Rural Economic Development Grant Program

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loans will assist the Audubon County Memorial Hospital in constructing two physician clinics. One clinic will be located at the hospital in Audubon and the second clinic will be constructed on property owned by the hospital in the community of Exira. Both clinics are located in Audubon County. The new clinics are essential to the retention of the physicians that will occupy the clinics as well as the 12 FTE's they employ. The clinics will play a role in maintaining and increasing the patient base at the Audubon County Memorial Hospital. The total cost of the project is approximately $431,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the City of Bellevue in Jackson County in constructing a 3,920 square foot addition to the city's existing fire station. The city has outgrown its existing structure that was built to house 6 fire trucks. The fire department currently has 10 trucks resulting in some of the vehicles being housed at other locations. The proposed addition will double the size of the existing structure. The fire station, operated by 40 volunteers, houses both the Bellevue Fire Department as well as the Rural Fire Agency. The Bellevue Fire Department serves the City of Bellevue while the Rural Fire Agency serves the rural townships of Bellevue, Richland, Tete Des Mortes, and St. Donatus. The total cost of the addition is estimated at $135,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the City of Oberlin, Decatur County, in financing the purchase of a fire truck. The city's volunteer fire department serves 2,197 residents of Oberlin and is composed of 10 volunteer fire fighters. The city has 2 pumper trucks, one of which is 40 years old and beyond its useful life. In order to comply with guidelines issued by the National Fire Protection Agency, a new truck must be purchased. The cost of the new fire truck is $190,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the City of Perham, Ottertail County, in creating the Perham Area Emergency Services Center. A 13,500 square foot addition will be added to the city's fire hall. The expanded facility will bring the Perham Area Fire Department, the Perham Area Emergency Medical Services Association, and the Perham Police Department under one roof. A joint location will allow the three services to share support staff, radio and telecommunications equipment, office equipment, emergency generators and similar services and equipment. The joint location will enable the three public safety and emergency response departments to provide their services in a more cost effective manner. Total cost of the project is estimated to be $813,560.

The grant will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. A zero-interest loan of $260,600 will be made to Phelps County Regional Medical Center Health Ventures, Inc., to finance the construction of a medical clinic and associated telemedicine equipment in the community of Licking in Texas County. The facility will include long distance diagnosis and teleradiology capabilities by virtue of being part of the Missouri Telemedicine Network and will be staffed by 5 trained professionals. Total cost of the Licking clinic is $347,000. In addition, a zero-interest loan of $69,400 will be made to the Salem Memorial Hospital to assist in financing a 3,000 square foot addition to its existing hospital facility in Salem, Dent County. This addition will increase the size of the patient activity area and nurses station, and improve the efficient flow of traffic through the hospital. Total cost of the addition is $120,443.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the Town of Mocksville, Davie County, in constructing a 250,000-gallon water storage tank in the South Point Business Park to serve three new industrial parks within a one-half mile radius of the tank. Each of the three industrial parks targeted for service is experiencing new or proposed construction. In the South Point Business Park, a developer recently completed construction of an 86,400 square foot speculative building. In the Mocksville Industrial Park, a 54,000 square foot warehousing and manufacturing facility for Carolina Container was recently completed, and the Meroney Industrial Park is the proposed site for a new 45,000 square foot manufacturing facility for Precision Concepts, Inc. The water storage tank would also serve other businesses and industries located or potentially locating within this traffic corridor. Estimated cost of the tank is $465,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist Choanoke Area Development Association, Inc. (CADA), a community based, nonprofit organization, in constructing a building to house its operations. CADA serves the four-county region of Bertie, Halifax, Hertford, and Northampton, the most economically distressed area of North Carolina. CADA provides a wide array of services fostering individual, family, and community development. A major focus of the agency is to conduct strategies that encourage families to achieve self-sufficiency and move away from the need for public assistance. CADA currently has approximately 140 employees working in several mobile units on a site near Rich Square, Northampton County, North Carolina. Loan funds will be used to finance the construction of an 11,312 square foot building to house all the divisions of CADA and upgrade the office computer network equipment. Approximately 15 to 20 new high skill job positions will be created as a result of the project. Estimated cost of the project is $839,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the Public Works Commission (PWC) of the City of Fayetteville in extending water lines to an unincorporated area near Hope Mills in Cumberland County. This is part of an overall development project that includes the extension of water and sewer to a new commercial area located at the intersection of I-95/NC 59. Hope Mills has experienced stagnant growth due to its lack of physical infrastructure to support commercial and industrial development. Cumberland County has targeted areas of prime development and is placing priority on the installation of backbone infrastructure to spur economic development. The proposed cost of the overall project is $7.5 million.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the St. Andrew's Health Center in expanding its existing facility in the City of Bottineau, Bottineau County, North Dakota. A garage and conference room, attached to the existing medical center, will be remodeled into a new clinic and pharmacy facility. A new ambulance garage will also be constructed. St. Andrew's consists of a 35-bed hospital, a 32-bed nursing home, and 27 assisted living apartments and employs approximately 100 people. Two physicians and five support personnel will be hired within the first year as a result of the proposed expansion with two additional physicians and two additional support staff being added by the end of year two. Bottineau County is currently classified as a Medically Underserved Area, which is a designation for an area that does not have enough physicians and/or other health care professionals available to care for the medical needs of the area. The total cost of the expansion is estimated to be $441,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the Rosebud Sioux Tribe in financing the construction of a fully licensed 24-bed assisted living facility in White River, Mellette County, South Dakota. The facility will be attached to the White River Nursing Home and all medical services available at the nursing home will be available at the assisted living facility. The new facility, estimated to cost $836,000, will create 4 new job opportunities.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist the Industrial Development Board of McMinnville, Warren County, Tennessee, in constructing 45,000 square foot speculative building. The building will be located on a 5-acre tract of land in the Mountain View Industrial Park and will be used by Warren County in attracting quality employers into the county. Total cost for site preparation, construction, paving, and landscaping is estimated to be $528,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loans will assist five school systems in making computer facility enhancements, curriculum improvements, and basic physical plant improvements to their school facilities. The school systems serve the four rural counties of Bledsoe, Grundy, Marion, and Sequatchie. Each county school system will receive a $75,000 zero-interest loan to utilize for its individual projects. The Richard City Independent School, located within Marion County, will receive a $30,000 zero-interest loan for upgrading and expanding its computer network and other renovation projects. Total cost of the school projects is $396,000.

Grant funds will be used to establish a revolving loan fund program. The initial loan will assist Black River Industries (BRI), a non-profit organization, in financing the construction of a new 30,000 square foot adult vocational rehabilitation center in Medford, Taylor County, Wisconsin. BRI is an affirmative industry that provides vocational and employment training to people with physical, developmental, and chronic psychiatric disabilities. Through BRI's employment program, jobs are developed that match a person's skills and interests. Job coaching is provided to train the person and long term follow-up is done to ensure the person's success on the job. During the next two years, BRI anticipates creating 10 new jobs for people with disabilities and 4 new employment opportunities for fully competitive employees. The total cost of the building project is estimated to be $900,000.

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