More than $2 million in grant money coming to N. Charleson nonprofit

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A North Charleston nonprofit has secured more than $2 million in grant money to invest in housing and business programs.

CEO and President at the Coastal Community Foundation Darrin Goss said what they do best is define community needs, secure grant money and pass that money along to existing non-profits or programs to serve the biggest needs.

“All of us try our hardest every day to be responsive to community needs. And we heard from others that in many cases we’re not quite sure what the community needs are. And so while housing as a broad topic is a is a big need, very specifically, what do communities want and need for themselves? And so our work started first in the community was guided and led by the community, and then none of us can meet these needs alone,” Goss said.

Now, Coastal Community Foundation has more than more than $2 million Truist Charitable Fund Grant administered by the Winston-Salem Foundation. The money can be used for loans to small and minority-owned businesses. It can also be used to give developers access to resources to build affordable housing.

Goss says Coastal Community Foundation is where leaders work together to make sure worthwhile causes are getting the funding, they need to continue services. The services in this grant’s instance are business loans and affordable housing investments.

“Also the ability to provide funding for rehabilitation of homes people already live in communities. They need support to help stabilize their housing situation. And so these funds can do that. Organizations and nonprofit partners we work with, like Metanoia, for example, are already doing work. And so, these funds can help subsidize that work,” Goss said.

Goss says this money will be available through community partners. CCF will establish an application process for non-profits to get some of the money, or invite those who qualify to use it. Some of their partners include Habitat for Humanity, South Carolina Community Loan Fund, Metanoia, and Community First Land Trust.

“$2.1 million from Truist is a start. Our ultimate goal is to create an economic mobility fund in the tune of $40 million, and that is really designed to provide our nine-county region not just the North Charleston area, but our whole entire region, the kind of financial resources that will be required to make deep impacts on things like housing, entrepreneurialism and small business development,” Goss said.

Click here to learn more about the Coastal Community Foundation.

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