After three years of virtual meetings, CCLF had its first in-person Annual Stakeholders meeting on Thursday, May 18, 2023, at the DePaul Center in downtown Chicago.

Prior to the meeting, the 77 attendees were treated to a delectable breakfast enthusiastically networking after the long hiatus.

Once the meeting was underway, Erik Hall, CCLF Board Chair, welcomed attendees and presented management updates. He also acknowledged the return of Calvin Holmes from an extended leave, praised the CCLF staff for stepping up during Holmes’ absence and commended their overall dedication to the mission.

Holmes thanked Hall and the entire Board of Directors for their patience and guidance while on leave. He conveyed his appreciation to the CCLF team and especially acknowledged Bob Tucker, CCLF Interim President.

Tucker expressed his gratitude to the entire CCLF staff. He said that CCLF succeeds because it has a talented team with a strong, deep bench and supporters like those in the room who have always helped CCLF advance its mission. He assured the audience that CCLF is on target with its strategic, operational and DEI goals.

The FY2022 Audit Report and FY2023 First Quarter Financial Statements were reported to the audience. This was the fifth consecutive year that CCLF has had a clean audit, with no recommendations from CCLF’s auditors on improving our systems for next year. CCLF ended the year with $4.8 million in net income, mainly attributable to capital grants targeted directly towards CCLF’s lending pool. CCLF also ended fiscal year 2022 with total assets of $158.9 million.

Lycrecia Parks, Chief Risk Officer and Vice President of Portfolio Management, highlighted CCLF’s 2022 annual report which was well received by the audience.

Parks stated that CCLF ended 2022 with a consolidated outstanding portfolio balance of over $111 million. This is a 14% increase over 2021 and a 15% increase over 2020. CCLF ended Q1 2023 with a portfolio of over $114 million and is projecting to end 2023 with an outstanding consolidated portfolio of over $133 million.

Parks thanked CCLF’s investors and donors, adding CCLF’s credit quality remains stable. Delinquency increased to 2.4% at FYE 2022 and Q1 2023, but as of April 30, 2023, delinquency decreased to less than 1%. CCLF is projecting to end the year with delinquency remaining at or below 1%.

As of Q1 2023, CCLF closed seven loans totaling over $8.9 million. By year end, CCLF is projecting to add approximately 40 loans with over $35 million in new loans closed. By loan amount, this will be a 5% increase over 2022; 26% over 2021; and a 44% increase over 2020’s closed loans results.

Wendell Harris, VP of Lending Operations, introduced three CCLF Borrowers: Jason Parks (Loop Capital); Takeisha Baker (Baker Development Group) and Aron Weisner (Celadon Partners).

Baker is a re-occurring community developer in the city of Chicago’s Neighborhood ReBuild Program, an initiative that works to rehabilitate 1–4-unit properties and put them back on the market at an affordable cost to local homebuyers. This program also has a workforce development component that provides job training and placement services to ex-offenders and harder-to-employee youth. CCLF has served as the administrator for this program for the past five years.

Weisner is a partner with Celadon Partners, LLC., a company that develops affordable housing. The firm has completed numerous affordable housing redevelopment projects and low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) transactions throughout the region, resulting in over 1,500 units of new affordable housing units. Celadon is a repeat borrower of CCLF. Weisner discussed his latest project, Union Yards, located in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. CCLF provided a predevelopment loan of $2.5 million for this project.

Loop Capital, a CCLF borrower whose Chief of Staff, Jason Parks, was there to discuss their high-profile project Regal Mile Studios that is being called the Hollywood of the Midwest. Regal Mile Studios will be located in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood providing nearly 300,000 square feet of studio space that includes six sound stages, production facilities and more. CCLF provided Regal Mile Studios with a $5 million predevelopment loan for the project.

Harris moderated a conversation about their interactions with CCLF; experience trying to secure financing for their projects; and the social impacts of their work. He completed the session with Q and A and turned it over to Tucker to answer any final questions and to close out the meeting.