Virginia Community Capital is a bank-holding institution whose business is making a positive social impact -- they have funded 158 projects since their inception and created a number of initiatives for neighborhood revitalization. VCC began as a Community Development Financial Institution with a grant from the Commonwealth in 2006 and opened the Community Capital Bank of Virginia to leverage development funding in 2008. VCC is now a certified B-corporation focused on community reinvestment through lending for affordable housing, small business, community facilities, and food access development in the underserved neighborhoods that could benefit from an economic boost. The “Get Fresh East End” initiative addresses the dearth of accessible fresh produce options in Richmond’s East End. In partnership with Tricycle Gardens, the Virginia Health Department, the Neighborhood Resource Center, and Shalom Farms (among many others), VCC is working to transform the corner-store businesses of the East End into convenient locations for healthful food and to change the food culture through nutrition education. They also revitalize main streets and historic neighborhoods (as in this video) and by doing so increase pedestrian traffic and walkability, encourage small business growth, and rejuvenate local job markets. Virginia Community Capital is going strong in its eighth year of operation and has earned much recognition for combining financial and social capital to make a community impact.
Guest speaker:
Jane
Henderson, President & CEO of Virginia Community Capital
Resources:
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