Thank you to our partners at Inclusive and CDBA for sharing data on CDFI Bank and CDFI Credit Union branch locations. In addition, about 100 of our CDFI Stories come from OFN’s story database.
We have been able to utilize NMTC and without this financing many of the projects we have done in Minneapolis would not have been possible. It’s been a wonderful facility to support small businesses, economic development, and critical services to low-income communities. Please continue these programs, they do make a difference.
Mary Stoick from Sunrise Bank in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is the reason my family’s business, which had been in operation for 71 years, is still thriving. We were on the verge of collapse, and being evicted from our old location at that point made it even more challenging. In a desperate attempt to save our business, I decided to take a risky gamble and enter the food truck business. We were incredibly fortunate with the outcome of that decision. While our food truck business was thriving, we faced significant difficulties in finding a lender with fair pricing. Mary informed us that unfortunately, all the allocated funds for their tax credit loan had been exhausted, and they would no longer be able to provide us with funding through that avenue. She emphasized the slim chances of success, urging me to let it go, but I refused to give up. I relentlessly pursued her for days, and finally, something gave way. There were just enough funds to allow us to continue our family legacy. We are now approaching 80 years old, and I have a son. If he chooses to follow in our footsteps, he could potentially extend our business history to 125 years. None of this would have been possible without Mary and Sunrise Bank. This is not an exaggerated or fabricated story; it’s a true account of my life. Mary stands out among many as one of the few who genuinely cares for her customers, making her a rare gem. I sincerely hope that this allocation goes through so that she can continue to do for others what she has done for me.
CDFI funds are frequently the only source of funding and lending available to small, scaled community-oriented development in Minneapolis. Without access to those opportunities companies like mine would not be able to accomplish our development goals and create mid-scale projects related to the arts and market rate affordable housing.
As a CDFI, we support areas that have had historical underinvestment and see a transformative impact to those communities over time. The CDFI fund has an excellent private investment track record that accompanies the Treasury investment, leveraging the funds at an $8 or more for every $1 from the CDFI fund. This helps incentivize investment in these communities, bringing greater prosperity to all and putting all Americans to work that can access these programs.