NYCRC MILESTONES Print

NEW YORK, NY – July 13, 2020 – The New York City Regional Center (“NYCRC”) is pleased to announce that over 5,000 individuals (EB-5 investors and family members) participating in its offerings have now achieved permanent residency in the United States.  A total of 1,721 I-829 petition approvals in NYCRC offerings to date have enabled 5,017 individuals to secure permanent green cards.  

Permanent residency permits EB-5 investors to live and work anywhere in the United States and be protected by the laws of the United States.  An EB-5 investor’s spouse and children under age 21 are also authorized to live, work, and attend school anywhere in the United States.

“Helping over 5,000 individuals in our EB-5 offerings achieve permanent residency in the United States is the result of 12 years of hard work by our team,” said Paul Levinsohn, Managing Principal of the NYCRC. “We know that EB-5 investors and their families put their trust in our ability to assist them in obtaining permanent green cards.We are excited to announce this new milestone.”

Securing permanent residency for over 5,000 individuals represents the latest approval milestone for the NYCRC. Other examples include conditional residency in the U.S. for over 6,300 EB-5 investors and family members and I-526 petition approvals for close to 3,000 EB-5 investors. 

About New York City Regional Center

The NYCRC was approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services in 2008 to secure foreign investment for real estate and infrastructure projects under the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program.  Congress created the EB-5 program to stimulate economic development through foreign investment. The program’s mandate is to use foreign investment to spur job creation while simultaneously affording eligible foreign investors the opportunity to become lawful permanent residents of the United States. The NYCRC was the first EB-5 regional center approved in New York City. 

Over the past 12 years, the NYCRC has put over $1.5 billion of EB-5 capital to work across a broad spectrum of infrastructure and real estate projects in New York City.  Much of this capital has been invested in underserved areas in need of long-term economic growth.  Examples include:

• $767 million to finance ground-up, redevelopment, and infrastructure projects in Brooklyn, including seven projects totaling $339 million in the Brooklyn Navy Yard;
• $108.5 million to finance ground-up and redevelopment projects in Washington Heights (an Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone); and,
• $220 million to finance ground-up construction in the Bronx.

“The NYCRC has been an important source of economic development financing in areas requiring significant investment,” said NYCRC Managing Principal George L. Olsen. “Capital from NYCRC offerings have created jobs for New Yorkers.”

The NYCRC announced the completion of project construction in 19 of its offerings to date.  These completed projects successfully utilized NYCRC EB-5 financing to assist in the construction of over 3.8 million square feet of new development and renovation as well as infrastructure upgrades.  Examples of completed projects utilizing EB-5 capital from NYCRC-managed funds include the following:

• A new wireless infrastructure network in New York City’s subway stations; 
• Redevelopment of a new cargo and animal care facility at John F. Kennedy International Airport;
• New soundstages and production support space at Steiner Studios, New York City’s largest film and television studio;
• Fresh Direct’s new headquarters in the South Bronx;
• Redevelopment of multiple unused buildings and surrounding infrastructure upgrades in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City’s largest industrial park;
• City Point retail complex in Downtown Brooklyn;
• A new hotel and medical office complex in Washington Heights; 
• A new Wegmans supermarket and industrial buildings in Brooklyn; and,
• Expansion of the Hutchinson Metro Center in the Bronx.

The United States Department of Treasury previously awarded $65 million in New Market Tax Credit allocations to a NYCRC-managed entity. To receive this allocation, the NYCRC was required to demonstrate a mission and long-term track record of investment in low-income communities. 

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