Making a bold move for systemic change in green affordable housing, Enterprise today announced a groundbreaking $4 billion commitment to launch the next generation of its Green Communities initiative. One of the largest private investments ever in green affordable housing, this commitment will accelerate catalytic change in the affordable housing industry and create significant positive impact in the lives of low-income individuals and families across the country. As a cornerstone to the announcement, the organization also released a first-of-its-kind study proving the overall return on investment and cost effectiveness of meeting the Enterprise Green Communities Criteria when building affordable housing.
“The time for this work has never been more urgent,” said Doris W. Koo, president and CEO, Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. “Enterprise Green Communities works at the intersection of today’s foreclosure crisis, our nation’s health care challenges and the rising tide of environmental responsibility. Not only can we succeed with this mission, we must succeed. For low-income families and for all Americans, now is the time for bold solutions and real progress. We ask everyone to join us in making all communities green communities.”
Building on its own commitment, Enterprise today issued a national call to action to the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to make all affordable housing – new and existing – green by 2020. The next generation of Enterprise Green Communities will be the catalyst for unprecedented energy, environmental and health benefits to hundreds of thousands of families in neighborhoods across America.
“We want everything Enterprise touches to be green by 2013,” said Charles R. Werhane, president and CEO, Enterprise Community Investment, Inc. “We now have the proof that it works and we are poised to take the initiative to the next level. By bringing more innovative and responsive financing tools to our partners, we are pushing forward systemic change in our industry. The next generation of Enterprise Green Communities is our commitment to expand our efforts nationwide.”
Read the full press release. (PDF 57K)