FW: AFL-CIO Announces $750 Million Investment of Workers' Capital To Boost New York City Economic Recovery

["Vic Thorpe" <just.solutions@pandora.be>]

With just a little push...  Perhaps the leagues of labor could yet be
persuaded that worker investment in industrial reconstruction for their own
sakes might be a worthwhile strategy?

Vic Thorpe

-----Original Message-----
From: bounce-workers-capital-l-13251@forum.icftu.org
[mailto:bounce-workers-capital-l-13251@forum.icftu.org]On Behalf Of Jon
Robinson
Sent: 23 January 2002 15:15
To: Forum on Workers' Capital (ICFTU/ITS/TUAC)
Subject: AFL-CIO Announces $750 Million Investment of Workers' Capital
To Boost New York City Economic Recovery


Dear Friends,
Union pension funds in the US plan to invest $750 million of workers'
capital in housing and commercial real estate to help boost New York
City's economic recovery, according to the announcement by AFL-CIO
President John Sweeney and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, below. This
substantial investment by the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT),
including $120 million committed by three of the city's pension funds -
for City Employees, Teachers, and Police - represents a major commitment
of labor pension capital to finance housing and commercial development
in the City and to provide homeownership opportunities for working
families.
We don't often hear about this aspect of the AFL-CIO Investment Program,
which includes the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) and the
AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust (BIT) with combined assets of $4
billion, and which invest Taft Hartley and public employee pension funds
nationwide in housing and urban development projects, using 100% union
labor, to produce competitive returns for their participants.
For details of the AFL-CIO New York City Community Investment
Initiative, see below. To find out more about the HIT and BIT investment
programmes visit: http://www.aflcio-hit.com and
http://www.merctrust.com/bit respectively.
----------------------------------------
Jon Robinson - ICFTU
Tel +44 (0) 207 467 1224
Fax +44 (0) 207 1317
mailto:jrobinson@tuc.org.uk
----------------------------------------

Story Filed: Thursday, January 17, 2002 12:30 PM EST
NEW YORK, Jan 17, 2002 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- AFL-CIO President John
Sweeney joined New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New York City
labor leaders at the new offices of the Central Labor Council near Union
Square to announce labor's $750 million housing and community investment
initiative for New York City.
Flanked by Central Labor Council President Brian McLaughlin, Building
and Construction Trades President Ed Malloy, State AFL-CIO President
Denis Hughes, AFL-CIO Housing and Building Investment Trust Chairman
Richard Ravitch and representatives from a broad coalition of business,
labor, political, finance and non-profit groups, Sweeney outlined an
ambitious investment commitment of labor pension capital to finance
housing and commercial development in the City and to provide
homeownership opportunities for working families.
"Labor is committed to New York," declared Sweeney. "After the
devastation of September 11th, we want to do something tangible for the
economic recovery by putting workers' pension dollars to work for this
great city."
"I am delighted that Labor is stepping up with this significant
investment in New York City," said Mayor Bloomberg. "In the fiscal
crisis of the 1970s, labor's pension fund investment helped New York
through some of its darkest hours. Today, with the City facing financial
hardship once again, our friends in the House of Labor have come
through."
"This investment is a double win for New York City. Not only does it
provide much needed post-September 11th investment, but also will build
much needed affordable housing," he concluded.
"Labor is the backbone of this great city," said Brian McLaughlin.
"Union pension dollars can have a real and lasting impact on New York
City's economic recovery efforts."
Sweeney said that the AFL-CIO Investment Program-which includes the
AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), AFL-CIO Building Investment
Trust (BIT), and the new AFL-CIO Urban Development Fund-will allocate
$750 million to finance housing and commercial real estate development
in the City's five boroughs and will finance affordable mortgages
through the HIT HOME program for union workers and municipal employees
in partnership with Countrywide Home Loans. Andrew S. Bielanski,
Countrywide's Managing Director of Marketing, joined President Sweeney
for the announcement.
Sweeney also announced the opening of the AFL-CIO Investment Program
office, adjacent to the Central Labor Council's new facilities at 31
West 15th Street, to coordinate its expanded investment activities in
the City.
The New York City Retirement System is actively supporting the New York
City Community Investment Initiative. Three of its pension funds-serving
the New York City Employees, Teachers, and Police-have committed $120
million for investment into the HIT.
Both the HIT and BIT have been active investors in New York City for
many years. The HIT has invested over $330 million to finance 12
projects providing over 5,000 units of housing, including Citylights at
Queens Landing, Amalgamated Warbasse Co-op in Brooklyn, Daly Avenue in
the Bronx and West End Towers in Manhattan. The renovation of the
Workman's Circle Health Center in the Bronx is nearing completion.
The BIT, which has financed over $190 million in the City, recently
provided $58 million in financing for the development of One Jamaica
Center in Queens and is financing a 259 unit project near the Lincoln
Tunnel at 475 9th Ave.  The Trusts have significant investments in
Northern New Jersey as well, financing $600 million in the Hoboken and
Jersey City waterfront communities and other areas of Northern New
Jersey.
Among the Trusts' New York City based investors are 1199 Health Care
Employees Pension Fund, Electrical Industry Pension Trust Funds, UNITE
National Pension Fund, and SEIU Local 32B-J Pension Fund.
The AFL-CIO New York City Community Investment Initiative will focus on
critical housing and economic development needs:

* Multifamily housing - $250 million in mortgage loans for the
production or substantial rehabilitation of rental housing in New York
City, with an emphasis on the outer boroughs and Manhattan north of 96th
Street. In addition, special emphasis will be given to the production of
housing for special needs groups including the homeless.

* Commercial and economic development - $250 million for commercial real
estate opportunities critical to New York's economic recovery. BIT and a
new fund, the AFL-CIO Urban Development Fund (UDF), will work in
conjunction with other labor-related investment funds to meet this
investment target.

* Homeownership opportunities for working families - $250 million to
finance mortgages for union and municipal employees through the HIT HOME
mortgage program.  Partners with HIT in this innovative mortgage program
are Countrywide Home Loans and Fannie Mae. Countrywide Home Loans is the
nation's largest independent residential mortgage lender and servicer.

AFL-CIO HIT website: http://www.aflcio-hit.com
AFL-CIO BIT website: http://www.merctrust.com/bit
SOURCE AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust  http://www.aflcio-hit.com



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