CALIFORNIA: The city of Flagstaff is going into the loan business. Council approved a request from the Northern Arizona Council of Governments to take over administration of a $217,000 U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant for revolving small business loans.The funds from the program are used to provide loans to small businesses in four counties in Northern Arizona, not just Flagstaff or Coconino County, said John Saltonstall, the city’s business retention and expansion manager.
Those four counties are Apache, Coconino, Navajo and Mohave.As small businesses pay back their loans from the program the money goes back into the account and is used to create more loans for new businesses, he said. The loans range in size from $25,000 to $75,000 with a five year payback term.Businesses that apply for the loans will have to go through a loan review committee and then a loan administration board before the loan is approved, Saltonstall said.
He recommended that the city contract with bank or other financial organization to service the loans for the city. The loans are designed to target start-up companies in the healthcare/biotechnology, software, aviation, transportation/logistics, research, renewable, workforce development and tourism industries, he said.
SEDI’s loans range from $0 to$5,000; NACET’s loans range from $5,000 to $35,000 and ECoNA loans range from $5,000 to $35,000, he said. The loans from the Economic Development Administration, which the city will take over, range from $25,000 to $75,000.
