Milwaukee, WI -- CDFI Fund Director Kimberly Reed participated in a ribbon cutting in Milwaukee, WI to celebrate the expansion of the Badger Railing Co. manufacturing facility. Representatives from the offices of Senator Herbert Kohl, Senator Russ Feingold, and Congresswoman Gwen Moore were in attendance.

Badger Railing designs, manufactures and installs ornamental iron and miscellaneous steel for projects from residential applications to large commercial and industrial jobs. The expansion increased their factory space by 14,800 square feet, for a total of 27,600 square feet.

The $1.9 million project was made possible by financing provided by the Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). MEDC received an $18 million allocation of New Markets Tax Credits in 2005; the organization estimates their NMTC related investments have leveraged $47 million in private sector investment and account for over 1,250 full time jobs.

To date, the CDFI Fund has awarded $306 million in NMTC allocations to Community Development Entities (CDEs) in the state of Wisconsin. Through calendar year 2008, the CDFI Fund has the authority to issue $19.5 billion in New Markets Tax Credits to Community Development Entities, including $1 billion for the rebuilding and reconstruction of the Hurricane Katrina Gulf Opportunity Zone (the GO Zone).