The Jackson Medical Mall Foundation (JMMF) was created in 1996 by Dr. Aaron Shirley to provide healthcare for the underserved and to promote economic and community development. The initial development began with the acquisition and complete renovation of a 900,000 square-foot, closed shopping mall located in an underserved Jackson, Mississippi, community. The center now provides healthcare and related services for more than 200,000 clients per year. The facility houses 83 tenants and is 99% occupied. Known as the Modern Medical Miracle, the first of its kind mall serves as a national model for public-private partnerships and the transformation of underutilized places. As we have evolved over the past 25-plus years, our mission and vision statements have changed. Our current mission is to eliminate healthcare disparities holistically through the promotion of creativity and innovation. It is our vision to be a leader in healthcare, economic, artistic, and technological development.

The tenant recruitment and renovations for the main property took almost ten years. During year eleven, JMMF began the economic and community development component portion of its mission. The initial phases included neighborhood and street cleanup, community outreach, and property acquisitions. The second phase of the development process we created a master plan for redevelopment of the surrounding community.  With plan in hand and sight control of more than 75 residential and business properties, we began the search for qualified developers who may be interested in some or all the projects identified on the plan. We quickly learned that developers had no appetite for inner-city development projects located within low-income communities. With much disappointment, we had to resort to a riskier plan of becoming developers – risky since we had no real experience. To reduce risk and increase success opportunities, we broke the development projects into smaller residential and business developments:

1. In 2007, we used a small Federal Home Loan Bank Grant to build four single-family homes (2007).
2. In 2010, we built a grocery store and a 20,000 square-foot, single-tenant office building adjacent to the main building site. The funding sources were Tax Free Bonds and Gulf Opportunity Zone Bonds. Even with funding in place, the only developer available to us was based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
3. In 2011, we assisted a local church with the planning and construction of an 81-unit senior housing development. JMMF assisted with setting up their community development corporation, identifying pre-development funds, construction financing, and a long-term mortgage. This is a 9% low-income housing tax credit development. Developers were from Arizona and Illinois. The development is 100% occupied and has an extensive waiting list.
4. In 2014, 24 townhomes were constructed 2 blocks from the main building site. The residential lots were sold to a local developer for the purpose of housing development. The project was funded by 9% low-income housing tax credits held by the developer.  9% tax credits are limited and usually go to older, established, majority developers.
5. In 2015, a 10,000 square-foot, multi-tenant building was constructed off site near the grocery store. The Milwaukee, Wisconsin, developer also assisted with this project. This project was unique in that we only utilized women- and minority-owned businesses for all required services. The project finished on time and below budget. The four original tenants signed long-term leases and are still onboard.
6. We then assisted another local church with the planning and construction of a 61-unit senior housing development. This development is equipped with smart apartments and a community health center.  JMMF assisted with setting up their community development corporation, identifying pre-development funds, construction financing, and a long-term mortgage. This is a 4% low-income housing tax credit development. The total capital stack of 14 investors are made up of both public and private partners.

In summary, all of these developments delivered huge quality of life improvements for the local communities, as well as an annual economic impact of more than $350,000,000. Even today, after proving that low-income developments will yield great returns on investment, local developers are still not willing to invest with us. WHY???????????

Primus Wheeler, Jr., serves as Executive Director of the Jackson Medical Mall Foundation in Jackson, Mississippi. He previously worked as Director of Ambulatory Services for the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he implemented a primary healthcare center that supports more than 100,000 patient visits annually. Primus has a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology; an Associate’s in Respiratory Care; and a Master’s in Education and Administration. He has more than 50 years of combined experience in management, healthcare, and community development.