CLA professionals, alongside their client, met with Ben Carson and his task force to discuss the City Foundry STL Opportunity Zone project.
St. Louis, Missouri — On March 29, 2019, CLA professionals met with Ben Carson, United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and chair of the Opportunity Zone (OZ) task force, during his tour of St. Louis OZs. The tour included a stop at the City Foundry STL, a development owned by CLA client Steve Smith, who asked CLA professionals to attend his meeting with Carson and discuss the impact the program is having on the local community.
“We’ve been alongside Steve since we started talking about the project in August 2018,” says Luke Pope, real estate principal with CLA. “From making sure the project fit within the OZ requirements, to modeling the deal, raising capital, and checking compliance measures, we used our experience to help Steve get the most he could out of the program.”
During Carson’s visit, Smith and CLA discussed how the program is benefitting the City Foundry STL, and ways the task force could better address the needs of developers, investors, and those who live in the surrounding community.
“We’re the eyes and ears of the program,” says Matt Drinen, tax credit services director with CLA. “In our conversations, we were able to provide our feedback based on the multiple projects we’ve worked on within the program. We are excited to have ongoing dialogue with Carson’s team in the future to discuss areas for improvement.”
In addition to vetting the project for the OZ program, CLA assisted Smith in raising 50 million dollars in capital for the project. Once complete, the City Foundry will include a food hall, retail stores, and a movie theater.
“When we first started brainstorming this project, we did our research and looked into how similar projects were doing across the country,” said Tony Hallada, managing principal of wealth advisor strategy with CLA. “Using that research, we educated our marketplace contacts on the impact the City Foundry could have on revitalizing the area, which helped drive interest and ultimately led to raising capital for the project.”
So far in 2019, CLA has assisted five clients in raising capital for OZ projects, and is prepared to consult with additional clients as OZs continue to create opportunities in the market.
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CLA exists to create opportunities for our clients, our people, and our communities through industry-focused wealth advisory, digital, audit, tax, consulting, and outsourcing services. With nearly 9,000 people, more than 130 U.S. locations, and a global vision, we promise to know you and help you. CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP) is an independent network member of CLA Global. See CLAglobal.com/disclaimer. Investment advisory services are offered through CliftonLarsonAllen Wealth Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor.