Ernest Coney, Jr.
CEO, CDC of Tampa

Ernest Coney, Jr., is CEO of the Corporation to Development Communities of Tampa (CDC of Tampa). He brought over 15 years of executive management-level experience in providing health, social and economic programs to benefit low to moderate income persons and the elderly. With an undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College and a master’s degree from the University of South Florida, he developed strong business acumen in the areas of management, finance, and performance improvement. In his previous position as COO of CDC of Tampa, Mr. Coney expanded the concept of community building “Brick by Brick and Block by Block” – creating jobs, providing entrepreneurship training, providing financial literacy, developing youth leadership, revitalizing commercial areas, and building affordable housing. The nonprofit corporation has also enhanced its reach, by helping over 1,000 individuals systematically break the cycle of poverty on an annual basisithin the first few years of his tenure as CEO, Mr. Coney leveraged over $50 million dollars in joint venture projects, to include real estate and program service projects. Most notably was the development of Fort King Colony, a 120-unit affordable apartment complex and Haley Park, an 80-unit senior housing complex. He has also helped to create two prominent county-wide, cross sector collaborations – Economic Prosperity Center and Safe & Sound Hillsborough, as well as, designed a national award-winning City-Wide Façade Program. Under his leadership the CDC has created Tampa Vocational Institute (TVI), to address the disproportionate rates of unemployment and underemployment in urban neighborhoods. TVI has increased CDC’s ability to address the growing “skills gap” and corporate training needs for local area businesses and individuals.

Over its 30 years, CDC of Tampa has generated more than $445.25 million in economic impact to the Tampa Bay Region, providing comprehensive community development strategies that connect workforce development, housing and real estate with education, community safety and resident leadership to drive economic prosperity.

Loan Portfolio Manager

Jennifer Rainey manages the loan administration team that is responsible for all servicing of the Florida Community Loan Fund's community and economic development loan programs. Her team's work covers commitment letters, title and survey issues, internal preparation of loan documents, loan closings, administration during construction (including analysis and approval of draw requests), performance of site inspections and customer visits. The loan administration team also maintains the loan servicing system providing invoicing, loan history information, reporting functions and social impact tracking. Jennifer provides overall credit review assistance and support to the entire lending team.

Jennifer’s team also supports FCLF's New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program, screening and verifying site and project qualifications to establish NMTC pipeline. Her teammates represent FCLF's real estate and commercial loan interests during NMTC structure closings, and during project construction and disbursement.

Jennifer joined FCLF in November 2021, bringing with her over 35 years’ experience in the banking and  finance industry. Prior to joining FCLF, she was employed at Truist Bank in the role of commercial Credit Operations Senior Manager and Bank of America as a Regional Office Administration Manager. She has an extensive background in all aspects of commercial real estate loan transactions. She earned both her Bachelor of Arts and Masters of Arts from Rollins College in Winter Park.

Community Development Loan Officer

As a Community Development Loan Officer, Anna Upchurch Pernell underwrites community and economic development loans for Florida Community Loan Fund's commercial loan programs. Mrs. Pernell also provides technical assistance to borrowers throughout Central and Northwest Florida.

Mrs. Pernell brings 10 years of private sector experience in analytical, corporate sales and marketing roles to FCLF, in addition to 5+ years experience working with CDFIs and nonprofit organizations to promote underserved small businesses, community development, and community engagement. While working for the International Rescue Committee, a refugee resettlement agency, in their Salt Lake City office, and for a small business CDFI in Aurora, CO, CEDS Finance, Mrs. Pernell provided both capital and technical assistance to underserved entrepreneurs with a focus on community engagement and tailored technical assistance. Mrs. Pernell received her BSBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an MPA, with a focus on nonprofit management, from the University of Colorado Denver.

Mrs. Pernell is driven by creating equitable opportunities in communities outside of the economic mainstream. Across Central and Northwest Florida she delivers loan capital to nonprofits and mission-driven for-profit developers of affordable housing, supportive housing, and facilities to meet FCLF's mission.

Loan Portfolio Administrator

Narine Ramtahal is a member of the loan administration team that is responsible for servicing FCLF's diverse portfolio of community and economic development loan programs. Mr. Ramtahal works with loan officers to prepare loan documents, oversee execution of loan and other documents, administer construction draw disbursements, review covenant compliance issues, and maintain loan file documentation.

Mr. Ramtahal joined FCLF in 2021, with over 20 years of experience in banking with extensive experience in both consumer and commercial banking. Before relocating to Florida in 2020, he worked for a large New York based commercial bank that specialized in commercial real estate lending, construction loans and syndication lending.