Community Facility Public Private Partnerships

CFP3 is fundamentally different from conventional grant-making foundations and must be approached accordingly. It functions as a nonprofit P3 intermediary — a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) that partners with public entities to access low-cost bond financing for community infrastructure. The "total giving" figures in its IRS filings ($16.1M in FY2023, $8.5M in FY2022) represent program-related disbursements tied to active development projects, not charitable grants in any traditional sense.

Engaging CFP3 means seeking a structured financing partnership. The organization does not issue RFPs, maintain a competitive grant cycle, or accept unsolicited proposals through a foundation portal. Instead, relationships begin with a direct conversation — call President Steve Collins at 612.735.7717 or email steve@cfp3.org — to assess whether your project's structure, scale, and revenue stream align with CFP3's model.

The typical engagement unfolds in three phases. First, CFP3 evaluates whether your organization qualifies: eligible parties are municipalities, counties, state agencies, school districts, colleges, universities, and 501(c)(3) nonprofits with a defined public-facing mission. Second, CFP3 forms a dedicated single-member LLC for your project and coordinates with local bonding authorities to issue tax-exempt lease revenue bonds, using proceeds to finance design and construction. Third, your organization leases and operates the facility over the bond term (typically 15–30 years), then assumes full ownership at payoff.

First-time partners should understand that CFP3 charges substantially lower fees than private developers, who typically demand 15–20% returns on investment. CFP3's nonprofit status passes these savings to public entities. The Boynton Beach Town Square project ($78M) was completed in under 24 months and won Florida's Project of the Year in 2020 — CFP3 uses this as a benchmark for speed and quality.

From the project portfolio, CFP3 clearly favors multi-use civic facilities: justice centers, combined city hall/police/library complexes, campus housing, and community recreation domes. Projects that consolidate multiple public services into a single development appear most compelling. Organizations should arrive at initial conversations with a defined community need, a mapped revenue stream, and an understanding that this is a project partnership negotiation — not a grant application.

CFP3 does not operate as a grant-making foundation. Its financials reflect a project-based financing model where "total giving" represents bond proceeds disbursed for public facility development, not charitable grants. With that context, the financial trajectory reveals a rapidly scaling infrastructure operation.

Asset growth: Total assets rose from $37.1M (FY2015) to $152.1M (FY2020), then accelerated dramatically — $139.3M (FY2021), $351.2M (FY2022), $368.6M (FY2023), and $539.3M (FY2024). The explosive post-2021 surge reflects concurrent execution of the $212M Eastern Michigan University project and the $153.7M Chambers County Justice Center, both of which placed large bond reserves and development assets on CFP3's books simultaneously.

Annual disbursements: Recorded "giving" grew from $2.5M (FY2019) → $3.3M (FY2020) → $6.8M (FY2021) → $8.5M (FY2022) → $16.1M (FY2023), a 542% increase in four years. FY2024 figures are not yet filed, but given the Chambers County close in June 2024 and EMU completion in August 2024, activity likely remains elevated.

Project size range: Individual project financing in the CFP3 portfolio ranges from $6M (Taylor Governmental Center, 2011) to $212M (EMU Student Housing, 2022–2024). The TCO Sports Garden ($24.8M) and Riverside County Libraries ($42M) represent mid-range deals, while Boynton Beach ($78M) and Chambers County ($153.7M) anchor the upper end of the recent pipeline. The trend is unmistakably toward larger transactions.

Revenue composition: CFP3's total revenue was $26.9M (FY2024) and $27.5M (FY2023) — stable year-over-year — drawn from project management fees, lease income from public partners during bond terms, and investment returns on bond reserve funds. Net investment income was $233,659 in FY2023.

Officer compensation: President Steve Collins earned $218,300 in FY2024 (up from $181,500 in FY2022 and $189,500 in FY2023), with board officers (Chairperson, Treasurer, Secretary) receiving $12,000 each annually — consistent with a lean professional management structure for a mid-sized nonprofit developer.

CFP3 occupies a unique niche among NTEE S20 (Community Development) nonprofits. Unlike its IRS peer group, which typically includes foundations and advocacy organizations, CFP3 is an operating nonprofit developer — its assets are primarily project-backed bonds and leasehold interests, not endowment investments. This makes direct financial comparisons imperfect but illustrative of scale.

CFP3 now holds the largest asset base among its NTEE S20 peer group — surpassing Pershing Square Foundation ($414.6M) in FY2024 — a remarkable position for a specialized infrastructure intermediary. However, unlike traditional foundations whose assets represent endowment capital, CFP3's $539M largely reflects bond obligations and development project assets tied to active construction.

The critical distinction is operational model: CFP3 deploys capital as a financing partner, not a grant-maker. Organizations engaging CFP3 are seeking a specialized nonprofit developer — not applying for philanthropic funding. None of the peer foundations listed above operate in the P3 infrastructure financing space.

CFP3 has been exceptionally active from 2022 through 2024, with its two largest projects ever reaching completion in the same 12-month window.

Eastern Michigan University Student Housing ($212M, completed August 2024): The flagship DBFOM project covered 17 buildings across Ypsilanti, MI — delivering 700 new beds, renovating 2,025 beds, and demolishing 1,500 obsolete units within 24 months of the November 2022 bond close. This remains the largest single transaction in CFP3's history and is now the reference model for university housing P3s in CFP3's marketing.

Chambers County Justice Center, TX ($153.7M, financing closed June 2024): A 211,000 sq ft campus including a 336-bed jail, multiple courtrooms, a crime lab, and 450 parking spaces, with construction expected to complete in 2026. This marks CFP3's entry into criminal justice infrastructure.

Ohlone Community College, Fremont, CA (in progress): CFP3 is in active financing stages for a California community college student housing project, extending its higher education practice to a third institution.

Website refresh (July 2025): CFP3 updated its website with dedicated higher education P3 conference content at cfp3.org/highered/, indicating active outreach to college and university administrators.

Balance sheet impact: Total assets jumped from $368.6M (FY2023) to $539.3M (FY2024) — a $170.7M single-year increase — reflecting bond proceeds and development assets from these concurrent large projects loading onto CFP3's books. Leadership has been stable, with Steve Collins serving as President continuously for six-plus fiscal years.

CFP3 does not use a traditional grant application system. The engagement model is entirely relationship-driven and project-specific, requiring a fundamentally different approach than applying to a foundation.

Lead with your project, not your organization. CFP3's interest is triggered by the infrastructure opportunity — the facility type, estimated cost, and revenue structure — not by your mission statement or grant history. Open every conversation with a crisp project description: what you need to build, approximate square footage, estimated cost, and how you plan to repay bond financing.

Understand the revenue stream requirement. This is CFP3's primary underwriting criterion. Before reaching out, map your bond repayment mechanism: lease payments from your governing authority, availability payments built into a public budget, tax increment financing from a redevelopment zone, or user fees from facility operations. Vague answers here will stall conversations.

Target the right project scale. CFP3's recent portfolio clusters between $25M and $160M per project. Extremely small projects (under $5M) cannot justify P3 structuring costs. If your project is below that threshold, consider whether it can be bundled with adjacent needs to reach viable scale — as CFP3 did with Riverside County's three simultaneous library constructions ($42M combined).

Reference relevant portfolio analogs. Review cfp3.org/projects/portfolio/ before initial contact. Identify the closest completed project to your own and reference it explicitly: "We're looking at something similar to your Boynton Beach Town Square model" signals to Steve Collins that you've done your homework.

If you're in higher education, use the dedicated channel. CFP3 has built a distinct practice for university housing P3s and maintains cfp3.org/highered/ as a marketing entry point. Reference the EMU Student Housing project and the Ohlone College pipeline in early conversations.

Avoid the grant-seeking framing entirely. The most common mistake is approaching CFP3 as a grant-maker or expecting a direct cash award. CFP3 provides project structure and financing access. Organizations that arrive project-first — with a facility need, a governance commitment, and a revenue plan — find the most traction.