M&S Development is a multi-disciplinary firm specializing in small industrial and community-led revitalization projects.
“The Bennington Redevelopment Group, and even more so the entire Bennington Community, cannot possibly thank you enough for sticking with us through this entire process to get to closing. You had every reason in the world to raise the white flag and call it quits. Yet you never once wavered, complained or did anything other than keep driving forward. There is no team I would rather have on my side than the team at M&S.” — Bill Colvin, Assistant Director and Community Development Program Coordinator for the Bennington County Regional Commission
Experience
Small industrial and community-led revitalization projects are our specialty. We provide the financial, design, and legal expertise necessary to guide a project to completion. With the ability to work closely with architects and engineers from our “sister” company, Stevens & Associates, we can function as an integrated design-development firm.
Our trademark is engaging directly with our client community by listening to the needs and possibilities presented, and leading each step of the complex process.
In 29 years of community development, team members of M&S Development have facilitated projects encompassing mixed-use downtown development, healthcare, commercial, light industrial, and affordable and market-rate housing.
Our understanding of the funding and financial packaging—combined with experienced legal, finance and design professionals all under one roof—can minimize fees and closing costs.
Project Success
We have built strong relationships with lenders, investors and New Markets Tax Credits CDEs by delivering credible and thoroughly researched projects.
Our members’ success stories include the creation of West River Valley Senior Housing, the Wilder Block rehabilitation, retention and expansion of GS Precision and Weidmann Electrical Technology, the redevelopment of the Brooks House, expansion of Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, the retention and expansion of Chroma Technology, and the development of Commonwealth Dairy. These projects have helped retain and create hundreds of jobs, commercial spaces and housing units, and produced significant direct and indirect economic benefits to their communities.
These projects illustrate the use of complex funding tranches which include tax credits, environmental mitigation funding, community development block grants, the use of private equity, Tax Incremental Financing (TIF), and varied loan and grant sources to make these vital projects possible in communities where redevelopment is not economically viable.
Efficiencies
Being a multi-discipline firm means that fewer people need to be in the room to ensure full communication among the team – and between the team and the project sponsor.
Continuity – the same team members are involved with the project from feasibility through financial closing, construction management and compliance management.
Working with M&S Development means the local business’ management team does not have to carve significant time out of their schedules to manage the project.
At-Risk Pre-development Services
Our goal is to facilitate community redevelopment. To that end we often offer to share the risk with our client community and provide a fixed amount of pre-development financial feasibility work at-risk.