Huntington Bank Partners with Northside Community to Create Local Jobs
Bank Commits $300,000 to Support Business Development Efforts
in the Northside Over Six Years
PITTSBURGH, June 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Huntington Bank, the Northside Leadership Conference and the Northside Community Development Fund (NCDF) today announced a new corporate-community partnership to benefit the Northside neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. Huntington has committed a total of $300,000 over six years to support business development efforts and create jobs in the Northside.
"Huntington Bank is committed to the Pittsburgh area and to helping the area to grow," said Vincent Locher, President of Huntington's Pittsburgh Region. "We know that most jobs are created by small businesses. So we are supporting the Northside with dollars and our business banking expertise to develop small businesses there."
"The best source of hope in a neighborhood is a decent job. By supporting and investing in Northside businesses, we can grow living wage jobs for Northside residents," said Mark T. Fatla, Executive Director of the Northside Leadership Conference. "Huntington's commitment ensures that we will have a stable funding base for this critically important work."
Huntington has committed the funds under a state program called the Neighborhood Partnership Program (NPP,) which provides tax credits to companies that fund community revitalization efforts through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.
The Huntington commitment will be used primarily to support business assistance efforts through the Northside Leadership Conference's subsidiary, the NSCDF, a federally certified community development loan fund. Created in 2000, the NSCDF has grown to over $6 million in assets for financing businesses and real estate projects in the Northside.
"Huntington's longstanding focus on small business lending makes it a perfect partner for this effort. We welcome Huntington as our newest partner in business development and community development lending," said Mark P. Masterson, Executive Director of NSCDF.
NSCDF finances strategically important businesses such as retail shops in neighborhood business districts (Bistro To Go, Rita's Italian Ice), builders and manufacturing firms (J Francis Company, Team Laminates) and technology firms (Bookminders, Imbue Tech) among others.
About the Northside Leadership Conference
NSLC is the community development corporation serving the entire Northside of Pittsburgh, comprising 15 member neighborhood organizations covering nearly 20% of the City. NSLC was founded in 1980 and operates 7 business lines including real estate development, business development, workforce development, public realm improvements, public safety, health and wellness, and communications and advocacy. www.pittsburghnorthside.org
About the Northside Community Development Fund
NSCDF was created in 2000 by the Northside Leadership Conference to support financing of key Northside businesses and real estate projects. NSCDF is a federally certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and is a 2-time recipient of New Markets Tax Credit allocations. Its asset base has more than doubled in the past 2 years to over $6 million. www.nscdfund.org
About Huntington
Huntington Bancshares Incorporated is a $52 billion regional bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Huntington has more than 143 years of serving the financial needs of its customers. Through our subsidiaries, including our banking subsidiary, The Huntington National Bank, we provide full-service commercial and consumer banking services, mortgage banking services, equipment leasing, investment management, trust services, brokerage services, customized insurance service program, and other financial products and services. Our over 600 banking offices are located in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Huntington also offers retail and commercial financial services online at huntington.com; through its technologically advanced, 24-hour telephone bank; and through its network of almost 1,400 ATMs. The Auto Finance and Dealer Services group offers automobile loans to consumers and commercial loans to automobile dealers within our six-state banking franchise area. Selected financial service activities are also conducted in other states including: Private Financial Group offices in Florida; and Mortgage Banking offices in Maryland and New Jersey. International banking services are available through the headquarters office in Columbus and a limited purpose office located in both the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong.
SOURCE Huntington Bancshares Incorporated
Released June 11, 2009