Chicago Community Loan Fund (CCLF) was originally conceived as a bridge between people who wanted to put their money to work "in their own backyard" and nonprofit organizations that serve low-wealth families and communities who need those dollars most.
CCLF's mission is to provide low-cost, flexible financing and free/low-cost technical assistance to nonprofit community development organizations for affordable housing, economic development and social service initiatives in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods throughout the Chicago metropolitan area.

CCLF’s focus on green design is founded on its experience:  We have learned that, all too often in the course of affordable housing development—and other nonprofit real estate projects—developers are seemingly left with limited time and/or funds for considering through green design elements.  Thus, they have a limited philosophical commitment to building green. Yet a project that is not well designed frequently fails in its primary goal of improving its community; indeed, it can have a negative impact on the local built environment.Our vision is to work creatively with our clients to help them rejuvenate neighborhoods and improve the lives of low-wealth individuals and families who live in those communities.

Results
Since 1991, CCLF has closed loans totaling more than $36 million in financing for community development initiatives in communities across the city and suburbs. This financing has leveraged for our borrowers' projects:

• More than $800 million in additional public and private sector investment
• Homes for more than 5,200 households, approximately 1,000 jobs and scores of childcare slots
• Over 1.7 million square feet of new or rehabilitated commercial/retail/industrial space and nonprofit facility space

Our work has ultimately benefited tens of thousands of people who live in the communities we care about.