Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle Honors West Coast Bank of Lake Oswego, Oregon, with 2011 Community Spirit Award
News Release: December 8, 2011
Contact: Connie Waks
206.340.2305
Seattle – The Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle (Seattle Bank) has named West Coast Bank, headquartered in Lake Oswego, Oregon, as the recipient of its 2011 Community Spirit Award. The award recognizes a member of the Seattle Bank cooperative that exemplifies the spirit of community partnership in creating affordable housing and economic development opportunities in their communities.
West Coast Bank received the award based on its use of the Seattle Bank’s affordable housing and community investment programs. Through its membership in the Seattle Bank, West Coast Bank has provided more than $24 million dollars in grants and reduced-rate loans to create 380 units of affordable housing, to stimulate job growth, and to improve the communities it serves across Oregon and Southern Washington.
West Coast Bank received its award at a Community Spirit Luncheon, hosted by the Seattle Bank, on December 8, in Salem, Oregon. In addition to the award ceremony, the luncheon program featured presentations by: Tom Potiowsky, professor of economics at Portland State University; Margaret Van Vliet, director of Oregon Housing and Community Services; Mark Davis, director of systems and development for the Housing Authority of Yamhill County; and David Schaffert, president and CEO of the Thurston County Chamber. Invitees included Oregon state and local civic and community leaders and members of the Seattle Bank cooperative.
About West Coast Bank
West Coast Bancorp (NASDAQ: WCBO) is a publicly held, Northwest bank holding company headquartered in Oregon with $2.5 billion in assets, and the parent company of West Coast Bank and West Coast Trust Company, Inc. West Coast Bank operates 62 branches in Oregon and Washington. The company serves clients who seek the resources, sophisticated products and expertise of larger financial institutions, along with the local decision-making, market knowledge, and customer service orientation of a community bank. The company offers a broad range of banking, investment, fiduciary and trust services. For more information, please visit the West Coast Bank website at www.wcb.com.
About the Seattle Bank
The Seattle Bank is a financial cooperative that provides liquidity, funding, and services to enhance the success of its members and support the availability of affordable homes and economic development in the communities they serve. The Seattle Bank's funding and financial services enable approximately 360 member institutions to provide their customers with greater access to mortgages, commercial loans, and funding for affordable housing and economic development.
The Seattle Bank serves eight states, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Our members include commercial banks, credit unions, thrifts, industrial loan corporations, and insurance companies.
The Seattle Bank is one of 12 Federal Home Loan Banks in the United States. The Federal Home Loan Banks commit 10 percent of their annual income for affordable housing and, together, represent one of the country's largest private sources of funding for affordable housing, as well as liquidity and funding for community financial institutions.
Since the Seattle Bank’s housing program inception, over 35,000 households have been served through roughly $180 million in total awards. The Seattle Bank has also loaned over $3.6 billion in low-interest loans for affordable housing and economic development.
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