The town of Lima, Ohio, population 35,000, has a housing shortage severe enough to stunt the growth of its workforce.
Arctaris Impact Investors is putting $4.1 million into an 18-unit development to create rental housing for healthcare workers connected to the nearby Mercy Health – St. Rita’s Medical Center.
The investment, in one of the state’s opportunity zones, is the first from a $25 million initiative between Arctaris, the Lima municipal government, and the Lima/Allen County Chamber Foundation. It “represents exactly the kind of intentional investment our community has been working toward,” said Lima Mayor Sharetta Smith.
“This deal is proof of concept that collaboration works and that investment in small and rural communities can have meaningful impact,” said Arctaris’ Nihar Sait.
Place-based investing
Boston-based Arctaris has similar place-based investing programs in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland and Pennsylvania (see, “Impact investments in Opportunity Zones could drive home ownership – with a few policy tweaks”).
The firm issues impact notes to accredited and institutional investors to raise capital for the programs, combining first-loss capital from local community foundations, governments and other philanthropic partners to spur housing, jobs and community economic development.
Arctaris is also advocating for federal policy to drive homeownership through opportunity zones.
