Business and Entrepreneurial Development

“Business as usual” in rural areas takes work and a lot of ingenuity, as illustrated by these projects. It means finding ways to help entrepreneurs and businesses plan, implement and prosper.

The Volunteer Tax and Loan Program (VTLP) was developed by the Alaska Division of Investments and Alaska Business Development Center of the Alaska Department of Commerce and Economic Development and partners to offer tax preparation assistance to rural residents and businesses. With the help of volunteer accounting students from the University of Alaska and accounting professionals, VTLP provides free tax preparation and small business consulting. In 2001, the program assisted 33 communities’ residents and businesses with returns that equaled over one million dollars, expanding each communities spending power and promoting sustainability. Co-sponsors include tribal councils, local government, local airlines and community organizations that have donated person-hours, travel services and general operations assistance.

Responding to a decline in fishing industry tax revenues and cuts in state revenue sharing programs, the Lake and Peninsula Borough on the Naknek River in Alaska developed the Innovative Fiscal Applications Program. The program funds revenue gaps with permanent funds, allowing the local government assembly the extra time needed to make rational budget decisions. The borough also has developed a school endowment fund, an investment policy and permanent fund. The cost of implementation has been minimal, consisting of the hours provided by the Borough Finance Officer.

With the goal of obtaining accurate economic statistics/data and providing a quick reference resource, the northern California Sierra Economic Development District administered its fourth annual Nevada County Economic and Fiscal Indicator Review Report 2001. The report contains detailed information on community demographics, population and growth. The report gives local government officials information needed for decision-making and enables them to better respond to community needs. The report is also useful to businesses considering the county as a business location and is posted on the district’s website at www.sedd.org, making it accessible to the general public.

The Credit Relationship with Community Reinvestment Fund’s long-term goal is to be a fully self-sustainable resource for regional business development. Created by the IDA-ORE Planning and Development Association, Inc.’s 1999 agreement with the Community Reinvestment Fund, IDA-ORE purchased two million dollars worth of loans with an override on interest, allowing IDA-ORE to make loans to community applicants and earn unrestricted funds from the interest paid. The current loans totaling approximately $814,000 have generated over $8,000 in unrestricted funds from customer fees. More importantly, they have created over 43 jobs in the region.

Purchase Area Development District in southwest Kentucky has embarked on the development of a Purchase Area Regional Industrial Park to maintain employment opportunities in their region. The planning effort brought together local governments, economic developers, and state and federal agencies for the redevelopment of a local Department of Energy facility. The industrial park will cover 1,000 acres of the eight-county region. Department of Energy and state funds will be matched locally.

Using a technology-based approach with follow-up outreach has proven to be the key to success for Northern Maine Development Commission’s Micro-Enterprise Initiative for Northern Maine project. The program, designed to encourage rural micro-enterprise growth and increase the survival rate of start-up businesses, offers nine courses on business operations practices, such as electronic bookkeeping, e-commerce development and business database expansion. The courses are given in three locations for the convenience of rural attendees and presented in conjunction with the commission’s small business development center.

The Regional Cluster Based Job Skills Analysis Project by Southern Tier Central Regional Planning and Development Board tested an evaluation and job skills monitoring process in selected industry clusters to obtain primary data on skills used by the employees. The project included the development of a survey to assess frequency and complexity of skills. A qualitative profile of 24 firms and 114 employees was developed through interviewing and data review. The skills assessed indicated the training level needed; and the assessment of “soft skills,” such as communication and basic problem solving, indicated frequent usage was vital to continued employment. The results have been incorporated into regional workforce development projects. Participating firms will use the data in their human resources departments. Funding for the project came from the state development corporation.

The Northeast Oregon Economic Development District established Enterprise Facilitation to increase community capacity by promoting local entrepreneurship and assisting individual start-ups, business improvement and expansion planning. Serving two counties, the program draws on the expertise of a volunteer local board and facilitator to help each entrepreneur build a support team with the strengths to cover business development areas, such as marketing and financial management. The program has served 264 entrepreneurs, 15 start-ups and 11 business expansions with job creation. Funding sources include Economic Development Administration and US Department of Agriculture grants, and various state and private organizations.

The need to make the public aware of loan funds available for entrepreneurs prompted the South Carolina Appalachian Council of Governments (COG) to develop the Entrepreneurial Support Informing the Public What’s Available project. The COG established a multifaceted marketing plan and conducts workshops in cooperation with the local small business development center. To promote referrals, meetings are hosted for bankers and local economic developers to learn about loan funds. A website was developed for promotion and to offer easy access to loan fund applications. The program has helped the COG revolving loan fund grow to over $5,000,000 with 55 borrowers.

Developing Naturally guide

Innovative partnerships nationally and internationally have made it possible for the Strom Thurmond Institute of Government and Public Affairs at Clemson University to conduct workshops for individuals desiring to start small businesses, in conjunction with the institute’s Developing Naturally: Enhancing Communities program. The program offers workshops and provides online field-tested educational planning manuals and guides emphasizing grassroots economic development, social development and ecological sustainability. Current resources are available in English, Chinese, Spanish, Slovak and Polish. Over 24,000 Internet requests for materials have been answered and partnerships with nongovernmental organizations and universities have been established in Slovakia, Nicaragua and the Ukraine.

Motivated by a high rate of start-up business failures and an increase in financial institutions’ small business loan denials, the Upper Cumberland Development District developed SUCCESS - Starting Upper Cumberland Counties Entrepreneurial Success Stories. The program offers a series of workshops, presented in four locations, followed by a series of networking opportunities. The workshops emphasize risk evaluation/prediction and implementing risk management plans and address issues such as the legal aspects of marketing. Referrals to professional consultants experienced in specific business areas aid businesses through difficult times.

The Deep East Texas Council of Governments created the Database for Assisting Businesses with a licensed copy of the 12-county region’s comprehensive business entity listing. The database is available to the region’s economic development professionals and provides an accurate picture of current business development. The database and corresponding website contain more than 14,000 business listings with querying capabilities in 40 different business categories. It has proved to be a valuable tool for elected officials in decision-making and pinpointing areas in which the potential for economic growth is greatest.

The Wisconsin Rural Enterprise Fund was formed through partnerships with rural cooperatives, local economic development organizations and financial institutions and is managed by the Northwest Regional Planning Commission Wisconsin Business Innovation Corporation. This community-based fund invests primarily in science-based agriculture and high-tech wood products companies. Initial capitalization is in excess of $1,000,000 and is expected to increase to $2,000,000 within two years. To date, $450,000 has been invested in three companies, leveraging $1,300,000 of outside financing. This activity has fostered new markets, higher wage jobs and economic diversification throughout rural Wisconsin where there is typically a lack of venture capital.

The Project Financial - Payment-in-Kind program in Wyoming was created by the Casper Area Economic Development Alliance, Inc. to increase business relocations, retention and expansion. It works with large companies to identify the economic development value of the company’s presence in the region and helps companies solve financing issues. The program identifies how project values affect a company’s cash flows and what the community impact will be if the company moves, relocates or expands in the region. Casper Area’s work recently helped one company solve project-financing difficulties and enabled them to remain in the region, retaining hundreds of jobs.l

Award Winners Volunteer Tax and Loan Program, Alaska Department of Commerce and Economic Development. Contact: Greg Winegar, PO Box 34159, Juneau, AK 99803; (907) 465-2510; fax (907) 465-2690; email Greg_Winegar@dced.state.ak.us; web www.dced.state.ak.us/ investments Innovative Fiscal Applications, Lake and Peninsula Borough Economic Development. Contact: Walt Wrede, PO Box 495, King Salmon, AK 99613; (907) 246-3421; fax (907) 246-6602; email lpboro@bristolbay.com Nevada County Economic & Fiscal Indicator Review Report 2001: Measuring the Economic Health of Nevada County, Sierra EDD. Contact: Betty Riley, 560 Wall St., Suite F, Auburn, CA 95603; (530) 823-4703; fax (530) 823-4142; email betty@sedd.org; web www.sedd.org Credit Relationship with Community Reinvestment Fund, IDA-ORE Planning and Development Association, Inc. Contact: Bob Richards, 10624 W. Executive Dr., Boise, ID 83713; (208) 322-7033; fax (208) 322-3569; email brichards@ida-ore.com; web www.ida-ore.com Purchase Area Regional Industrial Park, Purchase ADD. Contact: Henry Hodges, PO Box 588, Mayfield, KY 42066; (270) 251-6122; fax (270) 251-6110; email henry.hodges@ mail.state.ky.us; web www.purchaseadd.org Micro-Enterprise Initiative for Northern Maine, Northern Maine Development Commission. Contact: Rodney Thompson, PO Box 779, Caribou, ME 04736; (207) 498-8736; fax (207) 493-3108; email rthompson@nmdc.org; web www.nmdc.org Regional Cluster Based Job Skills Analysis Project, Southern Tier Central RPDB. Contact: Steve Dennis, 145 Village Dr., Painted Post, NY 14870; (607) 962-5092; fax (607) 962-3400; email sdennis@stny.rr.com;

web www.stcrpdb.dst.ny.us Enterprise Facilitation in Baker and Wallowa Counties, Northeast Oregon EDD. Contact: Lisa Lang, 101 NE First, Suite 100, Enterprise, OR 97828; (541) 426-3598; fax (541) 426-9058; email neoedd@uwtc.net Entrepreneurial Support Informing the Public What’s Available, SC Appalachian COG. Contact: David L. Mueller, PO Drawer 6668, Greenville, SC 29606; (864) 242-9733; fax (864) 242-6957; email Mueller@scacog.org; web www.scacog.org/rlf Developing Naturally: Enhancing Communities, Strom Thurmond Institute of Government and Public Affairs, Clemson University. Contact: Dr. Tom Potts, Perimeter Rd., Clemson, SC 29634-0125; (864) 656-0372; fax (864) 656-4780; email tpotts@clemson.edu; web www.developingnaturally.com SUCCESS - Starting Upper Cumberland Counties Entrepreneurial Success Stories, Upper Cumberland Development District. Contact: Wendy Askins, 1225 S. Willow Ave., Cookeville, TN 38506; (931) 432-4111; fax (931) 432-6010; email waskins@ucdd.org; web www.ucdd.org Database for Assisting Businesses, Deep East Texas COG. Contact: Walter Diggles, 274 E. Lamar, Jasper, TX 75951; (409) 384-5704; fax (409) 384-5390; email wdiggles@detcog.org; web www.detcog.org Wisconsin Rural Enterprise Fund, Northwest RPC Wisconsin Business Innovation Corp. Contact: Mark Mueller, 1400 S. River St., Spooner, WI 54801; (715) 635-2197; fax (715) 635-7262; email nwrpc@centurytel.net; web www.nwrpc.com Project Financial - Payment-in-Kind, Casper Area Economic Development Alliance, Inc. Contact: George Howley, 300 S. Wolcott, Suite 300, Casper, WY 82601; (307) 577-7011; fax (307) 577-7014; web www.caeda.com

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