Episcopal Community Services Foundation Invests in a Kensington Neighborhood of Philadelphia Through Shift's Neighborhood Fund

PHILADELPHIA, Pa., September 18, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Mission-Aligned Investing Expands Mission Beyond Programs

The private equity Shift Neighborhood Fund has a new unlikely investor. It's the endowment of the Foundation of Episcopal Community Services (ECS.) This is a first of its kind investment in the history of the 149-year old multi-service agency that serves Philadelphians who have been disadvantaged by poverty.

"With their investment in our Shift Neighborhood Fund, ECS is paving the path for Philadelphia based nonprofits to align their mission and investments," said Brian Murray, Shift Capital CEO and Founder. "Reducing poverty requires a multi-faceted approach across sectors."

Shift is a Philadelphia-based real estate investment group that develops inclusive communities in underserved neighborhoods. Its goal is to build wealth for the existing community and strategically preserve affordability.

"This is about place-based social impact investing," explained ECS Executive Director David Griffith. "When it comes to real estate in a hot market like Philadelphia, there is an incredible need for inclusive prosperity. This is something we see every day on the front lines of our work with our ECS program participants who are struggling with poverty." ECS is partnering with Shift to provide housing to some of those participants and to enroll them in a new landmark ECS anti-poverty program, MindSet.

Shift's comprehensive and scaled approach enables the ECS investment to go directly into assets and infrastructure in economically challenged Philadelphia communities – such as the often maligned Kensington Ave corridor. Shift has developed a master plan for renovation of storefront properties, including mixed use and residential, along a two mile stretch of Kensington Avenue between Lehigh and Erie Avenues. The master plan includes strategies for facade improvements, corridor cleaning, security enhancements, landscaping and maintenance, according to Shift.

"We are blessed with an endowment, donated by generations of loyal and generous supporters who were committed to our region," Griffith said. "This investment shows that at ECS we know where the needs are." Shift's Murray said, "We are looking forward to working with ECS to create a healthy, strong Kensington and North Philadelphia."

About Episcopal Community Services
Episcopal Community Services (ECS) is a multi-service agency that embraces adaptability and program innovation in order to meet the evolving and diverse needs of Philadelphians who have been disadvantaged by poverty. ECS has a 149-year legacy of transforming itself in times of crisis and providing essential support services for the city's most vulnerable. Today, its mission is to challenge and reduce intergenerational poverty, and guided by a new strategic plan, ECS' programs focus on increasing people's ability to achieve economic independence and mobility. For more information, contact Robert Pierson at 215.351.1459, [email protected]

About SHIFT
SHIFT is a solutions-based impact real estate investment group that takes an integrated approach to developing equitable inclusive communities that thrive. SHIFT is a Certified B Corporation® that deploys development strategies in underserved neighborhoods that align patient capital with long-term community success to help catalyze shared prosperity, build wealth for the existing community, and strategically preserve affordability. Through its Whole Neighborhood approach, SHIFT thoughtfully invests in neighborhoods and people to accelerate job creation through growth in small businesses and the creative economy, to improve community health and safety, and to offer quality affordable housing. For more information, contact Brian Murray, [email protected].

SOURCE Episcopal Community Services