Enterprise Community Partners Inc. announced Dec. 14 it will take part in a $3.5 billion, five-year initiative to counter racial inequities in housing.
Enterprise said it will contribute $10 million in capital to seed a $350 million growth fund to attract an additional $3.1 billion for the Equitable Path Forward initiative. Netflix also will commit $25 million to the program, Enterprise said.
“The multipronged initiative establishes an equitable path forward for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) and other historically marginalized housing providers who create and preserve affordable homes in diverse communities,” the company said in its announcement.
Enterprise said the growth fund would include:
- Entity-level lending. Including unsecured lines of credit to support organizational growth through Enterprise Community Loan Fund, Enterprise’s nationally recognized Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) – among the hardest-to-access capital, the lack of which has created a ceiling for small developers to grow, particularly for developers of color, many of whom because of given wealth disparities don’t have access to the “friends and family” growth capital.
- Entity-level grants. Through Enterprise’s Solutions division, which aggregates and deploys philanthropic capital to additionally support organizational growth.
- Project-level equity. Through Enterprise’s Housing Credit, Conventional Equity, New Markets Tax Credit and Opportunity Zone platforms, among other sources.
- Project-level debt. Through Enterprise’s CDFI, among other sources.
“Our vision is nothing short of dismantling the legacy of racism in housing,” President and CEO Priscilla Almodovar said. “By investing in these housing providers who are on the ground and engaged with their communities, Equitable Path Forward will lead to a new and needed level of responsiveness, investment and equity in the communities that get built.”
