Capacity Building
In addition to providing financing, LISC offers extensive technical assistance and training to CDCs. The goals of this assistance include:
- improving community development project output;
- creating long-term sustainability of community development projects; and,
- strengthening community development organizations.
LISC provides technical assistance to CDCs on each project to guide them through the pre-development, development and management phases of projects including: financing, site acquisition, permitting, construction and asset management. This project-based assistance improves the CDC's ability to successfully complete the project and manage assets for the long-term benefit of the community. LISC also assists CDCs in defining development strategies that encompass multiple projects in a neighborhood.
LISC provides training through the Housing Connections of Connecticut, a partnership between LISC and the Connecticut Housing Coalition. Through this partnership LISC offers technical assistance with planning, site selection, design, financing, development and management of affordable housing. This program is supported by a three year contract from the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA).
The Hartford LISC program also works closely with the Hartford Neighborhood Development Support Collaborative to design organizational training for CDCs and to insure on-going dissemination of national community development information. In addition to acting as the administrative agent for the Collaborative, LISC also shares extensive technical information to assist the organizational development work of the Collaborative.