Viewmont
7 months ago
8:30 am ET March 19, 2024 (Globe Newswire) Print
Project includes the development of a unique, ADA-compliant manufacturing facility, employing wounded vets to produce the housing unitsGlobeNewswireMarch 19, 2024
Picture1.jpg
ADA-compliant manufacturing facility to be built in McClean, Oklahoma
MIAMI, FL, March 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Safe & Green Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SGBX) ("Safe & Green Holdings" or the "Company"), a leading developer, designer, and fabricator of modular structures, and Soldier On, Inc., a private nonprofit organization committed to ending veteran homelessness, announced today entry into a non-binding Letter of Intent (LOI) to design, build and operate an 800-unit supportive housing community for veterans, first responders and others who are disabled from their service and interested in manufacturing work, as well as their families. The facility will be uniquely designed to accommodate persons with disabilities. In addition, the planned project includes the development of an 80,000-square-foot, ADA-compliant manufacturing facility to be built in McClean, Oklahoma, that would be used for the construction of the 800 units and would employ wounded vets to produce the housing. Following the LOI, the parties intend to now form a formal joint venture and initiate the planning process.
Since 1994, Soldier On has been providing homeless veterans with transitional housing and supportive services. In 2010, Soldier On opened the first Gordon H. Mansfield Veterans Community, a permanent housing cooperative that provides formerly homeless veterans with safe, sustainable, affordable housing - transitioning them from homelessness to homeownership. This housing model will be replicated nationally as Soldier On continues to change the end of the story for homeless veterans throughout the country. Additionally, Soldier On provides employment services to veterans who are homeless to assist them with securing a job and transitioning back into their community successfully.
Paul Galvin, Chairperson and CEO of Safe & Green Holdings, stated, "We are honored to partner with Soldier On in support of their mission to end homelessness among veterans, first responders, and others in need, in appreciation of their service. The first phase of this ambitious project includes the construction of a manufacturing facility, totaling 80,000 square feet, designed to be fully compliant with ADA standards. The planned manufacturing facility will employ veterans, to be recruited and referred by Soldier On, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, as well as various other organizations, both nonprofit and for-profit. The second phase will involve the development of an 800-unit supportive housing complex. These units will be designed to accommodate individuals with disabilities and will be developed along with dedicated health and wellness services for veterans, first responders and others, as well as their families, as a means to will provide residents access to a range of support services to address their physical health, mental wellness and social connectivity. The supportive services component will be need-based will include but not be limited to individual and group counseling, 12-step programs, physical rehabilitation, general wellness, alternative therapies, and treatments designed to foster healing and growth. Both components will be located on a property in McClean, Oklahoma, owned by Safe & Green Development Corporation (Nasdaq:SGD) ("SG DevCo), which will act as the landlord for the project, while providing development assistance and oversight of the infrastructure, while partnering on fees, building oversight and ownership. Most importantly, this project will offer disabled veterans who served our nation an opportunity to work and produce within a wellness community, for self and others similarly situated, after their service to our nation--a continuation of their shared brotherhood."
Bruce Buckley, CEO of Soldier On, further noted, "Our clientele greatly need these jobs and the housing. We look forward to delivering a state-of-the-art wellness community for those that have served our great nation. We appreciate the tremendous support of Safe & Green Holdings in this important and noble mission. The employment opportunities and support services to be provided are intended to address the biological, psychological, and social needs of veterans and first responders, as well as trauma victims, many of whom suffer from undiagnosed or untreated PTSD, as well as dissociative maladies. Another aim of the project is to gather data that can also be applied to the diagnosis and treatment of others living in homelessness and near homelessness after military service, or after traumatic experiences. We believe the things learned and the value of the data will be original and have great implications for the care of special needs populations in the future. We strongly believe providing safe homes that can be easily and cost-effectively deployed will play a key role in helping end homelessness and allowing these veterans to reclaim their lives."
David Villarreal, President & CEO of SG DevCo, stated, "These are the types of meaningful projects that SG DevCo was formed to deliver. We couldn't be more excited to partner with Soldier On and Safe & Green Holdings, to help execute this project in the most cost and time efficient manner possible, in order to provide essential resources and services to the community, including veterans, first responders and others that have made such significant sacrifices for our country and are deserving of the work, housing and support services this project will provide."
Upon execution of the formal joint venture agreement, the parties plan to immediately commence the design phase, followed by the first phase of constructing the manufacturing facility which is expected take approximately 24 months to complete, at which time manufacturing of the housing units is expected to begin.
About Safe & Green Holdings Corp.
Safe & Green Holdings Corp., a leading modular solutions company, operates under core capabilities which include the development, design, and fabrication of modular structures, meeting the demand for safe and green solutions across various industries. The firm supports third-party and in-house developers, architects, builders, and owners in achieving faster execution, greener construction, and buildings of higher value. The Company's subsidiary, Safe and Green Development Corporation, is a leading real estate development company. Formed in 2021, it focuses on the development of sites using purpose-built, prefabricated modules built from both wood and steel, sourced from one of SG Holdings' factories and operated by the SG Echo subsidiary. For more information, visit https://www.safeandgreenholdings.com/ and follow us at @SGHcorp on Twitter.
JC#9
7 months ago
Lowering Costs for Renters
President Biden is also taking actions to lower costs and promote housing stability for renters. The White House Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights lays out the key principles of a fair rental market and has already catalyzed new federal actions to make those principles a reality. Today, President Biden is announcing new steps to crack down on unfair practices that are driving up rental costs:
Fighting Rent Gouging by Corporate Landlords. The Biden-Harris Administration is taking action to combat egregious rent increases and other unfair practices that are driving up rents. Corporate landlords and private equity firms across the country have been accused of illegal information sharing, price fixing, and inflating rents. As part of the Strike Force on Unfair and Illegal Pricing announced by President Biden on Tuesday, the President is calling on federal agencies to root out and stop illegal corporate behavior that hikes prices on American families through anti-competitive, unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent business practices. In a recent filing, the Department of Justice (DOJ) made clear its position that inflated rents caused by algorithmic use of sensitive nonpublic pricing and supply information violate antitrust laws. Earlier this month, the Federal Trade Commission and DOJ filed a joint brief further arguing that it is illegal for landlords and property managers to collude on pricing to inflate rents β including when using algorithms to do so.
Cracking Down on Rental Junk Fees. Millions of families incur burdensome costs in the rental application process and throughout the duration of their lease, from βconvenience feesβ simply to pay rent online to fees charged to sort mail or collect trash. These fees are often more than the actual cost of providing the service, or are added onto rents to cover services that renters assume are includedβor that they donβt even want. Last fall, the FTC proposed a rule that if finalized as proposed would ban misleading and hidden fees across the economy, including in housing rental agreements. Last month, HUD released a summary of banned non-rent fees within their rental assistance programs. These actions build on voluntary commitments the President announced last summer from major rental housing platforms to provide customers with the total, upfront cost on rental properties on their platform.
Expanding Housing Choice Vouchers. Over the last three years, the Administration has secured rental assistance for more than 100,000 additional households. The President is calling on Congress to further expand rental assistance to more than half of a million households, including by providing a voucher guarantee for low-income veterans and youth aging out of foster care β the first such voucher guarantees in history. Receiving a voucher would save these households hundreds of dollars in rent each month.
###