In an effort to spruce up its community, the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce is teaming up with Trail West Bank to create a microloan program for local businesses.
Business owners will be able to borrow up to $5,000 interest free for improvement projects. Chamber Vice President Ken Kalvig said the program would help spruce up the community.
“The idea is to make small loans available to Evergreen businesses that they can use to improve the curb appeal of their properties,” he said. “If a fence needs a coat of paint or there’s some landscaping that is needed, we want to help make that happen.”
Businesses will have 48 months to pay off the interest-free loan, and Trail West Bank is allowing for flexible payment schedules. Loans for more than $5,000 are available under more traditional terms.
Kalvig said the loans must pay for projects that would improve a business and the community overall. Projects could include paving a parking lot, landscaping, painting a building, repairing windows, or improving gutters. There are no fees for businesses that are members of the chamber of commerce. Non-member businesses are still allowed to apply for the loan and if approved would have to pay a $200 fee, which is how much it costs to join the chamber.
In an effort to make the loans go further, ProBuild, Plant Land Garden Center and The Hardware Store have all agreed to give businesses who receive the loan deals on supplies.
“That will help everyone’s dollars go a little bit further,” Kalvig said.
Kalvig said the local chamber got the idea from its counterpart in Columbia Falls, which did a similar program a few years ago.
For more information about the loans, call Dale Linhart at (406) 755-6952.
The Evergreen Chamber of Commerce was organized in 2012 to promote the unincorporated community just east of Kalispell. The group meets monthly. For more information, visit www.evergreencofc.com.