Eastern Iowa Council of Governments
By Tracy DeKoter, Economic Development Coordinator, ECICOG
The East Central Iowa Council of Governments is a public agency that provides planning and technical assistance to city and county governments in Benton, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington Counties. ECICOG provides services in housing, solid waste, transportation, and community development. The agency was established in 1973 under Chapter 28E and provided for under Chapter 28H of the Code of Iowa, and is governed by a Board of Directors comprised of elected officials and private citizens.
I was hired on at ECICOG in October 2008 as a Disaster Recovery Coordinator. I have since moved into the Community Development Department, where I administer programs promoting long-term community and economic development. During my first several months I successfully administered the original Jumpstart Business Program implemented by the State of Iowa shortly after the Floods of 2008. Through that program, ECICOG awarded just over $3 million to approximately 80 businesses throughout the region in the form of forgivable loans.
I am currently administering funds for the Business Rental Assistance Program. The program will provide financial assistance to eligible businesses located in or planning to locate in a business rental space that was physically damaged by the 2008 natural disasters. Assistance will be in the form of rental assistance to help offset building rental lease payments for a maximum of six months, not to exceed a total award amount of $50,000. Unfortunately, in-home businesses are not eligible for funds through this program.
Also, in response to the Natural Disasters of 2008, along with the current credit crisis, I am accepting applications for the ECICOG Business Assistance Revolving Loan Fund (RLF). The RLF is initially offered as a partnership between ECICOG, the Washington County Riverboat Foundation, and the Economic Development Administration (EDA). The EDA, a division of the U.S. Department of Commerce, has granted $1.5 million to ECICOG to establish the fund. To assist in meeting EDA matching requirements, ECICOG received a generous grant of $85,000 from the Washington County Riverboat Foundation.
RLF funds are available to all qualifying for-profit businesses in the six-county ECICOG region, and will offer below market interest rates and fixed terms. Initially, a significant portion of assistance provided through the RLF will be for the benefit of businesses and business sectors adversely impacted by the Natural Disasters of 2008. As the region's redevelopment progresses, the RLF will have the opportunity to assist in promoting various economic sectors.
The RLF will make loans to businesses at a rate no less than 4%. Other terms may vary, depending on the purpose of the loan, which may include working capital, purchase of machinery and equipment, and/or purchase of real property. To date, the RLF has assisted seven businesses throughout the region, and continues to be a very successful program.
For additional information regarding the Business Rental Assistance Program, Revolving Loan Fund, or to complete an application, contact Tracy at (319) 365-9941 ext. 130 or email tracy.dekoter@ecicog.org. Information on other ECICOG programs is available at www.ecicog.org.
