New Markets Tax Credit Lenders Invest $40.7M in Non-Metro Shelbyville, Tennessee
SHELBYVILLE, TENNESSEE, JULY 31, 2024 – Cooper Steel, a family-run company specializing in steel fabrication and erection, has secured $40.7 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) financing from four lenders to support its expansion project in Shelbyville, TN. The lenders include The Innovate Fund ($13 million), Pathway Lending ($12 million), Heartland Renaissance Fund ($11.7 million), and Truist Community Development Enterprises ($4 million).
The NMTC funding will be used to assist in an expansion that includes land acquisition, new fabrication offices and clinic, enlargement of the Shelbyville fabrication facility, and equipment purchases, allowing Cooper Steel to increase production to meet growing demand. The project is expected to create 122 new jobs, retain 210 jobs, and have an equivalent impact of creating 43 full-time jobs elsewhere in the economy. Cooper Steel provides great jobs to their employees, including a full benefits package, on-site health clinic for employees and their families, and fully air-conditioned fabrication facilities.
Gary Cooper, CEO and Chairman of the Company’s Board, expressed his gratitude for the NMTC program, stating, “The NMTC program is connecting Cooper’s goal of community impact with the local need for quality jobs and providing entry-level, low-income workers of this community with opportunities to make above-average wages now while training for future advancements in their careers.”
The NMTC is a flexible source of financing with better rates and terms than traditional financing for businesses and community organizations in America’s most distressed rural and urban communities. Without the NMTC many projects in these low-income communities would not be able to move forward.
“The Innovate Fund is proud to provide a $13 million allocation of NMTC to the Cooper Steel project,” said David Barnett, Chairman of The Innovate Fund Board of Managers. “We highly value the creation of quality jobs in low-income communities, and Cooper Steel has done a fantastic job of giving people a good place to work with plenty of opportunities for advancement.”
“As a Tennessee-based community lender, Pathway Lending has provided instrumental capital to businesses like Cooper Steel since 1999,” said Pathway Lending EVP, Hank Helton. “Our $12 million NMTC allocation underscores our dedication to supporting economic growth and job creation in distressed communities through strategic investments. We are proud to be part of Cooper Steel’s expansion and help drive positive community impact.”
“Heartland Renaissance Fund and Arkansas Capital are proud to be one of the financing partners supporting Cooper Steel’s expansion,” said company CEO Sam Walls. “This project is an important part of growing Shelbyville’s economy and providing accessible, quality jobs for local residents.”
Despite facing challenges due to rising interest rates and inflated construction costs, the NMTC investment has ensured the success of Cooper Steel’s expansion project. Once fully operational in May of 2025, the steel company is projected to create/retain 333 permanent, full-time jobs and induce an estimated $18.5 million of additional earnings throughout the region, catalyzing further growth for Shelbyville, TN.
About Heartland Renaissance Fund, LLC
Since 2002, nine-time allocatee Heartland Renaissance Fund (HRF) has been awarded $435 million in New Markets Tax Credits. HRF is a subsidiary of Arkansas Capital Corporation (ACC). ACC is a private, nonprofit lending corporation dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs in Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri. ACC offers flexible capital solutions to meet the unique needs of entrepreneurs, small businesses, and economic and community development projects, emphasizing serving low-income, minority, and rural communities. Since 1957, ACC has partnered with commercial banks, government agencies, and others at local, state, regional, and national levels to deploy over $2.34 billion in capital financing. Learn more about us on our website at https://arcapital.com and follow us on Facebook and Instagram at @arcapitalcorp. You can also connect with us on LinkedIn.
About Pathway Lending CDE
Pathway Lending is a Nashville-based Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) certified by the U.S. Department of the Treasury that drives economic growth across the Southeast. Celebrating 25 years in 2024, the organization has generated over $1 billion in economic impact and provided more than $525 million in loans since 1999. Pathway Lending established its Community Development Entity (CDE) in 2016 and has leveraged $115 million in New Markets Tax Credit allocations to support businesses and communities in Tennessee and Alabama. These funds have facilitated high-quality job creation and expanded essential community services. To learn more about the entrepreneurs and communities that Pathway Lending serves, visit PathwayLending.org.
About The Innovate Fund
TIF is a Community Development Entity that utilizes New Markets Tax Credits to serve the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. TIF has received $288MM of New Markets Tax Credits to support its mission of transforming communities through the creation of quality jobs and improvement of health and wellness outcomes for the region’s low-income residents. More information about The Innovate Fund can be found at their website: https://theinnovatefund.com/.
About Truist Community Capital
Truist Community Capital, LLC (TCC) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Truist Bank with a diversified set of debt and equity capital products that are designed to improve and revitalize communities across the Bank’s footprint. As an investor in the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program, TCC has invested in over $4 Billion of Qualified Equity Investments (QEIs). Its subsidiary, Truist Community Development Enterprises, LLC (TCDE), is a certified Community Development Entity (CDE) with the CDFI Fund, a division of the U.S. Treasury, and has been granted 12 awards of NMTC allocation authority, totaling $768 Million and generating new jobs and enhancing access to critical services for low-income persons and low-income communities.
