Matchmakers. Changemakers.
About Us
Who We Are
Central Valley NMTC is a certified community development entity in Fresno, California. Our mission is to facilitate projects that promote health, job creation, communication, and environmental benefits across our region.
Matchmakers
Bridging Investment and Opportunity
Central Valley NMTC (CVNMTC) connects innovative projects in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods with private investment. We foster transformative projects positioned for positive, catalytic impact. Projects that wouldn't otherwise pencil out for traditional lenders become attractive to private financing through considerable tax credits.
We use the federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program to foster economic development in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods throughout the Central Valley of California. Focusing on economic, social, and environmental returns, CVNMTC looks to finance projects that demonstrate the highest community development outcomes.
This means job creation, community services, cleaner air and water, increased housing opportunities, and more access to health care and education.
Changemakers
Transforming Lives Through Opportunity
CVNMTC provides a substantial financial benefit for the organization receiving the funding to help create opportunity and lasting change to end poverty in the Central Valley. California’s Central Valley is one of the poorest and unhealthiest regions in America. We focus on projects such as federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and community medical clinics that provide immediate and significant community benefits, such as healthcare delivery, job creation, job quality, community services, and environmental impacts.
Changemakers
Transforming Lives Through Opportunity
CVNMTC provides a substantial financial benefit for the organization receiving the funding to help create opportunity and lasting change to end poverty in the Central Valley. California’s Central Valley is one of the poorest and unhealthiest regions in America.
We focus on projects such as federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and community medical clinics that provide immediate and significant community benefits, such as healthcare delivery, job creation, job quality, community services, and environmental impacts.
Our Service Area
Serving California’s Central Valley
CVNMTC’s specific service areas are the eight counties that comprise California’s Central Valley – Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare. We focus our resources on the most highly distressed qualified census tracts (QCTs) with a special emphasis on projects within rural communities of the Central Valley.
Although CVNMTC is currently focused on these counties, projects in other highly distressed areas throughout California may be considered if it meets CVNMTC’s impact criteria.
The 16th Congressional District, where CVNMTC is headquartered, has the lowest “Human Development Index” in the nation. Even though the Valley is the country’s #1 agricultural producing region, the most recent census shows the Valley is also #1 for residents living below the federal poverty line.
The American Lung Association gives the Valley a failing grade for its designation as the dirtiest air basin in the country. Despite high rates of medical diseases, such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes, health care access is extremely limited — 30 percent of the census tracts in our service area are designated as Medically Underserved Areas (MUA). And 57.8 percent are designated as Health Provider Shortage Areas (HPSA).
Services we offer
- Coordinated leadership
- Pro-bono technical assistance
- NMTC financing
- Long-term collaboration to organizations and projects that positively
- impact the social determinants of health for Low-Income Communities throughout our region
Investment Criteria
What We Look For
CVNMTC targets projects with demonstrable community impact, such as quality job creation and retention, essential community services such as health care and childcare, and sustainable environmental impact. Priority is given to projects that are:
- Located in areas that face endemic economic issues, such as high poverty rate, high unemployment, and high crime
- Demonstrate strong support from the public and private sectors, community leaders, and residents
- Deliver economic revitalization and catalytic impact for the surrounding community.
What We Do
We provide innovative financing solutions and funding support that help transformative projects create jobs, expand essential services, and strengthen underserved communities throughout the Central Valley.
Investment Criteria
New Markets Tax Credit Financing
Central Valley NMTC (CVNMTC) uses allocation from the federal New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program to make investments for catalytic community development projects located within qualifying low-income census tracts throughout the Central Valley of California.
CVNMTC structures each NMTC investment to provide the maximum financial benefit to the project and project sponsors. CVNMTC’s investments are typically structured to have one or more of the following characteristics:
- Debt with equity features (i.e., debt with royalties; debt with warrants; convertible debt)
- Subordinated debt
- Below market interest rates
- Lower than standard origination fees
- A longer than standard period of interest only loan payments
- Higher than standard loan-to-value ratio
- A longer than standard amortization period
- More flexible borrower credit standards
- Nontraditional forms of collateral
- Lower than standard debt service coverage ratio
- Loan loss reserve requirements that are less than standard
Funding Partnerships
Alternative Funding Sources
CVNMTC can also help developers and project sponsors identify and access alternative project finance mechanisms, such as government and foundation grants and below-market loans. These sources of financing help high-impact projects move forward.
We also help developers access attractive market-rate debt and will leverage its strong relationships with many small- to mid-size local banks and large multinational lending institutions to complete project financing.
Eligibility & Project Guidelines
Census Tract Criteria
Use one of these mapping tools to complete the census tract criteria percentages (poverty rate, unemployment rate, median family income): Novogradac map, Cohn Reznick map, or CDFI NMTC Public Viewer.
Project Submittal Instructions
The Central Valley NMTC Fund, LLC (CVNMTC) is pleased to have received multiple New Markets Tax Credits allocations totaling $145 million. As the only allocatee headquartered in the Central Valley, CVNMTC is tasked with ensuring these limited resources are provided to the most impactful projects.
Potential borrowers are requested to describe and document the community, social, economic, and environmental benefits anticipated by the project.
Each project considered is evaluated on its merits by CVNMTC staff, its consultants, and the CVNMTC Advisory Board. Specific focus points are job creation, community benefit, economic benefit, and the ability of the sponsor/developer to bring the project to realization. Detailed responses will help CVNMTC quantify and assess the anticipated community benefits and create a more compelling application to the CDFI Fund for additional allocation. To be considered, please download and complete our Intake Form. Once completed, email the Intake Form along with the supporting documentation (up to 10MB) to info@cvnmtc.com.
