Georgia has named Oglethorpe County the state’s first “broadband ready community,” a certification from the state for areas that make it easier to build high-speed internet lines. For the full article from the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, visit here: https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-announces-its-first-broadband-ready-county-for-rural-internet/n8Vv97kkFzHNQupHnrTQiI/
ATLANTA - The U.S. Small Business Administration is reminding small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations that May 30 is the filing deadline for federal economic injury disaster loans in Georgia as a result of the drought that began on Aug. 2, 2016.
This disaster declaration includes the following counties: Baldwin, Bibb, Bleckley, Crawford, Dooly, Glascock, Greene, Hancock, Houston, Jasper, Johnson, Jones, Laurens, Macon, Monroe, Oglethorpe, Peach, Pulaski, Putnam, Taliaferro, Taylor, Twiggs, Warren, Washington, Wilkes and Wilkinson in Georgia.
Under this declaration, the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program is available to eligible farm-related and nonfarm-related entities that suffered financial losses as a direct result of this disaster. With the exception of aquaculture enterprises, SBA cannot provide disaster loans to agricultural producers, farmers, or ranchers. Nurseries are eligible to apply for economic injury disaster loans for losses caused by drought conditions.
The loans are for working capital and can be up to $2 million with interest rates of 4 percent for eligible small businesses and 2.625 percent for nonprofit organizations, and terms up to 30 years.
Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.
Disaster loan information and application forms may also be obtained by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan applications can be downloaded from the SBA’s website at www.sba.gov/disaster. Completed applications should be mailed to:
U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.
Completed loan applications must be returned to SBA no later than May 30, 2017.
The Oglethorpe County Comprehensive Plan is now available online at www.onlineoglethorpe.com for public input and comment. The Comprehensive Plan is an important component of our community's growth strategy and will set the framework for future development patterns. Please take the time to look over and provide your feedback. Comments can be emailed to boc@oglethorpecountyga.gov
Great internet makes rural life possible yet communities across Georgia are often without that crucial infrastructure.
Please take the time to fill out this VERY IMPORTANT survey: https://broadband.georgia.gov/ so we can show how much good internet means to our community.
Members of Georgia's Innovation Crescent Regional Partnership
CDC Georgia Open House
Oglethorpe County Economic Development, alongside our partners in the Innovation Crescent, were invited to attend the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Open House recently. Attendees learned about the hugely important programs that the CDC administers domestically and around the globe.
Of particular focus was the opioid crisis and its impact on rural communities. Visit the CDC's website to learn more about the growing epidemic of opioid addiction and overdose in America's rural communities.
Every five years, leaders from the communities in our 12-county region gather to discuss how we can better prepare ourselves for economic growth and prosperity. Through this process, known as the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, we address weaknesses and threats to our region and discuss our strengths and opportunities. The final product is a document intended to guide our policy and decision-making going forward. A critical component of this process is input not only from the committee participants, but the public and elected officials from each community. For that reason, we are asking that you take a few minutes to fill out the following survey and share it with others! The more input we get, the better the strategy will be. So please, give us your thoughts.
Here's the link:
We are so excited to share our new website with you. We hope that it will become a clearinghouse for information about doing business in Oglethorpe County and provide valuable resources to companies seeking to locate in the northeast Georgia region as well as a place to promote the great businesses that already call Oglethorpe home. We will soon have available a comprehensive site search tool to locate available land around the county as well as demographic and labor force information. Stay tuned as the site grows and develops, and please, let us know your thoughts and suggestions!