May 17 - 21, 2021

EDA announced 18 investments from May 17-21, 2021, totaling $22,787,653, which is matched by $37,734,396 in local investments. These investments include the following: (1) $16,853,355 in 12 Economic Adjustment Assistance-COVID-19 Recovery and Resiliency Projects to help alleviate sudden and severe economic dislocation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which includes four projects totaling $8,760,000 that will help create 945 jobs, save 365 jobs, and leverage $36,040,000 in private investments; (2) $5,864,298 in five Public Works projects to help communities revitalize, expand, and upgrade their physical infrastructure that will help create 1,303 jobs, save 85 jobs, and leverage $713,000,000 in private investments; and (3) $70,000 in one Partnership Planning project to support the development and implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy process.

• $16,853,355 in 12 Economic Adjustment Assistance-COVID-19 Recovery and Resiliency Projects, matched by $32,901,097 in local investments, as follows:
  • 4,000,000, matched by $6,000,000 in local investment, to the Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio/Bexar County, Texas, to support the Texas Biomedical Research Institute with expanding the Non-Human Primate Animal Facility (NHP-ALFA) to assist with the ongoing development of therapeutics and vaccines for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and other viruses/diseases in Bexar County, Texas. The project will consist of a 45,000 sq ft facility that will keep 800 rhesus macaques at full capacity and will include state-of-the-art, uniquely designed safe care housing for them. Once completed, the project will assist the region with recovery efforts from the COVID-19 pandemic, create and retain jobs, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 176 jobs, save 350 jobs, and leverage $4,000,000 in private investment.
  • $2,847,035, with no local match, to the Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet, Frankfort/Franklin County, Kentucky, to support the Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet with establishing a marketing campaign designed to highlight each of the nine tourism regions in Kentucky, including nearby Opportunity Zones. The campaign will focus on safety and other measures the State is implementing to slow the spread of COVID-19 and make traveling safe. Once implemented, the project will support continued economic growth, job creation, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
  • $2,700,000, matched by $813,068 in local investment, to the University of Hawaii, Honolulu/Honolulu County, Hawaii, to support the University of Hawaii with expanding its Innovation Impact Challenge (IIC) Initiative, to include an IIC Technology Development Program and an IIC Workforce Development Program. Once implemented, the new programs will focus on further developing and implementing (1) a leveraged and strategic commercialization and workforce development pipeline based on Hawaii innovations developed through targeted and deliberate multi-disciplinary collaborations; (2) programs to provide training for current high-quality jobs and future jobs created by a new diversified economy and (3) programs to support local small business, including the development of a pipeline to the global market for locally developed products. The project will help businesses respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by providing opportunities to re-skill, up-skill and cross-skill Hawaii's workforce, and supporting the creation of new small businesses throughout the state.
  • $2,500,000, matched by $1,500,000 in local investment, to the Healthcare Authority of Winfield and the City of Winfield, Winfield/Marion County, Alabama, to support the Healthcare Authority of Winfield with renovating the Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Department at the Northwest Medical Center in Marion County, Alabama. This project will provide much needed safety measures and increased protection of both hospital staff and the public from infectious diseases such as COVID-19. Once completed, the project will support job creation, attract private investment, and increase economic resiliency to an area that has been impacted by the decline in the coal industry. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create nine jobs and leverage $1,990,000 in private investment.
  • $2,000,000, matched by $23,958,261 in local investment, to the City of Pharr, Pharr/Hidalgo County, Texas, to support the City of Pharr with building the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, School of Nursing in Hidalgo County, Texas, a designated Opportunity Zone. The infrastructure improvements will consist of construction of a state-of-the-art facility giving the students a competitive edge to be recruited by every local hospital in the region. Once completed, the project will assist the region with recovery efforts from the COVID-19 pandemic, support the health care industry, bolster job creation, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 750 jobs and leverage $30,000,000 in private investment.
  • $1,000,000, matched by $250,000 in local investment, to the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, Berea/Madison County, Kentucky, to support the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development with establishing the Beyond COVID-19: Recovery and Resilience for Eastern Kentucky’s Small Businesses and Nonprofits initiative to provide business support in 54 counties in Eastern Kentucky. The project will provide access to coaching and technical assistance, promote access to capital, assist in navigating government and private sources of assistance, train emerging and existing entrepreneurs, and assist with energy audits that will help businesses reduce costs, improve necessary cash flow and increase profits. In addition, the project will enable the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development to leverage its strong business support services and lending capacity to advance and expand on early adaptations made in response to COVID-19, which will help bolster job creation, spur private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
  • $478,000, matched by $119,563 in local investment, to the Columbiana County Port Authority, Lisbon/Columbiana County, Ohio, to support the Columbiana County Port Authority with launching its Economic Recovery Specialist Program. The region’s economy was devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in waves of layoffs and dislocated workers throughout Columbiana County. As a result, local leaders and the Authority determined that dedicated economic recovery support staff are necessary for the region’s recovery from the pandemic. The recovery coordinators will conduct business retention efforts to ensure local businesses have the resources necessary to recover and will analyze workforce development priorities, facilitate Opportunity Zone awareness among the local business community, and cultivate a supportive entrepreneurship infrastructure throughout the County.
  • $450,000, with no local match, to the Birmingham Business Alliance Foundation, the Shelby County Commission, and the Jefferson County Commission, Birmingham/Jefferson County, Alabama, to support the development of a region-wide healthcare market intelligence study, strategy, and implementation plan in response to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in Birmingham, Alabama. The study will identify key assets in the healthcare cluster as well as areas of strength, weakness, redundancy, and absence within the existing supply chain network. It will seek to identify opportunities for existing businesses to grow capacity to meet supply chain needs, and to identify opportunities for economic developers and communities to attract or grow businesses to meet supply chain needs in pursuit of greater efficiency and independence. Once completed, the plan will help spur economic development and diversification in the city for years to come and provide industry leaders, investors, and other partners with market research and recommendations to help the city recover from the pandemic and increase resiliency for future disruptions.
  • $300,000, matched by $100,000 in local investment, to the County of Cheshire and the Greater Keene Chamber of Commerce, Keene/Cheshire County, New Hampshire, to supports the creation of a professional brand, along with professionally developed marketing messages, to promote the Monadnock region to people and businesses outside of the region to facilitate economic growth. The Monadnock Region COVID-19 Recovery Campaign goal is to facilitate COVID-19 pandemic recovery and resilience by improving long-term economic prospects. Once implemented, the project will support continued economic growth, job creation, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
  • $260,000, matched by $65,000 in local investment, to the Montana Cooperative Development Center, Great Falls/Cascade County, Montana, to support the Montana Cooperative Development Center with addressing the need for economic recovery and resiliency from the COVID-19 pandemic by focusing on innovative cooperative tools and capacity development across the state of Montana. The project will provide pathways to broadband adoption, templates, and research to support business cooperatives involving employees and/or multiple owners, and a feasibility study and pilot programs to increase the use of investment cooperatives in Montana opportunity zones. In addition, the project will serve as a model for expanding the resource network to all regions of the state, which will assist the region with recovery efforts from the COVID-19 pandemic, support entrepreneurism, spur jobs creation, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 10 jobs, save 15 jobs, and leverage $50,000 in private investment.
  • $187,500, matched by $62,500 in local investment, to the City of Vacaville, Vacaville/Solano County, California, to support the City of Vacaville with hiring a consultant to prepare a master plan for the development of a citywide broadband network. The project will help the region with recovery efforts from the COVID-19 pandemic by establishing the critical fiber network infrastructure to allow for long-lasting economic resiliency. The City has been hit hard by COVID-19 shelter-in-place requirements as the major employers in the community are in the retail, restaurant, and hospitality sectors. The project will help attract and expand manufacturing and bio-pharma businesses, which will diversify the local economy to combat unemployment in the face of future disasters and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
  • $130,820, matched by $32,705 in local investment, to the Marin Economic Forum, San Rafael/Marin County, California, to support the creation of an economic recovery and resiliency strategy to allow Marin County to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the business sector and residential employment and develop an “economic vision” that can diversify the economy in the future. Once implemented, the strategy will support job retention through retraining and reskilling residents to perform new tasks demanded in a post-coronavirus workplace, business retention by helping employers with the ability to adapt and retain revenues and employees, especially in the middle and high-skill occupations, and new job creation and investment by diversifying the economy from majority of locally-serving businesses to new economy companies to locate in the county.
• $5,864,298 in five Public Works projects, matched by $4,833,299 in local investments, as follows:
  • $2,000,000, matched by $2,214,000 in local investment, to the Greer Commission of Public Works, Greer/Greenville County, South Carolina, to support the Greer Commission of Public Works with constructing a new pump station to provide a more reliable sewer service system in Greenville County, South Carolina, a designated Opportunity Zone. The project will support the expansion of a local manufacturing business and accommodate the future growth that will help strengthen the region’s automotive sector. Once completed, the project will bolster job creation, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 600 jobs and leverage $600,000,000 in private investment.
  • $1,474,298, matched by $1,474,299 in local investment to the City of Waynesboro, Waynesboro/Burke County, Georgia, to support the City of Waynesboro with constructing a water well and water treatment facility that will serve a new diary processing and packaging plant at the Waynesboro-Burke County Industrial Park, located in a designated Opportunity Zone in Georgia. Once completed, the project will advance the region’s manufacturing industry, create jobs, spur private investment, and strengthen the regional economy. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 200 jobs and leverage $60,000,000 in private investment.
  • $1,140,000, matched by $360,000 in local investment, to the Town of Centerville, Centerville/Hickman County, Tennessee, to support the Town of Centerville with the rehabilitation of a sewer system in the Defeated Creek Drainage Basin. This project will help to develop new jobs and economic opportunities for the community and the region, and it will also support the future expansion of existing companies and the recruitment of new industries throughout Centerville, Tennessee. Once completed, the project will create jobs, spur private investment, and strengthen the regional economy. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 250 jobs, save 85 jobs, and leverage $10,000,000 in private investment.
  • $630,000, matched by $630,000 in local investment, to the Town of Jonesborough and Washington County, Jonesborough/Washington County, Tennessee, to fund the construction of water and wastewater improvements to accommodate the development of a new manufacturing industry at the Washington County Industrial Park in Tennessee. In addition, the project will provide capacity for future industrial development currently being marketed in the Town of Jonesborough. Once completed, the project will allow for expansion and growth of the regional manufacturing industry and enhance workforce development opportunities, which will bolster job creation, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantees estimate that this investment will help create 179 jobs and leverage $37,000,000 in private investment.
  • $620,000, matched by $155,000 in local investment, to the City of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz/Santa Cruz County, California, to support the construction of a new two-story retail and restaurant building to be located on the Municipal Wharf in Santa Cruz, California, a designated Opportunity Zone. The project will support the expansion of local retailers, restaurants, recreation operators, and research and conservation institutions, which will help bolster job creation, attract private investment, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region. The grantee estimates that this investment will help create 75 jobs and leverage $6,000,000 in private investment.
• $70,000 in one Partnership Planning project, with no local match, to support the development and implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) process. The CEDS process is designed to bring together the public and private sectors in the creation of an economic development roadmap to diversify and strengthen the regional economy.