Community Ventures has $862,000 for business microloans

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) awarded Microloan Program grant funding to Lexington-based, non-profit Community Ventures (CV) to enable the organization to provide technical assistance and microloans to support the launch or expansion of 160 small businesses in 96 tristate counties.

Qualifying entrepreneurs and small businesses in 79 Kentucky counties, 12 Indiana counties, and 5 Tennessee counties are eligible for short-term, fixed-interest rate loans of up to $50,000 and technical assistance to launch, stabilize, or expand a small business.

“Small businesses create jobs and provide valuable services to their communities, and are the economic backbone of our communities,” said Lew Whalen the Vice President of Lending at CV. “I would encourage eligible entrepreneurs interested in starting or growing a business to contact our office to learn how technical assistance and microloans can help take their business to the next level.”

CV will receive $721,832 in SBA Microloan Program grant funds, providing 84% in federal funding for this project. These federal funds will be matched by $140,603 of CV non-federal funds, totaling 16% of the financing for this project. The majority of projects funded will support low-income microentrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs and small business owners in an eligible county interested in being supported by CV can call Lew Whalen at (859)231-0054 or email him at [email protected].

The technical assistance and microloans are available to assist entrepreneurs in the following Kentucky counties: Adair, Allen, Anderson, Ballard, Barren, Boone, Bourbon, Boyle, Breckinridge, Bullitt, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Campbell, Carlisle, Carroll, Casey, Christian, Clark, Crittenden, Cumberland, Daviess, Edmonson, Estill, Fayette, Franklin, Fulton, Gallatin, Garrard, Grant, Graves, Grayson, Green, Hancock, Hardin, Harrison, Hart, Henderson, Henry, Hickman Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Larue, Lincoln, Livingston, Logan, Lyon Madison, Marion, Marshall, McCracken, McLean, Meade, Mercer, Metcalfe, Monroe, Muhlenberg, Nelson, Nicholas, Ohio, Oldham, Owen, Pendleton, Powell, Scott, Shelby, Simpson, Spencer, Taylor, Todd, Trigg, Trimble, Union, Warren, Washington, Webster and Woodford.

These services are also available in the following Indiana counties: Jefferson, Scott, Clark, Floyd, Harrison, Washington, Crawford, Perry, Spencer, Warrick, Vanderburgh, and Posey.

Business owners in Tennessee counties may also be eligible for funding: Obion, Weakley, Henry, Lake, and Stewart.

Community Ventures, visit cvky.org.   was founded in 1982 as a community-based, non-profit organization to strengthen communities and improves quality of life for Kentuckians by supporting job creation, small business ownership, and home ownership. CV is headquartered in Lexington with branch locations in Bowling Green, Campbellsville, Louisville, Mayfield, Millersburg, and Owensboro. For 21 consecutive years, CV has been named Microlender of the Year by the Kentucky Small Business Administration.

More Kentucky business news here.