January 2018 Partner Spotlight of the Month: FirstBank!
Urban Land Conservancy celebrates the achievements of our partnerships that create and preserve nonprofit facilities and affordable housing for communities in metro Denver. ULC’s Monthly Partner Spotlight is awarded to partners who demonstrate the value of collaboration, furthering our mission to improve the lives of Metro Denver residents through our real estate investments and community assets.
Congratulations to our January 2018 Partner Spotlight of the Month: FirstBank!
Founded in 1963 with a commitment to convenience and quality customer service, FirstBank is now regarded as a top bank in Colorado. Today, FirstBank has over 115 locations throughout Colorado, Arizona and California – and over $17 billion in assets. The company is not only a major financial institution, but also an integral part of the communities in which they work.
ULC recognized FirstBank’s dedication to supporting Colorado’s local economies, which led us to partner with them in multiple transactions beginning in 2017. One of FirstBank’s more significant philanthropic endeavors has been the collaboration between FirstBank and the Community First Foundation to launch Colorado Gives Day. Founded in 2010, Colorado Gives Day is a 24-hour online campaign aimed towards encouraging philanthropic activity throughout Colorado. While the initiative’s inaugural goal was to raise $1 million in just 24 hours, FirstBank far surpassed any goal they could have imagined. To date, Colorado Gives Day has donated more than $181 million to local nonprofits, which we view as an incredible achievement!
“Giving back to the community means more to us than just donating money. It’s dedicating our time and energy, so we can help make a deep and meaningful impact to important charitable causes. We have a responsibility to help our local communities thrive, and we’re going to do exactly that,” said Jim Reuter, CEO of FirstBank.
ULC has experienced FirstBank’s community-minded philosophy firsthand. Recently, we worked with FirstBank to create a new capital resource called the Metro Denver Impact Fund (MDIF). Developed as loan capital for the purpose of acquiring real estate to create and preserve affordable housing, community facilities and affordable commercial space in transit-accessible locations, the MDIF aims to improve the overall health and vitality of metro Denver neighborhoods.
FirstBank committed $25 million in loan capital to launch the MDIF, and will underwrite each acquisition and service all loans. The MDIF officially launched at the end of 2017, and ULC is working with philanthropic, municipal and impact lending partners to identify an additional $25 million in loan funds to create a $50 million regional resource.
“Working with a local bank like FirstBank to establish a regional resource to acquire property to benefit the community is critical to our work. Having deals locally underwritten, where the community context is considered is a key component in the investments ULC makes. We are thrilled that FirstBank is filling that role and we look forward to demonstrating positive impact through investments made with the MDIF,” said Aaron Miripol, President & CEO of Urban Land Conservancy.
In addition to the Metro Denver Impact Fund, FirstBank partnered with ULC in 2017 in a lending capacity to refinance our Villas at Wadsworth property in Lakewood. This 100 unit affordable housing development will soon undergo over $2.2 million in much needed renovations, with FirstBank financing the construction.
This was an important step for the Villas, which serves as critical work force housing to over one hundred residents along a major transit corridor. With this loan, FirstBank made an intentional decision to assist low-income residents in our community. With this future rehabilitation (expected to start in February of this year) we will be able to provide our residents with newly renovated living spaces in addition to other property improvements throughout 2018.
After working closely with FirstBank on new and exciting ventures in 2017, ULC wanted to say thank you for your work as a community based financial institution dedicated to investing in the local economy, and your advocacy for philanthropic endeavors. FirstBank has supported over 700 charitable organizations, and donated over $4 million to its nonprofit partners in 2016 alone. The company also launched their new company wide slogan, “Banking for Good,” which is an accurate reflection of the $60+ million they have donated to Colorado based charities since 2000.
Working with the FirstBank team to launch the Metro Denver Impact Fund has proved their commitment to providing a positive economic and social impact for many low-income communities. Their $25 million commitment will directly address displacement in Metro Denver’s most vulnerable communities, as well as creating affordable real estate for residents to work, live and play in their neighborhoods. Congratulations again to our January Partner of the Month, we look forward to building on this incredible partnership in years to come!
For more information, go to (https://www.efirstbank.com/)