The Development Fund of the Western Reserve (DFWR) is a Community Development Entity (CDE) managed by the Development Finance Authority of Summit County. DFWR’s mission is to enable New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) investments that target eligible economically distressed communities throughout a 34-county area of Northeast Ohio. As a CDE, DFWR may apply for and receive authority from the U.S. Treasury to allocate NMTCs for use in eligible projects.

The NMTC program is a valuable financing tool because it incentivizes private investment in underserved urban and rural communities. The program, authorized by Congress in 2000, provides tax credit benefits to qualified business or real estate projects, which may include mixed-use, health care, housing, industrial, commercial, retail, office, hospitality, community facilities, and more. Eligible projects must be located in a distressed census tract (determined by factors such as poverty rate and median area income).

As the only CDE focused exclusively on Northeast Ohio, DFWR allocates NMTCs to projects that directly address specific needs in our region; additionally, NMTC financing is often secured as one of the last sources of capital to fill a financial gap. DFWR has an experienced team to assist developers and businesses with structuring and closing transactions. To learn more about the typical NMTC structure, you may download NMTC Facts from the files below.

NMTC Projects

Since 2012, DFWR has distributed $120.5M federal allocation and over $25M Ohio allocation across 10 counties and 26 projects, with positive and catalytic community/economic impacts within their communities.

NMTC financing has enabled Steel Warehouse of Ohio to acquire and install specialized equipment and machinery at its manufacturing facility in Warren, Ohio, which is less than ten miles away from the nearby Lordstown community. Steel Warehouse hired approximately 50 full-time employees and provided them with job training on cutting-edge equipment and sophisticated inventory management. These positions are well-paying jobs for families impacted by recent manufacturing job losses in the region.

Steel Warehouse is a critical component of the Warren area’s revitalization and is supported by local economic development leadership from the City of Warren, Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber of Commerce, and JobsOhio. Steel Warehouse will bolster regional and steel supply chain capabilities and result in indirect job creation by attracting heavy industrial companies to the region. The specialized equipment used in Steel Warehouse operations will prove critical to supporting users of thicker, strong steel parts, such as the heavy equipment industry. The US is a global leader in that industry, in large part due to the robust supply chain that exists here. This investment secures Warren’s role in the heavy equipment supply chain and helps put the local economy back on stable footing.

Resources

Reports and informational materials are available below, with additional information available upon request. For questions about DFWR, you may call our office at 330-762-4776.