New York, NY, Jan. 04, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The New York City Regional Center (“NYCRC”) is pleased to announce the first I-829 petition approvals issued to EB-5 investors participating in its Subway Wi-Fi Infrastructure offering (“Project”). To date, 1,833 I-829 petition approvals have been issued to investors in NYCRC offerings resulting in 5,311 individuals (EB-5 investors and family members) achieving permanent residency in the United States.
The Project included a $75 million EB-5 loan to Transit Wireless to assist with the construction of a new wireless infrastructure network that brought cellular and Wi-Fi service to all 281 New York City underground subway stations. The build out of the network was completed in 2017 and today provides over 5.7 million New York City subway passengers with connectivity every day. During a typical year, more than 140 million cellular calls originated within the underground subway stations and 120 million Wi-Fi log-ins were made to the public Wi-Fi network. The network’s 150-mile fiber optic backbone also handles countless text messages, app usage, and all the many ways commuters use their smartphones. The infrastructure network has also helped revolutionize how the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (“MTA”) interacts with riders underground – whether through enhanced public safety communications via Help Point Kiosks or the system-wide countdown clocks for train arrivals.
The borrower of EB-5 capital, Transit Wireless, was the company selected by the MTA and the New York City Transit Authority to build out and operate a shared wireless infrastructure network within New York City’s underground subway stations, including connectivity services for AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless customers. Since its inception, this cellular and Transit Wireless Wi-Fi network has been connecting millions of customers to the digital world as they make their daily commutes.
Construction of the Project is complete and all $75 million of EB-5 capital was spent on qualified construction expenditures. In September 2022, NYCRC announced the full repayment of the $75 million loan to EB-5 investors in this Project. The repayment brought the total amount of loan proceeds repaid in NYCRC offerings to $852.5 million.
“We are proud to announce the first I-829 petition approvals to go along with the recent repayment of $75 million to EB-5 investors in this offering,” said Paul Levinsohn, NYCRC Co-Managing Principal. “We are honored to have played a role in bringing high-speed Wi-Fi to New York City’s underground subway stations.”
About the NYCRC
The NYCRC was approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services in 2008 to secure foreign investment for real estate and infrastructure projects under the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program. Congress created the EB-5 program to stimulate economic development through foreign investment. The program’s mandate is to use foreign investment to spur job creation while simultaneously affording eligible foreign investors the opportunity to become lawful permanent residents of the United States. The NYCRC was the first EB-5 regional center approved in New York City. To date, 1,833 I-829 petition approvals have enabled 5,311 individuals to secure permanent residency in the United States via NYCRC offerings.
Over the past 15 years, NYCRC-managed funds have put $1.58 billion of capital to work across a broad spectrum of infrastructure and real estate projects in New York City resulting in over 3.8 million square feet of new development and renovation. Much of this capital has been invested in underserved areas in need of long-term economic growth. Examples include:
- $811 million to finance ground-up, redevelopment, and infrastructure projects in Brooklyn, including seven projects totaling $383 million in the Brooklyn Navy Yard;
- $108.5 million to finance ground-up and redevelopment projects in Washington Heights, an Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone; and,
- $220 million to finance ground-up construction in the Bronx.
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