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Los Angeles, CA (2017)

LA Prep Kitchen

NMTC financing for a project serves as an incubator for 50 small- to medium-sized food producers that have outgrown their startup spaces.

Investment

  • NMTC Amount: $15,820,000
  • Total Project Cost: $17,744,457

IMPACT

  • 140 FTE jobs
  • 35 construction jobs
  • Provides support for 50 start-up food manufacturers.
  • 56,000 sq. ft. of real estate

Investor

Project Description

L.A. Prep is an NMTC-financed project in Los Angeles that now serves as an incubator for 50 small- to medium-sized food producers that have outgrown their startup spaces. The anchor tenant of the project is L.A. Kitchen, which is a commercial kitchen and a produce processing hub that prepares meals and nutritious snacks for seniors and low‐income families.

The concept for the L.A. Kitchen tenant is based on a similar nonprofit organization in Washington, D. C. created by Robert Egger. That organization, D. C. Kitchen, has provided over 25 million meals for low-income and at-risk people in the 25 years since it was established. The project involved the acquisition and renovation of a 56,000 sq. ft. former warehouse in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood.

In order to finance the deal, Los Angeles Development Fund and UrbanAmerica provided $16 million in NMTC allocations to fill in the needed financing for the project to be realized. Capital Impact Partners provided $11 million in leveraged debt, with $5.1 million in equity provided by US Bancorp CDC. Civic Enterprise Development, a real estate development firm focused on revitalizing emerging urban neighborhoods, developed the project.

In collaboration with the developer, the L.A. County Health Department established special guidelines in the health code for this new and innovative type of facility, which allows small food businesses to obtain their health permit and begin operations onsite within a week. L.A. Prep tenants receive an exclusive production space; flexible cold, dry and frozen storage; a demonstration kitchen; co-working space and more; a staffed warehouse to assist with receiving and logistics.

The anchor tenant, L.A. Kitchen, also provides job training for 80 to 100 individuals per year. The 15-week culinary arts job training program is focused on engaging emancipated foster youth and older adults exiting the prison system. In addition, the Kitchen ensures healthy food access for 1,000 low-income seniors (estimated for its first year of operations).

MAP

Address: 230 West Avenue 26, Los Angeles, CA 90031

Census Tract: 6037199000

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