For immediate release:
12:00 p.m. Thursday, December 30, 2021
Rare zero-percent interest financing is now available to qualifying local businesses, nonprofits, and public entities for economic development.
My One Hour Office, a co-working space located at 523 Main Street in Walsenburg, is the most recent recipient of a pass-through loan between San Isabel Electric and the United Stated Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program (REDLG).
REDLG helps rural local businesses with funding for job creation and retention programs. The USDA provides the loans to San Isabel Electric which, in turn, pass through to local businesses for qualifying projects. The recipients repay the lending utility directly and the utility is then responsible for repayment to USDA.
My One Hour Office Owner, Mary Jo Tesitor, plans to use the RED loan funds to purchase virtual video conferencing equipment, a Wi-Fi management system, and office furniture.
“With a manageable low-or-no interest loan of less than $20,000, a small rural business can complete upgrades and improvements that may have been sitting on the back burner for a while. I think a revolving loan program for small businesses can make a real difference for rural Colorado and is a great use of USDA funds. Small business owners will pay back into the fund, recirculating that money and growing the economy,” Tesitor said.
A previous REDLG loan was issued to the La Veta Fire Protection District to support the construction of their new fire station. San Isabel Electric is continually working with local rural businesses, nonprofits, and public entities to process REDLG applications, but is actively seeking a nonprofit or public body partner in the service territory to establish a revolving loan fund (RLF). This RLF would allow San Isabel Electric to issue these types of loans more quickly, without having to wait for USDA approval.
“To set up a revolving loan fund, we must issue a large loan to a nonprofit or public body entity, like a hospital, or local government organization. As they pay it back to us, we bank it, and then re-lend it. We can keep it going as long as we wish, as long as we’re following the USDA’s rules,” said Laura Getts, San Isabel Electric’s Business Development Manager.
Intermediaries, such as San Isabel Electric, may lend up to $1.5 million in total loans, and up to $300,000 in revolving loans.
“The Board of Directors carefully scrutinizes how much we are willing to lend, and who we’re willing to lend it to, to ensure that we don’t leave the co-operative on the hook for any bad debts,” said Getts.
For more information, please contact Laura Getts by emailing contactus@siea.com or by calling 800-279-SIEA (7432).
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As a not-for-profit cooperative utility, San Isabel Electric provides affordable, reliable electricity with exceptional service to communities throughout southern Colorado. Serving 20,000 member-owners and 24,000 meters, San Isabel Electric has been keeping the lights on since 1938. We don’t just serve communities. We are part of communities.
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