Brownfields investing

• US 7,346,572 B2
• Filed: 04/02/2001
• Issued: 03/18/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Clhsm LLC
• Original Assignee: Clhsm LLC
• Inventors: Hoffman, Cheryl
• Primary Examiner(s): Poinvil; Frantzy
• Application Number:
  US09/824,114
• Publication Number:
  US 20010018677A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,542 Days
• Field of Search: 705 10- 45
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis

Abstract

A Brownfields investment vehicle, and a system and method for investing in Brownfields-related projects are provided that are capable of supporting all aspects of a Brownfields remediation/development/redevelopment project, while shielding investors from environmental liability. The Brownfields fund makes, for example, non-recourse, participating capital investments or Brownfields Value Contracts (“BVC”) to a number of “special purpose vehicles” for specific Brownfields projects according to fund investment criteria determined by a fund manager. An investor'"'"'s risk of incurring environmental liability is substantially reduced by providing that the Brownfields fund is completely passive with respect to the Brownfields project, taking no security or mortgage interest in the Brownfields.

Claims

1. A method for managing a Brownfields fund, comprising:

storing in a computer system information relating to the Brownfields fund;

accepting investor capital from at least one investor into the Brownfields fund;

storing information in the computer system relating to the at least one investor, the stored information including investor identification information, investment amounts, and terms of investments;

storing information in the computer system concerning an entity and a Brownfields project, the entity having an ownership interest in the Brownfields;

approving the entity and the Brownfields project for financing with investment capital from the Brownfields fund according to select criteria using the information stored in the computer system concerning the entity and the Brownfields project; and

providing the investment capital from the Brownfields fund to the approved entity to at least partially finance the approved Brownfields project without taking any ownership interest in the approved Brownfields project, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital from the at least one investor.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the providing step includes providing a Brownfields Value Contract to the approved entity, and further comprising the step of:

storing the terms of the Brownfields Value Contract in the computer system.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the providing the investment capital step includes exchanging by the approved entity an interest in future cashflows from the Brownfields project for the investment capital.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising:

receiving by the Brownfields fund a portion of cashflows from the Brownfields project to generate at least a portion of a fund cashflow; and

determining a portion of the fund cashflow to which each of the at least one investor is entitled as a function of the terms of investment stored in the computer system.

5. A method for investing in Brownfields using a computer system, comprising:

establishing a Brownfields fund, the Brownfields fund providing investment capital for Brownfields projects and the Brownfields fund remaining passive with respect to the Brownfields projects;

receiving an indication of investor capital from investors into the Brownfields fund by the computer system;

approving an entity for the investment capital from the Brownfields fund to at least partially finance a respective one of the Brownfields projects, the entity having an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the one of the Brownfields projects; and

providing an indication of the investment capital by the computer system from the Brownfields fund to the approved entity, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital from the investors.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

providing a return on investment to each of the investors as a function of an amount of respective capital provided by the one of the investors.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the step of providing the return on investment includes providing the return on investment as a function of cashflow from the Brownfields projects.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the receiving investor capital step includes receiving the investments electronically.

9. The method according to claim 5, wherein the receiving investor capital step includes receiving the investments via mail.

10. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

storing information related to each of the Brownfields projects; and

storing information related to a borrower.

11. The method according to claim 5, wherein the Brownfields project is at least one of:

i) a development project, ii) a redevelopment project, and iii) an environment remediation project, and wherein the Brownfields fund does not take an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the Brownfields project.

12. The method according to claim 5, wherein the establishing step includes receiving investments from investors for use in providing investment capital, each of the investors being passive relative to all of the Brownfields projects.

13. A method for investing in Brownfields using a computer system, comprising:

establishing a Brownfields fund, the Brownfields fund providing investment capital on a non-recourse basis for Brownfields projects and the Brownfields fund remaining passive with respect to the Brownfields projects;

receiving an indication of investor capital from investors into the Brownfields fund by the computer system;

approving an entity for the investment capital from the Brownfields fund on the non-recourse basis to at least partially finance a respective one of the Brownfields projects, the entity having an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the one of the Brownfields projects; and

providing an indication of the investment capital on the non-recourse basis from the Brownfields fund to the approved entity by the computer system, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital from the investors.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the establishing step includes establishing the Brownfields fund so that a size of the Brownfields fund is large relative to respective sizes of each capital investment made by the Brownfields fund.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the establishing step includes receiving investments from investors for use in providing the non-recourse capital investments, each of the investors being passive relative to all of the Brownfields projects.

16. A method for investing in Brownfields using a computer system, comprising:

establishing a Brownfields fund, the Brownfields fund providing investment capital on a non-recourse basis for Brownfields projects and the Brownfields fund remaining passive with respect to the Brownfields projects;

receiving an indication of investor capital from investors by the computer system;

approving an entity for the investment capital on the non-recourse basis for a respective one of the Brownfields projects, the entity having an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the one of the Brownfields projects; and

providing an indication of the investment capital on the non-recourse basis to the approved entity by the computer system, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital form the investors only after an investment level is above a predetermined minimum.

17. A method for investing in Brownfields using a computer system, comprising:

establishing a Brownfields fund, the Brownfields fund providing investment capital for Brownfields projects and the Brownfields fund remaining passive with respect to the Brownfields projects;

receiving an indication of investor capital from investors into the Brownfields fund by the computer system;

approving an entity for the investment capital from the Brownfields fund to at least partially finance a respective one of the Brownfields projects according to predetermined criteria, the entity having an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the one of the Brownfields projects; and

providing an indication of the investment capital to the approved entity from the Brownfields fund by the computer system, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital from the investors.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the entity is a special purpose vehicle.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein the providing step includes providing a Brownfields Value Contract to the entity, the investment capital being provided to the approved entity in accordance with terms of the Brownfields Value Contract.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the establishing step includes establishing the Brownfields fund so that the Brownfields fund is long-term in duration relative to a duration of the Brownfields Value Contract.

21. The method according to claim 17, wherein the providing step includes exchanging by the approved entity an interest in future cashflows from the respective one of the Brownsfield project for the investment capital from the Brownsfields fund.

22. A method of investing in Brownfields using a computer system, comprising:

providing, by the computer system, an indication of investor capital into a Brownsfields fund by an investor to the Brownsfields fund in accordance with predetermined terms of investment, the Brownfields fund providing investment capital for Brownfields projects and the Brownfields fund remaining passive with respect to the Brownfields projects, the Brownfields fund approving an entity for the investment capital from the Brownfields fund to at least partially finance a respective one of the Brownfields projects according to select criteria, the entity having an ownership interest in a Brownfields associated with the one of the Brownfields projects, an indication of the investment capital being provided to the approved entity from the Brownfields fund by the computer system, the approved entity being provided the investment capital using at least some of the investor capital from the investor without the Brownfields fund taking any ownership interest in a Brownfields property associated with the one of the Brownfields projects; and

receiving by the investor from the computer system an indication of a return on investment, the return on investment being determined as a function of the predetermined terms of investment.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the approved entity exchanges an interest in future cashflows from the one of the Brownfields projects for the investment capital, and wherein the return on investment is determined as a function of actual cashflows generated by the one of the Brownfields projects to the Brownfields fund.