Valley Bank, through the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York’s Zero Development Advance program, recently closed a $1.8 million term loan with a 0% interest rate for Ewing-based SERV Behavioral Health System.
SERV, a private statewide, not-for-profit behavioral health care organization, serves adults and children working to recover from a serious mental illness or cope with a developmental disability. The savings earned through this 0% interest rate will allow SERV to expand and enhance its programs.
As a member of the FHLBNY, Valley applied for the ZDA program, which provides members with subsidized funding in the form of interest rate credits to assist in originating loans or purchasing loans/investments that meet one of the eligibility criteria under the Business Development Advance, Climate Development Advance, Infrastructure Development Advance or Tribal Development Advance. This program is intended to support economic development by incentivizing members to provide below-market-rate loans or invest in qualified initiatives.
“Building stronger communities is at the heart of everything we do,” Valley Bank CEO Ira Robbins said. “We are proud to be a part of this program and provide financing to SERV Behavioral Health System Inc., to support their mission of transforming lives through compassionate care and personal empowerment.”
Robbins serves on the board of the FHLBNY, which offers member banks community-based programs to participate in that focus on mission-oriented initiatives. These programs support and help make an impact in the communities they collectively serve and provide banks another conduit to provide support to local economies and access to lower-cost credit.
Founded in 1974, SERV now operates in 11 counties in New Jersey, including Burlington, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset and Union. In 2023, SERV provided care to over 2,500 people between residential care, partial care and outpatient care.
