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Seeing our clients achieve key milestones is what drives our work at BCL of Texas. From startups that have expanded to multi-employee businesses to families buying their first homes, our success all comes down to you.
From the sound of it, you would almost think Teresa Villanueva was running a nonprofit in addition to a full-service cafeteria, catering, and delivery company that focuses on providing healthy, homemade, affordable meals for everyone.
Teresa and her husband Juan incorporated several social benefits into their start-up, TV Dinners, as she began to realize the need for them. Started 4 years ago in the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) building, TV Dinners began by serving breakfast tacos, and in the beginning Teresa used the proceeds from one meal to purchase supplies for the next.
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One of our early customers, BCL worked with Rudy Ruiz of Community Development Management, Inc. for an SBA 504 loan to help them grow their operations. Founded in 1979, Community Development Management is a consulting firm that works with communities across Central and South Texas for community development projects like public works, housing, disaster relief, parks and recreation, and economic development.
Therapists and co-owners Debbie Mabray and John Leach used the SBA 504 Loan product to expand their business from a small location in Killeen to a beautiful new facility on a large acreage on the edge of town. The new location is highly appreciated by clients and employees alike.
Adrian Paredes, owner of the Austin-based Tamale Addiction, was helped with two loans from the BCL Business Growth Fund. From pork pastor with pineapple and onions to vegan nopalitos and sweet guava tamales, Paredes has been able to learn from his customers and successfully diversify his product to meet new market trends.
Junior Players, a non-profit that provides underserved kids with the opportunity to shine through summer and after-school arts programs in over 60 locations throughout North Texas, will be celebrating their 60th anniversary next year. In that time they have assisted thousands of children ages 5-18 from low-to-moderate income backgrounds to build their confidence, strengthen their social skills, learn to express themselves creatively, and transform their future.
When she began to get serious about buying her first house, Rose Perez sought out BCL of Texas to find out about programs available to help her get there.
“I wanted to have a safe environment for my kids, something that we could call our own, and to have a neighborhood that reflected who we are as well,” says Rose. She began to work one-on-one with HomeOwnership Center Manager Merecia Smith to start working toward that goal.
SportHooks was born out of a runner’s love for her sport and her growing collection of medals. Founder Marcey Futris, who has now run a full marathon in all 50 states and on 4 continents, was looking for a place to display her race medals.
Ruth and Arnold Guerra were born and raised in Gonzales, Texas, where they have opened hotels, restaurants, and built homes to meet their community’s needs. “We started with nothing,” Ruth said. Now, they have built over 100 homes in their community of 7,000 people.
I visited the Guerras and we drove around the town, as Ruth pointed out both homes she and her husband had worked on, as well as other neighborhoods of older homes in states of disrepair. Gonzales has not had new home construction in a long time. “Big builders are not going to come into this town,” Ruth said. In a previous subdivision, a builder constructed about 5 homes and then left town, the work unfinished. We drove past a 17-home affordable subdivision of 3-bedroom homes the Guerras built in 2009.
Now, they are building Angel Oaks, a 6-home development for median income families, featuring 3-bedroom ranch-style homes with yards. A longtime customer of BCL, having worked with us in the past for an SBA 504 loan, the Guerra family is now working with BCL’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Texas Community Builders for our new pre-development loan product.
The demand for median-priced new housing in Gonzales is apparent, as five of the Angel Oaks homes have already been purchased, just as groundbreaking has barely begun. Most of the buyers are people of color, and all are first-time homeowners. “People are getting out of renting and into their first homes,” Ruth said.
And as with their hotels, their construction business is a family venture. They’ve taught their two daughters skills in construction, management, and project administration. “In the big city, you get a job and you learn one thing,” Ruth said. She said her daughters are now prepared with a wide range of skills to take on all kinds of jobs.
“I’m really glad that Texas Community Builders is investing in small developers,” Ruth said. “I appreciate that they saw that we have projects that will benefit individuals that probably never would have been able to buy a home. Without Texas Community Builders, we would not have been able to do this project.”
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