CEI awarded $800,000 grant to support revolving loan for Maine's rural counties
Coastal Enterprises Inc. has been awarded $800,000 in federal funding to support a revolving loan fund for businesses in Maine’s seven so-called rim counties.
The Brunswick-based development organization plans to use funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for businesses expansion and workforce technical assistance in two industries: value-added wood products and nature-based tourism businesses.
The organization said in a release that the counties for which the funds will be directed — Oxford, Franklin, Somerset, Piscataquis, Penobscot, Aroostook and Washington counties — continue to experience economic distress. The poverty rate for the seven-county area is 17.1%, compared to 13.6% for the state and 15.4% for the nation, and the unemployment rate for the region is significantly higher than that of the remainder of the state, according to CEI.
To qualify for loans from this fund, businesses will need to be creating full-time jobs with a majority targeted to low-income employees at an average cost of $20,000 per job created. The organization also intends to dedicate a limited amount of funding for job-specific training resources to support workers entering new jobs.
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