02/26/2013

Meet the CSH Board: Jim Logue

Jim Logue, Chair of the CSH Board of Directors, answers a few questions in our Meet the Board Series, he is the Chief Operating Officer of Great Lakes Capital Fund.

jim_logue_headshot_2Q: Why did you join the CSH Board?
When my good friend and colleague Deb DeSantis, President and CEO of CSH, asked me if I would be interested in joining the board, it was a very easy decision. I have seen first-hand the critical role CSH played in Michigan and Indiana in the development and maintenance of a robust supportive housing system. The opportunity to serve the organization on the national level is a personal privilege, as is the opportunity to work with such a talented board and staff.

Q: What excites you the most about CSH’s work in supportive housing?
As little as ten years ago, chronic homelessness was considered to be an intractable problem with expensive and ineffective solutions.   Today, through independent evaluations of supportive housing models throughout the country, CSH has shown that permanent supportive housing works. We know it is cost effective and we can show that it has been the foundation for transforming thousands of lives. CSH and its partners have changed the discussion from “how do we solve this?” to “these are solutions that work.”

Q: What do you see as the most important development in lending for supportive housing?
There are two significant points I would make when it comes to lending for supportive housing: first, CSH has historically taken a lead role in creating and providing lending products to meet the specific needs of supportive housing developments.  This past September, CSH received the Wells Fargo NEXT Award for Opportunity Finance which brings significant new resources to CSH and will help expand its lending platform.  Second, the performance of loans to supportive housing developments has proven to be very good overall, allowing conventional and government lenders to underwrite more supportive housing.

Q: Where do you see the industry in 10 years?
I am convinced that the value of supportive housing will become better understood by a broader constituency as a solution to the human, community, economic and political problems of chronic homelessness. As the industry continues to mature, the solutions once thought to be experimental and untested will become main-stream. We will need to meet the challenges of populations like homeless veterans and those caught in the judicial system. I am optimistic that we will we continue to do it right.

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