Ballard Spahr's Paul Casey Named a "Dealmaker of the Year" by The American Lawyer

BALTIMORE, April 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --  Paul Casey, co-chair of Ballard Spahr's housing practice, was named a Dealmaker of the Year by The American Lawyer today for his role in helping to structure a landmark public-private partnership that raised hundreds of millions of dollars to improve and maintain low-income housing developments in New York City that had gone nearly a decade without direct subsidies.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110401/PH75790 )

Mr. Casey and his team worked alongside the General Counsel's Office for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), which had been trying for years to find a way to subsidize the twenty-one developments, home to more than 45,000 people. The joint legal team determined that NYCHA could merit federal funding under provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) if it structured a deal using public and private funds under HUD mixed-finance rules. The resulting transaction, one of the largest tax-credit bond deals in U.S. history, was completed in just six months to meet a federal deadline.

"I'm honored to be recognized for my part in this deal, but this was a collaborative effort in every sense of the word. It was inspiring to work around-the-clock with Sonya Kaloyanides, NYCHA's general counsel, and the dedicated NYCHA team as we succeeded in overcoming so many obstacles to closing," Mr. Casey said. "The deal is a wonderful example of people in the public and private sectors collaborating effectively on a project that mattered a great deal to all of us. Together, we achieved something of which we are deeply proud."

Under the terms of this unprecedented transaction, the public housing complexes were sold to two limited liability companies created and managed by NYCHA. Citibank is the investor partner. The sale required fast work by New York State lawmakers, who passed legislation allowing the transaction to proceed. The legislation also allowed NYCHA to take advantage of the one-time opportunity under ARRA, yet still retain control of the properties, which was important to the residents in the developments.

"Paul's effort on behalf of NYCHA exemplifies what Ballard Spahr does best," firm Chair Arthur Makadon said. "We use our talents to find new ways to efficiently and effectively advance our clients' interests beyond the conventional or obvious."

NYCHA received $108 million in ARRA funding, $42 million from New York State, $209 million from tax-credit equity investor Citibank, $50 million from long-term bonds secured by Section 8 payments, and $360 million from additional bond issuances. The bond issuer was the New York City Housing Development Corporation and CSG Advisors was the financial advisor to NYCHA. In all, the deal provided about $400 million in new public and private funding for modernization and an additional $65 million to $75 million each year for ongoing operations.

Said Ms. Kaloyanides: "Paul Casey's steady leadership guided NYCHA and our partners at HUD, Citibank, and NYC HDC in structuring and closing a deal under a very aggressive timetable to bring meaningful improvements to the homes of over 20,000 low-income New York City families."

Ballard Spahr's housing practice represents more than 60 housing authorities across the nation. Its attorneys have closed hundreds of bond transactions as bond and underwriters' counsel and have been involved in thousands of tax-credit transactions, some of which were firsts in the industry.

The Ballard Spahr team that worked on the NYCHA deal also included: Teri M. Guarnaccia, Lila G. Shapiro-Cyr, Wayne H. Hykan, Douglas M. Fox, Christopher J. Fritz, Mark J. Maichel, Amy M. McClain, Amy Glassman, Era C. Calhoun, Cynthia A. Sivils, and Christine M. Patterson.

About Ballard Spahr

Ballard Spahr LLP, a national firm with more than 475 lawyers in 13 offices in the United States, provides a range of services in litigation, business and finance, real estate, intellectual property, and public finance. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, life sciences and technology companies, health systems, investors and developers, government agencies and sponsored enterprises, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations. The firm combines a national scope of practice with strong regional market knowledge. For more information, please visit www.ballardspahr.com.

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SOURCE Ballard Spahr LLP

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