The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a national community development financial institution (CDFI) founded in 1979 with a mission to build healthy, sustainable neighborhoods that are communities of choice: good places to work, do business, and raise children. LICS takes a holistic approach to improving community health in underserved places by promoting better housing, education and job opportunities. LISC targets work to shore up fundamental resource every neighborhood needs to keep resident well: easy access to primary health care, affordable, nutritious food and safe recreation spaces. LISC has offices in 32 cities and works with 86 rural partners serving over 2,000 counties in 44 states. 

LISC uses HFFI financing to expand healthy food options in low-supermarket access areas throughout the nation including Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Indianapolis, and Rhode Island. We offer low-cost loans for the development of healthy food retail outlets, which have range from full-service grocery stores to farmers markets.

Projected Impacts
Vicente’s Tropical Supermarket, Brockton, MA, $3,602,500 loan

• Collaborated with two other CDFIs - The Reinvestment Fund and Boston Community Capital - to provide a total loan of $8.6 million for this $14.1 million project
• Expanded Vicente's Tropical Supermarket to a second location – a 33,000 square foot full-service supermarket with a small café in Brockton, MA
• Developed a 12,500 square foot primary care clinic financed by LISC’s Healthy Futures Fund. The store and health center will collaborate on nutrition education and guided shopping tours
• 96 new permanent full-time jobs created, with a preference for local low-income residents

Source of money: HFFI CDFI-Financial Assistance Program; Fiscal year(s): 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
Fiscal Year 2012, $3MM, Fiscal Year 2013 ,$3MM, Fiscal Year 2014, $3MM, Fiscal Year 2016, $3MM, Fiscal Year 2017, $1.5MM