News

Mount Carmel Borough residents to see flood insurance savings

Posted on September 24, 2019December 30, 2019 by DNS Admin

Mount Carmel Borough has a much smaller floodplain and residents can expect to see significantly reduced flood insurance premiums as a result.

Mount Carmel Borough in partnership with SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) is holding a public meeting to educate residents and businesses on how they can reduce their flood insurance bills, including how to give this information to their banks and insurance companies so they can realize the savings.

The flood insurance savings meeting will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Oct. 15 at Mount Carmel Area High School, 600 W. Fifth St., Mount Carmel. There will be light refreshments.

If interested, attendees are to RSVP by Oct. 1 to SEDA-COG’s Liz Herman at eherman@seda-cog.org or 570-524-4491.

Teri Provost, director of SEDA-COG’s Flood Resiliency program, said these savings are significant on the individual and community levels.

“This is a tremendous change for the borough. Not only can homeowners realize significant savings on their flood insurance premiums, but these savings can translate into a revitalized community with more salable homes and more potential local investment,” Provost said.

This is possible because of the $14.5 million Shamokin Creek Flood Risk Management Project that SEDA-COG managed in 2016. The rebuilt channel protects 108 homes from flooding through a 15-block area of Shamokin Creek that runs through Mount Carmel Borough. Erosion and age had caused the stone retaining wall along the creek to crumble, and sediment build-up caused the creek bed to become shallow, blocking the flow of water and causing it to back up and flood the homes along the creek.

Elimination of the flood hazard involved construction of a concrete and earthen channel, along with an earthen levee, improvements to storm drainage and sanitary sewer systems, streambank stabilization, installation of new bridges at Walnut, Chestnut, Hickory, Pine and Vine streets, and reconstruction of Water and Turnpike streets.

Prior to this project, this area was in the floodplain. Now, the rebuilt channel mitigates that risk for the borough.

Because of this, a Letter of Map Revision (LOMR) will become effective Oct. 7 and will revise the National Flood Insurance Program map, officially removing much of the borough from the floodplain. Mount Carmel Borough funded the LOMR, investing about $30,000.

Glass House Inn has new ownership thanks to SEDA-COG financing

Posted on June 20, 2019December 30, 2019 by DNS Admin

ERIE – The Glass House Inn is under new ownership, thanks to a loan partnership with SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) and Northwest Bank.

Nigam Bhavsar bought the motel at 3202 W. 26St. from the prior third-generation owners with this financing. The inn had previously been updated including the carpeting, mattresses, and 32-inch TVs in each room, along with offering free Wi-Fi. The inn also has a well-maintained outdoor pool.

As a result of the project, two full-time jobs will be created.

The loans through SEDA-COG offered the low interest rates and long terms Bhavsar needed to make his business endeavor successful.

The $281,700 Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 loan offered a fixed 20-year low interest rate, and the $60,000 SEDA-COG TEAM loan also had the benefit of a fixed low interest rate.

Bhavsar said John Reichard, SEDA-COG senior relationship manager, was helpful throughout the process.

“Everyone at SEDA-COG was very responsive and professional when answering all my questions. John Reichard was very knowledgeable with the SBA 504 program and walked me through the details of the program,” Bhavsar said.

Northwest Bank partnered with SEDA-COG on the project with most of the financing.

Paul Kruszewski, Northwest Bank business banker, said the partnership made for a “winning solution” for the borrower.

“SEDA-COG was instrumental in providing a financing solution for Dattam Hospitality LLC (Nigam Bhavsar). By offering an attractive rate and borrower-friendly terms, Northwest and SEDA-COG provided a winning solution to our borrower,” Kruszewski said. “The staff at SEDA-COG was very timely and informative, allowing for an easy loan approval process. I look forward to partnering with John Reichard and SEDA-COG on future opportunities.”

For more information about the Glass House Inn, visit www.glasshouseinn.com.

To start a financing partnership with SEDA-COG, call 1-800-332-6701 and ask for the Business Finance department or email John Reichard at jreichard@seda-cog.org.

Northwest Bank is a full-service financial institution that offers a complete line of personal and business banking products, loans, investment management, trust and insurance services and employee benefits from 172 full-service locations across Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio. Northwest Bancshares Inc. is the holding company of Northwest Bank and is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market as NWBI. For more information, visit www.northwest.com.

SEDA-COG’s Business Finance Department serves the entire state of Pennsylvania for the SBA 504 program. For Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority (PIDA) and SEDA-COG loans, SEDA-COG serves 11 central Pennsylvania counties: Centre, Clinton, Columbia, Juniata, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Snyder, and Union.

Small business loan program hits record-low interest rate

Posted on June 17, 2019December 30, 2019 by DNS Admin

Good news for new or expanding businesses – a federal loan program’s interest rate is the lowest in the program’s history.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 loan program’s 20-year effective fixed rate for June is 3.98%, the first time it has fallen below 4%. Rates for other term options are also at or near recent lows. The rates have decreased for the past six months and have been below Prime for seven months. Rates are set monthly for loans that have closed the previous month.

SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) partners with banks to offer businesses statewide this long-term, fixed-rate financing that can be used to acquire fixed assets for expansion or modernization or to refinance existing real estate or equipment debt. SBA 504 loans can be as small as $100,000 up to $5 million (in some cases $5.5 million).

Benefits of SBA 504 loans:

Long-term, fixed-rate financing (10 years for equipment and 20 or 25 years for real estate)

Lower down-payment vs. conventional financing (as low as 10% for existing businesses)

Financing up to 40% of eligible costs (land and building purchase, building construction, building renovations, equipment, refinancing of real estate or equipment debt)

Loan is fully amortized (no balloon payment)

Reduces risk for the partnering lender

For-profit businesses with a net worth less than $15 million and net income less than $5 million may be eligible. For real estate financing, the business must occupy a majority of the space.

John Reichard, SEDA-COG senior relationship manager, said the SBA 504 loan program is a proven success and win-win-win for the small business, the community and participating lenders.

“Businesses tell us again and again how the SBA 504 low interest rates and long terms help with cash flow and empower them to expand when it otherwise might have been difficult,” Reichard said. “This in turn promotes economic development in our communities.”

SEDA-COG provides SBA 504 loans throughout the state of Pennsylvania. For more information, visit www.sedacogldc.org or call 570-524-4491 and ask for the Business Finance Department.

Center for Rural Pennsylvania Survey

Posted on June 12, 2019December 30, 2019 by DNS Admin

The Center for Rural Pennsylvania is currently sponsoring research, Broadband Availability and Access in Rural Pennsylvania, to analyze and assess broadband availability in Pennsylvania, and is asking Pennsylvania residents to participate in the research by taking the broadband speed test at http://broadbandtest.us. The test results will help Pennsylvania State University researchers, led by Professor Sascha Meinrath, to measure actual internet speeds. The test will also provide participants with information about their broadband connection. If you’d like to help the Center for Rural Pennsylvania and our research partners at Penn State University map broadband access in Pennsylvania, please visit http://broadbandtest.us/ and take the broadband speed test. Thanks for your help.