Credits firms, along with Dudley Ventures, a national real estate firm, held a groundbreaking ceremony for the development of Jazz @ Walter Circle, a state-of-the-art senior living facility in East St. Louis, Ill.  City of East St. Louis Mayor Alvin Parks, Jr. and East St. Louis Housing Authority Executive Director Elizabeth Tolliver joined HRV and Dudley at the ceremony marking the formal commencement of development of this 100,000-square-foot building boasting 70+ senior residences and cultural activities.

This project, which will include a locally owned green grocer, credit union, Southern Illinois Health Foundation Wellness Center, commercial kitchen, community center, and roof and terrace gardening/farming initiative, is the first in the nation to combine public housing funds with New Markets Tax Credits. In addition, the facility, scheduled for completion in 2012, will tackle several of the federal administration’s initiatives, including Eliminating Food Deserts, Creating Jobs, Holistic Development, and Transit Oriented Development.

The key to success was the use of innovative public/private partnerships to find and secure funding.  The East St. Louis Housing Authority (ESLHA) collaborated with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, City of East St. Louis, Eco Jazz, Inc., NFP (an affiliate of the ESLHA), Dudley Ventures, and HRV, a community development investment firm, to facilitate the financial resources needed to finalize the project.  Industry experts at forging public/private partnerships, HRV availed the New Markets Tax Credit program to attract $17 million to the project.

“The development of this state-of-the-art facility is a testament to the importance of public-private partnerships for projects in this economy and the creative way in which housing projects can be financed at a time when private debt capital is difficult to obtain,” said Robert K. Jenkins, Jr., HRV President and CEO.

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About HRV
Hampton Roads Ventures, LLC, is a community development investment firm specializing in attracting private-sector investment capital into innovative economic community development projects in emerging domestic communities, particularly lower income urban and rural communities. HRV works closely with local business, government and civic leaders to identify investment opportunities that will be a catalyst for additional private sector investment and development. HRV has been awarded 4 allocations of NMTCs totaling $160 million.

Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/11460600/1