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Doris Schnider, president, DCIC, 302-655-1420,
Neil Cotiaux, FHLBank Pittsburgh, 412-288-2851, cell: 412-335-9488;
John Brennan, University of Delaware, 302-831-2072;

$100,000 Grant Made to New Blueprint Communities Program

Wilmington, DE, March 5, 2008 - The Delaware Community Investment Corporation (DCIC) announced today that it is contributing $100,000 in seed money to the state’s new Blueprint Communities initiative, which officially gets under way next week.

Nine Delaware communities, whose identities will be made public next Monday, will be greeted by First State Gov. Ruth Ann Minner, U.S. Sen. Thomas Carper and U.S. Rep. Michael Castle on the University of Delaware’s Newark campus as they are inducted into the new program, which helps older neighborhoods get their second wind and plan for community renewal more effectively. The new initiative is being sponsored by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh (FHLBank) and the University of Delaware’s Center for Community Research and Service.

Delaware’s new Blueprint Communities initiative will provide diverse community revitalization teams with comprehensive leadership training, mini-grants and improved access to funding sources. The Delaware program follows similar programs in Pennsylvania and West Virginia begun by FHLBank in 2005 and 2007 involving a total of 32 communities.

“Our $100,000 contribution will be made available to nine Delaware communities in the form of seed money they can use to help execute the revitalization plans they develop during Blueprint Communities training,” said DCIC President Doris R. Schnider. “These funds will help them realize the vision and the strategic plans they formulate as they take the next steps in reinvigorating their neighborhoods on a holistic basis.”

DCIC was established in 1994. Its mission is to serve as a vehicle for community revitalization by taking direct action through the financing of, and investments in, housing and related activities designed to address the needs of low- to moderate-income persons and areas as well as to coordinate the use of public resources to improve and expand community development throughout Delaware. As an institution established by private banks in collaboration with community leaders, DCIC's mission depends on a partnership among banks, community development sponsors and public agencies.

DCIC’s service area is the State of Delaware. All DCIC programs are funded by the following 36 member banks:

Advanta National Bank USA, AIG Federal Savings Bank, Allfirst Financial Bank, American Express Centurion Bank, Artisans' Bank, Bank of America N.A., Bank of New York, Barclays Bank, Christiana Bank & Trust Company, Citibank N.A. Delaware, Citicorp Trust Bank FSB, Citizens Bank, Commerce Bancorp Inc., Community Bank Delaware, County Bank, Cross Country Bank, Crown Bank FSB, Delaware National Bank, Sterling Bank & Trust, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Delaware, Discover Bank, FIA Card Services N.A., First Bank of Delaware, First National Bank of Wyoming, Fleet Bank Delaware, GMAC Bank, HSBC Bank USA N.A., JLB Service Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A, Mellon Bank, PNC Bank Delaware, Sovereign Bank, Sun National Bank, Wachovia Bank, Wilmington Savings Fund Society and Wilmington Trust Company.

The Delaware Community Foundation, another Blueprint Communities partner, will manage the $100,000 DCIC grant as communities move closer to drawing down its assets and applying seed money to local projects.