Lessons Learned from Putting Grantees First
Edward W. Hazen Foundation
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Spreading the Word About an Affordable Housing Success
Featured image: EIHF and credit union partners at the Copper Way project groundbreaking in Spanaway, Washington. © Original Studios
Overview
The Evergreen Impact Housing Fund (EIHF) is an innovative funding intervention that ensures housing options for working families in Washington State. Targeting the persistent gap in affordable housing funding, EIHF makes it possible to finance more housing more efficiently. EIHF is managed by the Seattle Foundation and has collaborated with Microsoft and five area credit unions to fund large-scale housing projects. EIHF aims to provide homes for 8,500 people with modest incomes by 2028.
Challenge
With an urgent need for affordable housing in the Puget Sound region and beyond, EIHF was faced with the challenge of communicating its unique funding solution to the public. Leaders of the Fund aim to highlight EIHF as an important social impact opportunity for investors and emphasize that they work alongside public funding to build as much housing as possible.
Work
Over the past four years, Minerva has tracked the evolution of EIHF, mapping and communicating about milestones in the Fund’s development. Through messaging development and early-stage planning, we were prepared to tailor communications for the following milestones:
- The announcement of new partnerships and developments. EIHF was founded with collaboration at the forefront, therefore communicating with partners about the Fund’s progress has been essential.
- Financial closings and groundbreakings of projects. The first happened in late 2021 in Renton and was funded by five Washington State credit unions. The Solera apartment complex offered 275 units of affordable housing. Residents will begin to move into the units in 2025.
- Residents moving into the developments. The Aries welcomed families in early 2024 and includes 40 units of disability housing and is accessible to public transportation. A second development called Watershed celebrated its opening in April 2024 in partnership with Microsoft Philanthropies. A third development, Copper Way, aims to welcome residents by early 2025.
Each of the above milestones offered a chance to share the unique role of private-public partnerships and EIHF’s innovative financing mechanism. At each milestone, Minerva:
- Created a communications plan
- Curated a media list to identify reporters and outlets interested in solutions for affordable housing
- Updated media list contacts on milestones and opportunities for witnessing EIHF’s progress, including the groundbreaking ceremonies and opening celebrations.
- In 2022, Minerva also planned a “media roundtable” to give local journalists, including those at the Seattle Times and the Puget Sound Business Journal a chance to dive deeper into the affordable housing crisis with key staff from EIHF, Microsoft Philanthropies, and Washington State. The event featured University of Washington Professor and Author Greg Colburn, who wrote the book Homelessness is a Housing Problem.
- Coordinated with multiple stakeholders, including those from Microsoft Philanthropies, the consortium of credit unions, nonprofit and for-profit developers, and government entities.
- Aided in collaborative communication efforts, including developing social media toolkits, newsletter blurbs, one-pagers, and a FAQ page to equip all stakeholders with talking points.
Minerva has also supported the development of other communication tools, including a video case study produced by Filene Research Institute and pitch materials for EIHF staff to equip them with the materials needed as they solicit additional funding sources. This included a deck, talking points, and one-pagers.
Result
Minerva has landed dozens of media placements for EIHF throughout the years, including mentions in The Puget Sound Business Journal, The Renton Reporter, The Urbanist, Tacoma Weekly, The Tacoma News Tribune, KOMO, Connect Commercial Real Estate, The Registry, 425 Business, Kirkland Lifestyle Magazine, Next City, and CreditUnions.com. We’ve also utilized the reach of paid media. By keeping our pulse on the affordable housing crisis and other tangent issues, we continue to help reporters build relationships and understand the nuances behind financing affordable housing to aid in their storytelling. These efforts have allowed us to generate long-range storytelling opportunities and advance the efforts of EIHF and collaborators.
We are proud of the work EIHF is doing and deeply honored to continue sharing these affordable housing successes with communities in the Puget Sound—and beyond.
Featured image: EIHF and credit union partners at the Copper Way project groundbreaking in Spanaway, Washington. © Original Studios