Lowell Community Charter School Buys Classroom Space, Increases Enrollment with MassDevelopment Bond
July 8, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Kelsey Abbruzzese, MassDevelopment, 617-330-2086 & 617-448-9077 (cell)
kabbruzzese@massdevelopment.com
Trent Ramsey, Lowell Community Charter Public School, 978 -323-0800
tramsey@lccps.org
MassDevelopment has issued a $7,015,000 tax-exempt bond and a $3.3 million Qualified Zone Academy bond on behalf of Lowell Community Charter School Friends, Inc., an affiliate of the Lowell Community Charter Public School. The School is using bond proceeds to purchase, renovate, and equip 113,800 square feet of classroom space at 206 Jackson Street in downtown Lowell. The space is in two textile buildings that were part of Appleton Mills. Since 2000, the Lowell Community Charter Public School has leased 98,000 square feet of the space it is purchasing; the School is converting the additional 15,800 square feet to classrooms to accommodate the addition of the 7th and 8th grades. In addition to the building space, the School is purchasing an adjacent 40,000-square-foot land parcel for a future gymnasium. Lowell Community Charter Public School expects the project to create 10 jobs and support 17 construction jobs. MassDevelopment enhanced this financing with a guaranty. Boston Private Bank & Trust Company purchased the bond.
“More classroom space will allow Lowell Community Charter Public School to offer educational opportunities to 7th and 8th grade children,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Marty Jones. “MassDevelopment is pleased to assist the School as it expands to meet the diverse needs of students in a historic area of this thriving Gateway City.”
In 2000, parents and community members established Lowell Community Charter Public School with 300 students. The group wanted to create a school that focused on the needs of Lowell’s diverse population. The School will enroll 800 students in grades K1 – 8, who represent 20 countries and speak 26 languages. About 83 percent of the students come from low-income families; 63 percent speak a first language that is not English; and 17 percent require special education.
Kathy Egmont, Head of School, adds “LCCPS is committed to high academic expectations leadership development and the celebration of diversity. We are excited with this new step for our school Expanding our space will enable us to better educate and prepare our students for success in high school, college and beyond. We are grateful for the support of MassDevelopment, Boston Private Bank and Trust Company, Enterprise Bank and the greater Lowell community which enabled this goal to be reached. The support of our funders, the Amelia Peabody Foundation and the Edson Parker foundation, was a critical element in the project.”
“Boston Private is proud to support the Lowell Community Charter Public School in this exciting new chapter, bringing life to an historic mill building and enriching the lives of its students every day,” said Eve Hoefle, Senior Vice President, Commercial Lending at Boston Private. “We are also pleased to partner with Enterprise Bank, a strong supporter of the Lowell community, in the $7,015,000 tax-exempt bond.”
MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2014, MassDevelopment financed or managed 314 projects generating investment of more than $2.9 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are projected to create more than 6,300 jobs and build or rehabilitate more than 1,600 residential units.
