On October 27, 2010, NDC announced the closing of a working capital loan for Seaside’s Early Development Services, Inc. (EDS) intended to help keep services available to low-income families despite the State of California’s funding cycle which pays annually and is dependent on the passing of California’s annual budget. The loan for $420,000 was provided as a part of NDC’s small business loan program, the Grow America Fund(GAF). The program is implemented locally as the “Grow Seaside Program.”
“Small businesses are struggling to access capital and often need alternate financing solutions,” said Olivia Rebanal, NDC regional director of the Grow America Fund. “Providing small businesses, such as Seaside’s Early Development Services, with the opportunity to sustain themselves and grow stronger, more robust communities. That’s exactly what the Grow America Fund aims to accomplish.”
NDC, in cooperation with the City of Seaside and other community partners, provides GAF financing to growing small businesses throughout the region. The average loan amount through NDC’s Grow America Fund is $400,000 for eligible small businesses. Among GAF’s borrowers in the City of Seaside are The Tile Studio and Seaside Garden Center. GAF was able to provide EDS with a loan of $420,000 to bridge the gap in funding from the state.
“Now that our financing is secured, we can concentrate on what we do best – providing a safe and nurturing environment for kids,” said EDS founder Shannan Watkins. “It’s not an easy time to secure a loan and, without GAF, we’d likely be facing an interruption of services, which can be so detrimental to the families we serve. Now, we’ll be able to continue to support our client families without interruption, and that is wonderful.”
EDS was founded in 1998 as a child care center and has quickly grown over the past 12 years to become Seaside’s predominant child care and early learning network, with eight locations serving more than 300 income-qualified families in the region. The centers provides 66 jobs to the community and play a vital role in helping kids from infancy to fifth grade develop critical early learning skills.
“EDS is an important piece of our small business community and is vital to the residents of Seaside who need their services,” said Lisa Brinton, redevelopment project manager for the city of Seaside. “The partnership with GAF represented by the Grow Seaside Program showcases how important it is for local municipalities to work side-by-side with local business owners to secure creative financing saving jobs and bettering the community.”
In 2000, EDS was selected by the State of California to provide childcare for income-qualified families tying EDS’s operating budget to the state of California’s annual budget and payment cycle. As EDS has grown, its operating capital needs have also grown, making it difficult to wait out the long and often uncertain cycle of state-subsidized payment. NDC’s GAF was able to provide a critical solution.