City of Soledad receives $750,000 in community development funds to help small businesses

SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION-TV)- On Wednesday morning, the City of Soledad announced that they will be receiving $750,000 from the Community Development Block Grant Program.

The Community Development Block Grant Program is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

"Many times, this money isn't allocated to rural communities and this is what we battle with. So I'm really thankful that our legislators are really fighting for this money to really come to small communities like Soledad," said Anna Velazquez, Mayor of Soledad.

The grant award will go to small businesses in Soledad that are recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns.

"The city has never put those limitations on us. They've always given us the support, created opportunities for us to mingle with other businesses in the community," said Jennifer Gray, a small business owner in Soledad.

The award is part of the $30 million in Federal Funds for the 2022 Community Development Block
Grant (CDBG) program.

City officials said the funding will be used to provide affordable non-conventional financing to eligible businesses and development projects.

"So this is a loan directly with the city of Soledad. And the reason it's so important and crucial for our local business community is because it's going to be at a much lower rate right now knowing that what interest rates are doing, you're actually borrowing at maybe 7 to 11%. Where if you go with the city and you apply and you qualify, we're lending out at 1 to 3%," said Tarcia Vargas, an Economic Development Coordinator.

The Community and Economic Development staff are working on the criteria and process for
local businesses to apply. For more information click here.