Big River Steel has announced it closed on a $487 million debt financing package, which will go toward 30 years of bonds to finance the expansion of its scrap metal recycling and flat-rolled production facility, doubling its capacity to 3.3 million tons per year. The company also announced another $290 million in equity financing, provided on a pro rata basis by BRS's current ownership group

Congress has passed a $19 billion aid bill to help places recover from natural disasters that have struck over the last two years. The legislation includes nearly $2.5 billion for CDBG-DR, $3 billion for USDA farmer assistance programs, and $600 million for EDA grants for long-term recovery in areas affected by major disasters in 2018 and 2019.

The half-billion-dollar commitment comes from Starwood Capital Group's newly launched Starwood Sustainable Credit, a venture that's starting with commercial property assessed clean energy financing. It will be backing new C-PACE financing CleanFund originates.

In 2015, the housing bond — directing $310 million for affordable housing for low-income families, revitalization of public-housing projects and down-payment assistance for middle-income homebuyers — was approved by nearly three quarters of voters. This year, a $600 million bond for affordable housing will be on the ballot.

The Opportunity Zones incentive has started to bloom in Maine as investors become familiar with new regulations. However, Opportunity Zones have yet to attract heavy investment, despite creating a buzz in development circles.

Opportunity Zones are an important addition to the economic development toolbox, but they should not be viewed in a vacuum. This article considers the ways state and local incentives can increase the total benefits to QOZ projects, increasing project feasibility and improving return on investment.

Chicago developers are making bold plays to turn long-vacant brownfield sites, obsolete industrial corridors, and underutilized historic buildings into megadevelopments. Lincoln Yards, a 55-acre, $6 billion mixed-use development, is being built on remediated brownfield land. So too is The 78, a mixed-use, transit-oriented neighborhood on 62-acres of former brownfield space.

The use of tax-exempt private activity bonds for multifamily housing would receive new economic incentives under the bipartisan Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2019. The legislation expands the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit that has been widely used for bond-financed multifamily housing construction and rehabilitation.

The New York City Housing Development Corp. intends to issue up to $1.1 billion of multi-family housing revenue bonds and provide roughly $27 million of additional financing. In total, it will fund the new construction and preservation of 5,182 affordable homes across 17 developments in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan.

CDFA is pleased to congratulate John Springer, Business Banking Manager, as the newest graduate of the Development Finance Certified Professional (DFCP) program. As a new graduate, Mr. Springer joins numerous others who have invested in their professional development and are ready to tackle the complexities of the development finance industry.

During this installment of the CDFA // BNY Mellon Webcast Series, expert speakers will provide an in-depth overview of the approaches currently being used by cities, counties, and states across the U.S. to attract mega projects.

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