Local Initiatives Support Corporation
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| Founded | 1979 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Ford Foundation |
| Type | Non-Profit CDFI |
| Location |
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Area served
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United States |
| Method | Grants, Loans, Investments |
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Key people
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Robert Rubin: Chairman of the Board, Michael Rubinger: President |
| Mission | Community Development |
| Website | www |
The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a US non-profit community development financial institution (CDFI) that supports community development corporations in 30 urban areas and dozens of rural areas in the United States. LISC was created in 1979 by executives from the Ford Foundation. LISC is affiliated with the National Equity Fund (NEF), the largest national syndicator of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), and the New Markets Support Company, a national syndicator of New Markets Tax Credits
LISC and its affiliates support community development projects through grants, loans and equity investments. In the 2012 fiscal year, it reported grants, loans and investments totaling US$903 million, leveraging $2.8 billion in total development. Since 1980, LISC has been responsible for the creation of 303,500 affordable homes and apartments, 49.4 million square feet of retail and community facilities, 180 schools, 184 child care facilities and 269 playing fields.
The idea for LISC was conceived in 1979 by a group of Ford Foundation officials and trustees visiting community development projects in Baltimore. One of the trustees asked Ford Foundation Vice President Mitchell Sviridoff "what he would do if he had $25 million to spend on helping declining cities." Sviridoff responded that he would "identify competent leaders in 50 to 100 communities around the nation and give them as much money and support as possible." Sviridoff went on to become LISC's first president.
LISC was founded in December 1979 and formally announced in May 1980, with $10 million in capital from the Ford Foundation, Aetna, Continental Illinois Bank, International Harvester, Levi Strauss & Co. and Prudential Insurance. LISC's initial areas of concentration were the South Bronx, Boston and Chicago. By 1985, it had raised $100 million and was active in 20 cities. In 1987, LISC created the National Equity Fund to syndicate the Low Income Housing Tax Credit created by the Tax Reform Act of 1986.
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Wikipedia