WELD's mission is to provide system-impacted individuals with housing, employment, and resources that promote recovery and successful reintegration into society. WELD programs are designed exclusively by and for the population they serve. Through its employment social enterprise, Weld Works, WELD Seattle offers direct job placement, while its housing program offers a membership-based transitional recovery housing program and comprehensive, holistic support services.
The STAR Center is anchored and managed by the Unity Foundation of La Porte county (Indiana). We are home to 5 organizations. Unity Foundation, United Way of La Porte County, La Porte County Drug Free Partnership, Healthy Communities of La Porte county and Meridian Health Services. The STAR Center’s mission is to improve the quality of life in La Porte County by sharing resources and expertise while promoting collaboration and innovation through stronger, better, brighter communities that work, learn and grow together.
Welcome to the new members from the second half of 2022! As we officially move into the new year, we wanted to take a moment to highlight the rest of the new members that joined as NCN members in the second half of 2022. We are so excited to welcome the great organizations listed below to the vibrant, adaptive, and supportive community that our long-time members have created, and are thrilled to see the social purpose real estate movement continuing to grow.
Want to join NCN and become a new member too? Read more here or fill out this form to connect with our Membership & Events Coordinator for more information.
5 tips from NCN Winter Regional Chapter Roundtables: 1. Try a collaborative internship program Have you ever heard of a shared internship? One center was able to get a grant to pay interns for an amazing internship program focused on their center theme. Among other benefits, the interns spoke about the value of being able to learn from several different nonprofits, since they can work with various tenants, which makes it unique to other internships opportunities they had.
At the end of the year, we wanted to highlight all of our current SPRE Champion Members and thank them for their incredible commitment, engagement, and generosity as partners in the social purpose real estate movement. We are so grateful to our 2022 SPRE Champion members below as some of NCN's most dedicated members and as essential and vibrant leaders in our NCN community.
The swirl of opinions about the pandemic’s impact on the state of commercial real estate and how that intersects with the outlook on nonprofit centers continues. Some reports are that workers are already back in their offices at near pre-pandemic levels and have been for the better part of a year, at least in small and mid-sized cities. Another report out of San Francisco recently warned that the city’s status as a commercial real estate investor’s dream hasn’t yet found its post-COVID footing as office buildings are pulled off the market after fetching lower than expected bids. From NCN’s perspective, some NCN members report lingering vacancies, but our consulting pipeline is currently full of groups creating new nonprofit centers in their communities.
The Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation creates innovative civic solutions to help people help themselves. Advancing philanthropy around the state of Florida, the Foundation builds caring networks and helps nonprofit organizations be better managed, governed and led.
As we transition into fall, NCN members at our recent fall Regional Chapter Roundtables shared changes that are happening not only with the season, but also changes with their centers and their organizations. In the fall, the chapters focused mostly on the topic of finance, and it’s always nice to hear of new innovations and ideas as we continue this important work. Below are a few innovations that we wanted to highlight for this season:
5 tips from NCN Fall Regional Chapter Roundtables:
1. Consider new ways to meet conference room and meeting space demand
Meeting and conference space demand seems to be rising across the board. Some members asked: “How can that be a source of revenue? Are there meeting room memberships or other models that make sense?”
2. Take a sabbatical
Mission driven work is critical for our communities, but it’s important to give ourselves and our teams time to recharge. One member shared their policy of encouraged staff sabbaticals, and after hearing about their amazing trip, we hope all centers can implement a similar policy!
3. Build in rising utility costs
We heard that utility costs seem to be rising for centers, especially in certain regions. Whether you have a standard % increase annually, or true-up at the end of the year, you might consider how to build that in to your budget more carefully this year.
4. Evaluate tenant participation
We all know that tenants add a lot more to centers than their financial contribution. If tenants are paying rent, but aren’t coming into the office, are they taking the place of other organizations who might contribute more to the vibrancy of the center? Some centers are starting to have these conversations to think of creative ways to reevaluate tenant contributions and participation.
5. Build trust with two-sided transparency and financials
One member suggested that as a landlord, they have build trust with tenants and have a stronger reciprocal relationship by being more open with their financials and by having two-sided transparency.
Sunflower Foundation believes that a strong nonprofit sector contributes to the quality of life, economic stability, and health of a community. Driven by this philosophy, in October 2021, the foundation opened the Sunflower Nonprofit Center, which serves as its home and as an investment in its nonprofit partners.
The swirl of opinions about the pandemic’s impact on the state of commercial real estate and how that intersects with the outlook on nonprofit centers continues. Some reports are that workers are already back in their offices at near pre-pandemic levels and have been for the better part of a year, at least in small and mid-sized cities. Another report out of San Francisco recently warned that the city’s status as a commercial real estate investor’s dream hasn’t yet found its post-COVID footing as office buildings are pulled off the market after fetching lower than expected bids. From NCN’s perspective, some NCN members report lingering vacancies, but our consulting pipeline is currently full of groups creating new nonprofit centers in their communities.
1536 Wynkoop Street, Suite 103
Denver, CO 80202
info@nonprofitcenters.org
720.836.1189
November 13, 2023
October 23, 2023
