Cincinnati, (December 2025) – Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) brings national capital to Cincinnati with a $5 million investment from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).  This investment will be used to increase access to stable, affordable housing and drive economic development to improve health outcomes in the local neighborhoods along the Mill Creek Corridor, reversing decades of neglect, disinvestment and injustice.  

With a holistic place-based approach that integrates physical, civic, and economic strategies, the investment will focus on building and preserving affordable homes, rehabilitating older homes, delivering critical home repairs, creating quality local construction jobs, and expanding opportunities for generational wealth.  

The Mill Creek Corridor has long been impacted by deep environmental harm, economic decline, and historical injustice. “Creating quality housing and repairing homes for existing homeowners will build lasting economic opportunity and environmental resilience along the Mill Creek Corridor,” said Robert Killins Jr., vice president, community investments at GCF. “This work also creates new economic opportunities and starts to address some of the long-term health needs of this community, where older homes have high levels of lead and other harmful factors that are directly contributing to residents’ health and well-being.”  

GCF will partner with Working in Neighborhoods (WIN), Economic and Community Development Institute (ECDI) and Warsaw Federal to: 

• Deliver 25 newly constructed and 25 rehabbed energy-efficient homes. 

• Grow small and diverse contractors’ capacity to take on the community rehabs and home repairs. 

• Provide FDIC-insured capital to support low-interest loans for home rehabs and safety repairs. 

GCF has significant expertise in collaborative, place-based revitalization, with a holistic focus on community health and well-being, education, civic engagement, and infrastructure development. As one of the nation’s pioneering community foundations in utilizing impact investing for social good, GCF brings three decades of experience in this field. 

GCF’s extensive history of delivering equitable outcomes and holistic development in neighborhoods such as Price Hill, Walnut Hills, and Over-the-Rhine, as well as across the river in Northern Kentucky, enabled the Foundation to secure competitive investment from RWJF.  

“We are honored to have the opportunity to work closely with so many incredible local agencies, homeowners, and community champions to improve the quality of life in the Mill Creek Corridor,” said Killins. “With this impact investment from RWJF, we can start reversing decades of disinvestment and work alongside the community to build neighborhoods where everyone has an opportunity to thrive.” 

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Media Contact

Holly Allen
Director, Marketing and Communications, Greater Cincinnati Foundation
513-768-6160
[email protected]