Organized Financing Program to Boost Developers
After years of working with building developers and hearing their needs, the Construction Labor Management Council (CLMC) has unveiled organized financing packages made specifically for developers.
“Financing commercial development is not easy or inexpensive,” said John Topp, Building Advantage Executive Director, “but we want to make it as easy and affordable as we can for our customers. We're developing financing packages that we can offer to customers based upon the size and scope of their project.”
CLMC officials first met with several developers to discuss financing needs and the benefits of union construction. Then they turned to some of the nation's most powerful lending institutions, including the AFL-CIO Housing Trust and Amalgamated Bank of New York. The result is a financing program that will cater to customers of all sizes, with an emphasis placed on mid-sized projects.
“Where we have the greatest opportunity to increase market share for union construction is in the $5 million to $40 million project range,” says Topp. “We are already seeing progress for our larger customers, but that mid-size customer is where we would like to see our financing have a significant impact.”
Assisting customers with financing is nothing new for union contractors and trades in the Greater Milwaukee area. Unions have worked effectively with developers in the past, assisting them with securing financing in exchange for an all-union job site – as evidenced in highly successful projects like the Park Lafayette, River Renaissance and University Tower. The CLMC saw a need to move in a new direction and offer organized financing packages. Now, a growing list of potential customers is waiting at the door, among them are some of the most prominent developers in the Milwaukee area.
Because of a long-standing relationship between unions and area banks, local lenders were eager to help union construction offer financing options. “Milwaukee union construction pours millions of dollars each year into pension trust funds – funds that are designed to help grow union construction and provide for those who are retired,” explains Topp. “One of the ways we would like to invest that money is to reinvest it in prudent, sound building projects within our own communities.”
According to Topp, the CLMC expects to launch the new financing program this summer through the Building Advantage campaign.
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