Arkansas Baptist College announced plans today for an $18 million expansion of its campus just south of downtown Little Rock. The college plans to build a new education building, expand the cafeteria from 77 seats to 322, build a new 190-bed residence hall, buy land around the campus to prepare for future growth and build a community union that will include a coffee shop, a lounge-study area, a food court, a conference room, office space and student apartments. [Read more…]
Arkansas Baptist College Receives $18 Million Expansion
Not long ago, the enrollment level at Arkansas Baptist College was around 300 students. The college facilities were neither updated nor plentiful, and there was not enough housing available for the students on campus. Because of the situation wit the facilities, students were being housed in motels and shuttled back and forth to campus. Some classes were even being housed in motels and shuttled back and forth to campus. Some classes were even being held at a local middle school. US Bank, First Security Bank, and Heartland Renaissance Fund (HRF) came together and utilized the New Market Tax Credit program to provide $20.1 million dollars to renovate Old Main, construct new dorms, build new classrooms, and purchase abandoned houses in the surrounding area. This project re-created the college experience for Arkansas Baptist’s students, and the college was able to reduce costs they had been incurring from housing students off-site. Currently, the enrollment level at the college is near 1,200 students which is an increase of 900 students.
Disaster Biodiesel Bill Passes Senate
On Wednesday (March 10), the Senate passed the “American Workers, State, and Business Relief Act of 2010.” Besides providing $1.5 billion in disaster funds for agriculture, the bill would reinstate vital tax credits for the biodiesel industry that expired last December. The bill must still be reconciled with similar House legislation. “This past week we’ve had a lot of discussions with people from other regions of the country asking why the South needs a disaster program on top of the ones we have under permanent legislation,” said Richard Bell, Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture, during a conference call set up by Arkansas Sen. Blanche Lincoln. “The answer is rather simple: because we’re different. The legislation that’s just passed will fill the gaps in the 2008 farm bill and will be a big plus for us.” [Read more…]
OBU Inaugural Business Plan Competition Offers Practical Experience
Ouachita Baptist University’s Hickingbothom School of Business recently held its inaugural Business Plan Competition. Participating students formed teams or worked individually under the supervision of a faculty member to create a start-up company for rewards of up to $4,000. “These students submitted ‘real’ business plans, the same type of plan that one would produce prior to seeking funds from a private investor or banker,” said Bryan McKinney, dean of OBU’s Hickingbothom School of Business. Creating these business plans involved producing a financial profile of a business from scratch, building a market research profile and creating the framework for a startup business and much more. [Read more…]
Summary of HRF’s second NMTC allocation
Heartland Renaissance Fund was notified on May 27, 2009 that it had been awarded a $55 million allocation of New Market Tax Credits for use within Arkansas from the New Markets Tax Credits Recovery Act Allocation. [Read more…]
New Market Tax Credit Transactions Across The Nation
The New Market Tax Credit (NMTC) program has been used to facilitate financing for a wide range of projects within eligible census tracts. The Department of Treasury released its November Report showing the programs investment results. Here are sample projects that recently secured financing supported by the New Market Tax Credit Program: [Read more…]
The Benefits of New Market Tax Credits
An overview of New Market Tax Credits and how they benefit communities in Arkansas. [Read more…]
HRF Awarded $70 Million in Federal Tax Credits for 2009 Round
The U.S. Treasury announced today that Arkansas-based Heartland Renaissance Fund will receive $70 million in Federal New Market Tax Credits, which will be used to stimulate investment in healthcare, education and economic development projects in Arkansas. Donna Gambrell, director of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) and Sen. Blanche Lincoln made the announcement today at the offices of the Heartland Renaissance Fund in Little Rock. Heartland is a member of the Arkansas Capital Corporation Group and is designated a Community Development Entity by the CDFI Fund. The U.S. Department of the Treasury will announce New Market Tax Credit awards for the rest of the United States next week. [Read more…]
$70 Million Arkansas NMTC Award Announced
Speaking today alongside U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln and U.S Senator Mark Pryor, the Director of the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund), Donna J. Gambrell, announced an award of $70 million in tax credit allocation authority that will spur private-sector investment in the economically distressed communities of Arkansas. Heartland Renaissance Fund (HRF) a subsidiary of Arkansas Capital Corporation, was awarded the $70 million in tax credits under the 2009 round of the New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) Program. The national award announcement for the full $5 billion in NMTCs available under the 2009 round will be made late next week. [Read more…]
UA’s Tears of Life Business Plan Earns More Accolades
Team Members – Chris Elizer, Jared Greer, Jordan Greer, Bessie Williams
Mandy Moore, Professor at JBU Speaks on the Competition
UA, JBU Teams Win Business Plan Honors in Las Vegas
Teams from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and John Brown University at Siloam Springs each brought home $25,000 first-place prizes in the Donald W. Reynolds Tri-State Award business plan competition in Las Vegas. Tears for Life, the UA’s winning business plan in the graduate student division, is a medical diagnostic equipment company that is developing a non-invasive tear test kit that will screen women for breast cancer using proteins found in tears. It is led by three MBA candidates – Jared Greer, Bessie Williams and Chris Elizer – and an undergraduate business student, Jordan Greer, with medical expertise from two UAMS professors, Dr. Suzanne Klimberg and Dr. Michael Douglas. [Read more…]