CAHEC New Markets

Project Highlights from CY2023/Round 20 Allocation Award:

In 2025, CAHEC New Markets fully deployed its $50 million CY 2023/Round 20 NMTC allocation award in five projects that respond to community needs such as food insecurity, homelessness, and quality education. The three projects described below are representative of investments selected for investment in the past year.

Harry Chapin Food Bank

Harry Chapin Food Bank (HCFB) leads the fight against hunger across a five-county region in Florida—Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry, and Lee Counties—serving 177,770 food-insecure individuals, including residents of two rural counties. As a member of the Feeding America network, HCFB supports its mission through both direct service and partnerships with more than 175 local agencies, ensuring broad and equitable access to food. The organization also plays a critical role in disaster response, providing essential food assistance to children, families, and seniors in the aftermath of natural disasters.

To meet growing community needs, HCFB will construct a new 97,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution center, replacing its existing 54,390-square-foot facility. The expanded center will strengthen regional food security, improve access to healthy foods, and enhance community resilience. Key project outcomes include a 30% increase in food distribution—from 39 million pounds in 2024 to 50 million pounds by 2030—allowing HCFB to serve up to 300,000 people annually. The facility will increase fresh produce distribution to 34%, expand cold and dry storage capacity, and add 10 loading docks to improve efficiency.

Designed to withstand up to Category 5 hurricanes, the facility will include flood-proofing, hurricane-resistant construction, and backup power to ensure uninterrupted service during emergencies. Additional features include community meeting rooms, upgraded volunteer spaces, an on-site client-choice food pantry with wraparound services such as SNAP referrals and nutrition education, and expanded workforce training programs in food preparation, logistics, and truck driving. Together, these investments will deepen HCFB’s impact and strengthen the long-term health and stability of the communities it serves.

Raleigh Rescue Mission’s The Garden

Founded in 1961, Raleigh Rescue Mission (RRM) is a nonprofit, faith-based organization that has served more than 750,000 men, women, and children. RRM currently operates from an aging downtown Raleigh facility originally opened in 1977 for men only. While space has since been adapted for women and children, it is not designed to meet their needs, prompting the vision for a new campus. RRM also provides on-site nursery care for infants and operates the adjacent W.E. Mangum Children’s Development Center for children ages 2.5 to 5.

RRM goes beyond meeting basic needs by addressing the root causes of homelessness, trauma, and addiction. Its New Life Plan, launched in 2018, offers personalized support to help individuals build resilience and achieve long-term stability.

The Garden (the “Project”) is Phase I of a master-planned 60-acre development and will include a situational homelessness recovery facility for women and children, a children’s learning center, and open space. This phase will provide 100 rooms, serving approximately 480 adults and 300 children annually, all from low-income households, and deliver 182,500 meals each year. The learning center will serve up to 150 children annually. Program outcomes include education and financial literacy for 70% of adults, substance abuse counseling for 50%, and permanent housing placement for 50% upon completion.

The Project responds to a growing community need: Wake County Public Schools identified 5,654 students experiencing homelessness in the 2023–2024 school year, more than double the number a decade earlier. Future phases will add residential, recreational, and mixed-use development, including 156 market-rate homes developed by Lennar Corporation, fostering a diverse, mixed-income community.

Old Chicora Cristo Rey

Metanoia is leading the historic rehabilitation of the 58,200-square-foot former Chicora Elementary School, originally built in 1935, transforming it into a Cristo Rey–model high school serving 400 students, all from low-income households. Metanoia is a nonprofit community development corporation that advances an asset-based approach to strengthening community leadership and outcomes in North Charleston’s Chicora and surrounding historically Black neighborhoods.

The restored building will be leased to Cristo Rey Charleston, a nonprofit education organization within the national Cristo Rey Network. The evidence-based Cristo Rey model integrates rigorous academics with professional work experience: each student is paired with a local employer and works one day per week, gaining mentorship, practical skills, and career exposure. This model also supports long-term sustainability for the school, as students’ earnings cover a significant portion of educational costs, supplemented by philanthropic support. The Cristo Rey Network includes 40 schools nationwide, with Cristo Rey Charleston planning to open its inaugural freshman class in Fall 2027.

Together, Metanoia and Cristo Rey are expanding access to high-quality education, workforce pathways, and long-term economic opportunity, reinforcing community stability and future prosperity.