The Agency creates local loan pool for Broome County small businesses

DICKINSON — Broome County small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic can pursue loans from the NY Forward Loan Fund (NYFLF) through a partnership between the Agency and the National Development Council (NDC). 

The Agency is the rebranded name of the Broome County Industrial Development Agency and Local Development Corporation. The New York City–based NDC is a nationwide community development finance institution (CDFI). 

The Agency will invest $100,000 in existing loan funds to create a local loan pool to assist area businesses.

The NYFLF is a new $100 million economic-recovery loan program that Empire State Development established. It seeks to support New York small businesses, nonprofits, and small landlords as they reopen after the COVID-19 outbreak and the state’s shutdown.

The program is intended to assist businesses with 20 or fewer full-time employees, nonprofits, and small landlords that “have seen a loss in rental income.”

Loans will provide working capital in an effort to “open up more access to credit” for entities that did not receive a loan from either the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or the SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) in 2020, the Agency said. 

The loans are “not forgivable” and will need to be paid back over a five-year term with interest. Loans are on a “first-come, first served” basis and will be reviewed on a rolling basis as regions and industries are reopened.

Industries and regions that have reopened will be given priority, but those industries that have not are encouraged to complete a pre-application. Priority borrowers include African-American, Hispanic, and/or woman-owned businesses, and nonprofits, along with businesses located in “economically distressed neighborhoods.” 

“As we move into the recovery phase, loan programs like this will be critical for businesses to get their doors open,” Daniel Marsh, president of NDC, said in a statement. “Small businesses need low-interest working capital, which is often in short supply under the best of circumstances — especially for women- and minority-owned businesses. This loan program needs to be replicated all over the country.” 

The partnership

NDC is one of the five CDFIs selected to process pre-applications through a community partner at-risk grant. NDC anticipates lending about $15 million to $20 million in funds as part of the NYFLF program.

NDC is the only national nonprofit CDFI that is also a “preferred” SBA lender with more than 25 years of experience lending capital and expertise to small businesses across the country, the Agency noted. 

The Agency will commit $100,000 of funds from its business development fund to NDC for purposes of lending to businesses located in Broome County. 

This investment will leverage a total loan pool of up to $2 million in funds for Broome County businesses.

“The process of recovering from COVID-19 will be slow and will require as much financial resources as possible,” said Stacey Duncan, executive director of The Agency and president and CEO of the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce, said. “Our investment to the NY Forward Loan program, in partnership with NDC, will enable us to support those businesses and organizations that our traditional financing cannot. We need to apply every tool toward recovery.” 

The NYFLF is supported by Apple Bank and BNB Bank, which are both headquartered on Long Island; BlackRock Charitable Fund; Citi Foundation; Evans Bank, which is headquartered near Buffalo; New York City–based Ford Foundation; Buffalo–based M&T Bank; New York City–based Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS); Detroit, Michigan–based Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation; and San Francisco, California–based Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC).