Philadelphia City Council Honors Reinvestment Fund on Its 40th Anniversary With Resolution
Council Commemorates Decades Of Community Investment, Policy Research And Impact Across Housing, Education, And More
(Philadelphia, PA | May 23, 2025) – Reinvestment Fund, a nationally-focused Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) headquartered in Philadelphia, was formally honored by the Philadelphia City Council last week in celebration of its 40 years of transformative community investment and impact across the city of Philadelphia and the country.
The resolution recognized Reinvestment Fund’s four decades of commitment to building stronger, more equitable communities through strategic investment and data-informed policy initiatives. Since its founding in 1985 by visionary civic leaders including Eva Gladstein, Pat Smith, and Joyce Wilkerson, Reinvestment Fund has pioneered new models for community development finance, growing from a local initiative into a national force of positive change for people and communities.
“It was here in Philadelphia that we learned that we could be an effective instrument of public policy,” said Donald Hinkle-Brown, President and CEO of Reinvestment Fund. “Affordable Housing, Community Arts, Education, Sustainability, were each areas we learned here, collaborated with policy makers here, and implemented investment strategies to further the community’s political will.”
The resolution recognized Reinvestment Fund’s four decades of commitment to building stronger, more equitable communities through strategic investment and data-informed policy initiatives.
Don Hinkle-Brown, President and CEO gave remarks thanking Council for the acknowledgement of Reinvestment Fund’s 40th Anniversary.
Saul Behar, Reinvestment Fund Board Chair acknowledged the contributions of the founding members of Reinvestment Fund.
Reinvestment Fund’s legacy began with grassroots support from community leaders committed to making the city work better for more Philadelphians.
The resolution highlighted several of Reinvestment Fund’s significant milestones in Philadelphia.
The resolution was presented to Reinvestment Fund leadership during a public ceremony at City Hall.
The resolution was introduced by Councilmember Rue Landau and was sponsored by Councilmembers Jamie Gauthier, Nina Ahmad, Cindy Bass, Katherine Gilmore Richardson, Brian J. O’Neill, Mike Driscoll, Kendra Brooks, Anthony Phillips and Mark Squilla. The resolution noted the organization’s impact over its four-decade history including the investment of more than $3 billion in affordable homes, good schools, healthy food access, and local businesses nationwide. The resolution highlighted several of Reinvestment Fund’s significant milestones in Philadelphia including creation of more than 1,050 affordable housing units as well as more than 18,000 jobs across the city from 2013 to 2025. Other Philadelphia milestones included Reinvestment Fund’s support of more than 39,500 early childhood education seats through initiatives like the Fund for Quality and the Early Childhood Education Loan Fund and support for 32 new food retail outlets across the city.
“As a former tenant attorney and lifelong advocate for housing and civil rights, I’m incredibly proud to recognize Reinvestment Fund with this honorary resolution in City Council. For 40 years, their work has transformed lives — creating affordable housing, fighting predatory lending, expanding access to healthy food and education, and most importantly, choosing to reinvest in neighborhoods that have long been overlooked,” said Councilmember Landau. “Reinvestment Fund’s visionary leadership and deep love for Philadelphia have made them an invaluable partner to our city.”
“We’re proud of our partnership with City Council and multiple mayoral administrations, the work we’ve been able to accomplish, and the work we will continue to do to serve the people of our home town.”
Emily Dowdall, president, Policy Solutions
Further, Council recognized the contributions of Reinvestment Fund’s Policy Solutions team, which conducts objective and rigorous research and creates analytic tools that help communities across the country implement effective policy and investment strategies. Policy Solutions has partnered many times with the city of Philadelphia on key initiatives. The Policy Solutions team has produced seven of Philadelphia’s Market Value Analyses (MVAs) that have guided program design, investigated abusive and predatory real estate transactions stripping wealth from Philadelphians, conducted research supporting tenant protections from evictions and homeowners from foreclosure, and co-led the City’s Appraisal Bias Task Force, among other efforts.
“Our work with the City of Philadelphia is a testament to the power that data-driven policy and investment can have on the lives of the people in our community. Through tools like the MVA and our quantitative and qualitative research, we have not only identified resource gaps, but also helped implement interventions to address systemic issues,” said Emily Dowdall, president, Policy Solutions, Reinvestment Fund. “We’re proud of our partnership with City Council and multiple mayoral administrations, the work we’ve been able to accomplish, and the work we will continue to do to serve the people of our hometown.”
Reinvestment Fund’s legacy began with grassroots support from community leaders committed to making the city work better for more Philadelphians. Under the leadership of founding President and CEO Jeremy Nowak, Reinvestment Fund grew across the city and the country. Since 2011, Donald Hinkle-Brown, the second President and CEO of the organization, has maintained its mission to make communities work for all people while expanding Reinvestment Fund’s footprint in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Atlanta and the southeast.
The resolution was presented to Reinvestment Fund leadership during a public ceremony at City Hall on Thursday, May 15
Reinvestment Fund was founded in 1985 by community members in an effort to make the Philadelphia region a more equitable place for all.
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About Reinvestment Fund
Reinvestment Fund is a mission-driven financial institution committed to making communities work for all people. We bring financial and analytical tools to partnerships that work to ensure that people in communities across the country have the opportunities they strive for: affordable places to live, access to nutritious food and health care, schools where their children can flourish, and strong, local businesses that support jobs. We use data to understand markets and how transactions can have the most powerful impact, which has consistently earned us the top Aeris rating of AAA for financial strength and four stars for impact management. Our asset and risk management systems have also earned us an AA- rating from S&P. Since our inception in 1985, Reinvestment Fund has provided over $3.2 billion in financing to strengthen neighborhoods, scale social enterprises, and build resilient communities.
For more information about Reinvestment Fund and the “Why” Campaign, visit why.reinvestment.com.
Media Contact: media@reinvestment.com