Kresge Foundation Backs Chicago TREND's Community Ownership of Baltimore's Edmondson Village Shopping Center

The Kresge Foundation has committed a $2 million program-related equity investment to support Chicago TREND's acquisition and redevelopment of Edmondson Village Shopping Center, a 316,474-square-foot community retail center in West Baltimore — placing more than 200 local residents on the ownership cap table alongside the sponsor.

The deal, structured through the TREND Fund, marks Kresge's inaugural community ownership model of real estate investment, which the foundation has designated under its Health Team's Community Investment for Health Equity strategy. Chicago TREND, a certified benefit corporation founded in 2016, serves as the general partner.

Deal Structure and Capital Stack

The 13.23-acre Edmondson Village Shopping Center, located at 4404–4592 Edmondson Avenue in the Rognel Heights corridor of West Baltimore, was acquired for $17.05 million. The property, which opened in 1947 as one of Baltimore's first major retail destinations, carries approximately 199,792 square feet of gross leasable area within its total building footprint, along with roughly 1,700 parking spaces and approximately 1,212 feet of frontage along Edmondson Avenue.

The transaction was financed through a layered capital structure. The City of Baltimore committed $8 million to facilitate the acquisition and redevelopment, and the State of Maryland pledged approximately $4 million in community development funding. Community investors — more than 200 Baltimore residents — participated through a crowdfunded equity offering with a minimum investment of $1,000, with a projected 16% annual cash return. Chicago TREND's affiliated nonprofit, Trend CDC, also participated in the structure.

Kresge took a limited partner position in the TREND Fund with a voting seat on the fund board. After the initial return of capital, remaining cash flow is split between community investors and the general partner. A separate supporting grant from Kresge to Trend CDC funds the community engagement and advisory-board infrastructure the ownership model requires.

Elizabeth Davidson, a portfolio manager in Kresge's Social Investment Practice, described the rationale for the investment structure. "Existing tools weren't solving either problem," Davidson said. "Debt products financed buildings but left ownership — and the wealth and governance that come with it — untouched. Conventional value-add equity underwrites rents that price out local entrepreneurs and workforce shoppers. TREND put residents on the cap table rather than treating them as an impact narrative."

Property Background and Redevelopment Progress

Edmondson Village Shopping Center opened in 1947 as one of Baltimore's earliest auto-oriented regional retail destinations. Over the past 30 years, demographic shifts and disinvestment led to significant property decline, with numerous storefronts shuttered prior to Chicago TREND's involvement.

Since the acquisition, ten leases have been signed at the center, including a national grocery chain, primary care, child care and food retail tenants. Phase 1 improvements — covering the roof, awnings, lighting, signage and removal of security gates — are complete. Phase 2 work, which includes site improvements, utilities, sidewalks and the grocery store foundation, is approximately 70% finished. Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland is also in predevelopment on a 34,000-square-foot headquarters at the site that is expected to bring more than 100 jobs to the property.

In March, 250 people gathered at the site to mark construction and leasing milestones, including Maryland Governor Wes Moore and other elected officials alongside investors, retailers and neighbors.

Chicago TREND's Model and Broader Context

Chicago TREND was launched with support from the MacArthur Foundation and the Chicago Community Trust. The firm's early work focused on market data and predictive modeling to identify neighborhoods experiencing change, combined with pro forma development services, transaction facilitation and deal structuring for community-driven retail projects.

Through its affiliated nonprofit, Trend CDC, Chicago TREND partnered with the Chicago Community Loan Fund to finance the acquisition and redevelopment of nine shopping centers by local Black developers. That program generated sufficient results to raise an additional $10 million for a second cohort. A $500,000 investment from Living Cities, partially funded by Kresge, enabled TREND to acquire two centers outright. The Edmondson Village transaction represents a further evolution of the model, bringing local residents directly into the ownership structure.

Davidson noted the broader context driving the investment thesis. Roughly 1.5% of real estate assets under management are controlled by minority-owned firms, and approximately 2% of development firms are Black-led. "Commercial real estate ownership in the U.S. keeps consolidating under private owners with no connection to the neighborhoods they hold," she said. "The consequence is extractive: residents' shopping dollars flow out of the community, and community-driven retail projects stall."

Scalability and Institutional Capital Pathway

Kresge structured its investment with an explicit eye toward replicability. Davidson described the foundation's capital as designed to be "replaceable" once the model demonstrates performance. The transaction is structured to become eligible for consideration as a mission-related investment once the model proves out, with indications that a 7% to 8% hurdle rate would be sufficient to attract institutional capital.

"Getting there means stabilizing assets, paying the preferred return on schedule and showing that community ownership doesn't impair asset performance or complicate financing," Davidson said. "We need more investors, and local partners willing to bring subsidized capital to close funding gaps."

Sources

Kresge Foundation — How 200 Baltimore residents became owners of their neighborhood shopping center