PHOTO / TIM GREENWAY
Bill Shanahan, co-president of Evernorth
March 4, 2021
Skowhegan Savings invests $750K in affordable housing fund
file PHOTO / MAUREEN MILLIKEN
Renovation of the former Hodgkins School in Augusta into housing is one of many Maine projects Northern New England Housing Investment Fund has been involved in. The nonprofit merged with Housing Vermont to form Evernorth.
By Staff
Skowhegan Savings Bank has invested $750,000 to support development of affordable housing in northern New England, and is one of 19 investors that committed $60.7 million in equity to the second Housing New England Fund.
The fund, run by the nonprofit organization Evernorth, will be a significant financial resource for the region’s critical affordable housing needs, the bank said in a news release.
Evernorth has offices in Portland and in Burlington, Vt.
“We realize the need for affordable housing in Maine remains strong,” said Rich St. Pierre, chief financial officer of Skowhegan Savings Bank. “This program not only creates affordable housing for Mainers but also provides job retention and creation in the management and development of these properties.”
The multi-investor fund provides equity to finance affordable housing in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Investors include community, regional, national banks and one of the nation’s largest mortgage institutions.
“We raised capital from a wide range of investors and new partners enabling us to expand our reach to preserve and create much-needed affordable housing in these unprecedented times,” said Nancy Owens, co-president of Evernorth.
Evernorth was created after it closed its first Housing New England Fund in January 2020. The original fund was a joint venture of Housing Vermont and the Northern New England Housing Investment Fund, which deployed $64.5 million across Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.
Evernorth, a member of the National Association of State and Local Equity Funds, raises equity by syndicating federal and state low-income housing, historic and affordable housing tax credits.
“In addition to a reliable return on their investments, the community banks and the regional and national companies that have invested with the second Housing New England Fund will help to build or renovate tangible, long-lasting affordable housing resources throughout northern New England,” said Bill Shanahan, co-president of Evernorth.
All of the developments that are receiving funding from the second Housing New England Fund have been identified and 10 are in construction. In all, the fund will invest in 18 developments, creating 744 affordable apartments. Nine of the developments are in Maine, three are in New Hampshire and six are in Vermont.
Evernorth currently has 66 properties in 12 Maine counties that provide approximately 2,500 units of affordable housing, for Maine families, the elderly and those with special needs.
One of the developments supported by the fund is in Hartland.
"When completed, the Hartland Senior Living Apartments will provide a much needed 30 unit senior housing facility in one of our rural communities,” St. Pierre said.
Evernorth has a pipeline of high-quality community developments which need financing. The organization plans to raise more capital for affordable housing, creating operating efficiencies by providing a geographically diverse investment offering and lowering their costs of syndication by unveiling a third Housing New England Fund in the spring.
Over 30 years, Northern New England Housing Investment Fund and Housing Vermont were behind construction of 13,000 homes for low and moderate-income residents of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, and raised more than $1 billion in equity.
Notable projects are the Motherhouse in Portland and 62 Spring St. in Auburn.
Last month, Evernorth announced the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Fund awarded Evernorth $950,000 for the development of affordable housing in low-income areas in Maine and New Hampshire.
This award was made through the FY 2020 round of the Capital Magnet Fund to 48 organizations from across the country and from a pool of $175.35 million.
Evernorth will deploy the $950,000 with below market rates and terms by addressing three gaps in available financing: early stage predevelopment capital, financing to bridge receipt of tax credit equity and other committed subsidies, and permanent financing for energy upgrades in existing affordable housing stock in Maine and New Hampshire.
The funds are expected to promote the production and preservation of more than 500 affordable rental apartments over the next five years.
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