Louisiana-based Origin Bank and FHLB Dallas Provide Affordable Housing Program Grant
BASTROP, LOUISIANA, January 24, 2019 – (RealEstateRama) — Origin Bank and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) have awarded a $200,000 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant to assist a local nonprofit with building housing for low-income farm laborers in Bastrop, Louisiana.
BDT Housing Services Enterprise (BDTHSE), an affordable housing and community development nonprofit, will use the grant toward the construction of 20 apartment housing units. Specifically, BDTHSE will use the grant toward reimbursement of the project’s predevelopment costs, land purchase cost and soft costs during construction.
“Farmworkers’ needs often go unmet,” said Tracy Prince, executive director of BDTHSE. “When decent housing is unavailable, farmworkers live in substandard, crowded structures and in unlivable situations.”
According to the December 2016 profile of the National Agricultural Workers Survey, 30 percent of farmworkers had family incomes below the poverty line. Besides income, farmworkers also suffer other challenges such as language barriers and lack of education, according to the survey. It also noted that the average level of education completed by farmworkers was eighth grade.
“Investing in our community is part of our mission at Origin Bank,” said Shelia Grayson, vice president and Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) officer at Origin Bank. “We are glad to work alongside FHLB Dallas to make an impact on the farming community by providing more housing.”
The apartment units will be two-, three- and four-bedroom duplex layouts. Construction will begin in February.
“BDT Housing Services Enterprise is very grateful to have programs to aid grassroot nonprofits in the urban and rural services area and the members that contributed to the program,” Ms. Prince said.
FHLB Dallas awards AHP grants annually, through members like Origin Bank, to support the creation or rehabilitation of affordable housing units, among other uses. In 2018, FHLB Dallas awarded $14 million in AHP grants to 29 projects that will result 1,853 new or renovated housing units. Of that, $4.7 million was awarded to Louisiana projects, and will result in 319 new or rehabilitated housing units. Visit fhlb.com/ahp for more information on the AHP.
“We are grateful for our partnership with Origin Bank on this project to bring quality affordable housing to the farming community of Bastrop,” said Greg Hettrick, first vice president and director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas. “To be part of their commitment to ensuring the success of local organizations and workers that put food on our tables is an honor.”
About Origin Bank
Origin Bank, formerly Community Trust Bank, is more than a century-old, Louisiana-chartered bank which provides a wide range of traditional banking services with 41 banking centers throughout Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi. Origin Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Origin Bancorp, Inc., a financial holding company with assets of over $4 billion. Origin Bancorp’s common stock is not listed on any exchange and is traded through individually negotiated transactions. Member FDIC. To learn more, visit Origin Bank’s website at originbankonline.com.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank system created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $73.7 billion as of September 30, 2018, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community development by providing competitively priced advances and other credit products to approximately 825 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. Visit fhlb.com for more information.
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Contact:
Corporate Communications
Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
fhlb.com
(214) 441-8445
