River Valley Charter School Buys, Renovates Newburyport Building With Help From MassDevelopment Bond

January 14, 2013

Contacts:
Kelsey Abbruzzese, MassDevelopment, 617-330-2086 & 617-448-9077 (cell)
kabbruzzese@massdevelopment.com
Jeanne Schultz, River Valley Charter School, 978-465-0065
jschultz@rivervalleycharter.org

MassDevelopment has issued a $4.58 million bond on behalf of Newburyport’s River Valley Charter School, the first public charter Montessori school in Massachusetts. The School used bond proceeds to buy and renovate the 36,000-square-foot building that it has been leasing. RBS Citizens, NA purchased the bond.

“By owning rather than leasing, River Valley Charter School will be able to lower its overall operating costs and devote more resources to its mission of providing quality elementary education,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Marty Jones. “We’re pleased to leverage this low-cost financing to help the School create an optimal learning environment.”

Founded by parents in 1999, River Valley Charter School enrolls 288 students from the Merrimack River Valley in kindergarten through eighth grade. The School provides rigorous academics based on the Montessori philosophy – a child-centered, holistic, and academically challenging approach – and rooted in the history, culture, and ecology of the area.

“As teachers and students focus on values this year, MassDevelopment collaborated with us as we attended to ‘value-added’ strategic decisions that would provide financial stability as we look to the continued success of River Valley Charter School,” said Director Jeanne Schultz.

MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2012, MassDevelopment financed or managed 280 projects generating investment of more than $2.3 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are projected to create more than 12,000 jobs and build or rehabilitate 900 residential units.