City of Fresno Announces Application Process for $830,000 Revolving Loan Fund to Help Small Businesses

The City of Fresno’s Economic Development Department announced today that it will begin accepting applications for a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) that will provide critical gap financing to small businesses and entrepreneurs adversely affected by the coronavirus pandemic in Fresno.  The City was awarded $830,000 in CARES Act Recovery Assistance funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) earlier this year.

“I am pleased with the progress the City is making on investing our CARES Act funds to provide much-needed relief to our residents and businesses,” said Fresno Mayor Lee Brand.  “We must continue to support our local business owners as they meet the financial challenges of this crisis and provide the assistance they need to stay open and remain active.”

The individual loans offered through this program range between $10,000 and $100,000 and are designed to be easier to qualify for than traditional loans.  Businesses located in the City of Fresno that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic are eligible to apply through the Cen Cal Business Finance Group, which is administering the RLF.

“The City of Fresno’s Economic Development Team is proud of the success we have had in assisting our small businesses throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic and we are excited to be able to offer even further support through this new Revolving Loan Fund Program,” said Economic Development Director Lupe Perez.  “It is my hope that this money will help businesses to grow and be successful as we all learn to adapt to a new way of doing business.”

Frank Gallegos, Executive Director of Cen Cal Business Finance Group, added,  “We at Cen Cal Business Finance are excited for the opportunity to support Fresno’s small business community with the new CARES Act RLF.  We have been assisting Fresno businesses for over 35 years and we look forward to getting this money out quickly.”

Contact Cen Cal Business Finance Group at (559) 227-1158 or intern@cencalfinance.com for more information.

EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance, which is being administered under the authority of the bureau’s flexible Economic Adjustment Assistance (EAA) (PDF) program, provides a wide-range of financial assistance to eligible communities and regions as they respond to and recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. For complete information, please visit our recently updated EDA CARES Act Recovery Assistance page.

About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation’s regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA makes investments in economically distressed communities in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation, and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.