Press Release

U.S. Department of Commerce Invests $800,000 to Make Critical Infrastructure Improvements Needed to Support Business Expansion in Oklahoma Opportunity Zone

WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding an $800,000 grant to the Garfield County Industrial Authority, Enid, Oklahoma, to support business expansion plans by improving the Garfield County Industrial Park. The EDA grant, to be located in a Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Opportunity Zone, will be matched with $225,394 in local funds and is expected to create 30 jobs.

“Supporting our communities as they work to provide vital infrastructure for businesses is a top priority for President Trump,” said Dana Gartzke, Performing the Delegated Duties of the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. “This investment will fund construction of new water, wastewater, and road infrastructure to serve businesses that are looking to expand at the Garfield Industrial Park. The project’s location in an Opportunity Zone will attract new private investment to north-central Oklahoma.”

The funding announced today will serve one of Oklahoma 117 Opportunity Zones. Created by President Donald J. Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, Opportunity Zones are spurring economic development in economically-distressed communities nationwide. In June 2019, EDA added Opportunity Zones as an Investment Priority, which increases the number of catalytic Opportunity Zone-related projects that EDA can fund to fuel greater public investment in these areas. To learn more about the Commerce Department’s work in Opportunity Zones, please visit EDA’s Opportunity Zones webpage. To learn more about the Opportunity Zone program, see the Opportunity Now resources page here.

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.