SEED LA is a college-preparatory, public boarding school located in Los Angeles, California. SEED LA is part of the SEED network, the nation's first and only network of public, college-preparatory boarding schools educating youth who would benefit from a 24-hour learning environment. SEED LA is expected to open in fall of 2022 with 400 students in grades 9-12. Its curriculum will focus on career readiness in transportation, infrastructure, STEM, and humanities. SEED LA will also provide critical wrap around services for youth who face barriers inside and outside the school, with the goal of creating a safe environment where students can achieve academic success and thrive beyond the classroom.
SEED LA is looking to primarily educate students who meet low-income requirements, live in underserved areas of LA County, are referred by a mentor, pastor, or social worker, have experienced homelessness, and/or have been involved with the county child welfare system.
LISC provided $6.2 million in loans to the project, comprised of a $1.2 million direct loan and $5 million source loan. Total development costs for the project will be over $90MM. Financing partners for this project include: LIIF, NFF, CIP, JPMorgan Chase, ExEd, Civic Builders, LA Development Fund, Weingart Foundation, and LA County Development Authority.
This financing will fund the construction of a new 146,931 square-foot facility on a currently vacant site. The new campus will contain administrative offices and classrooms for 400 high-school students, plus 170 dorm rooms, 20 staff apartments, a dining hall with commercial kitchen, a full gym, and outdoor recreation space. The school will be part of a larger, 4.2-acre development initiated by the County and Metro, that is called the Vermont Manchester Transit Priority Joint Development Project (TPP). The TPP will include affordable housing, retail space, a Metro-operated job training center, a new landscaped transit plaza, improved pedestrian and cycling connections to Manchester Avenue Elementary School and the Silver Line bus rapid transit station, and the school. SEED LA will be the first project to be completed on this site.