Utah-based SustainEnergyFinance was founded two years ago to tackle the state’s housing affordability crisis and help bring down household energy bills. The nonprofit has teamed with New York City Energy Efficiency Corporation, or NYCEEC, to support the development of an 8-story mixed-use development by 22 Communities in a transit-dense area on Salt Lake City’s West Side.
The $4.5 million loan was the first for SustainEnergyFinance, which has a pipeline of single and multi-family housing projects and retrofits, said SEF’s Shawna Cuan. NYCEEC, which often works with new green lenders, led the deal. It is the organization’s first loan in Utah.
Catalytic capital
22 Communities, also based in Utah, is tapping the Low Income Housing Tax Credit as well as tax equity investors. It also received a low-interest loan from the Redevelopment Agency of Salt Lake City to build the project. The pre-development loan will support crucial activities like permitting and engineering studies that are often hard for developers to fund.
The mixed use development, The Cooperative 1881, will add 396 affordable housing units within walking distance of public transit. The building will be 100% electric and will be powered by renewable energy sourced through the Utah Renewable Communities program, which matches energy use with grid-connected clean power. The development includes small-format retail space to support a vibrant community.
“This is a very catalytic opportunity to provide an enormous amount of affordable housing in the Salt Lake area,” Cuan told ImpactAlpha. SEF hopes to create a replicable model for energy efficient housing developments across Utah.
