FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 21, 2007
For more information contact:
 
Steve Achter
Director, Investment Ready Communities Division
Wyoming Business Council
Office: 307.777.2811
 
Rachel Girt
Manager, Marketing & Public Relations
Wyoming Business Council
Office: 307.777.2851 Cell: 307.631.4681               
 
State Loan and Investment Board decided on Business Ready Community Grants
Attached is an MP3 quote by Bob Jensen, CEO of the Wyoming Business Council

CHEYENNE – The State Loan and Investment Board (SLIB) funded 10 Business Ready Community Grants totaling $16,127,287 during their meeting today in Cheyenne.

Recommendations on 13 Business Ready Community Grants brought before SLIB today were made by the Business Council’s Board of Directors during their meeting in Jackson on May 30. By statute, those recommendations were forwarded to SLIB for a final decision. SLIB is made up of the Governor, the Secretary of State, the State Treasurer, the State Auditor and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

The following grant requests were approved by SLIB:

• The city of Riverton was approved for a Business Committed grant of $1.5 million for site work and infrastructure to serve the Wind River Job Corps Center. The federally funded portion of the facility, a $40,000,000 investment, will begin in 2008 and the facility will be operational in 2011. 
• The Eastern Shoshone Tribe, in partnership with the community development organization, Wind River Development Fund, was approved for a $2,635,706 Business Committed grant to construct a 15,000 square foot office building on a 2.6 acre lot located at the intersection of Hwy. 287 and Ethete Road in Fort Washakie.  A portion of the building will be leased to Shoshone Information Technology, Inc.
• Sheridan County was approved for a Business Committed grant of $783,090 for infrastructure at the Sheridan County Airport Business Park to develop 16 lots.  Two businesses, Pearl Property Management and Phoenix Fuel, LLC will expand their businesses in the new portion of the business park.
• The Johnson County/Buffalo Commerce Joint Powers Board was approved for a $1,485,000 grant to purchase a 25,000 square foot building built in 2003 and located on three acres in the Livestock Market Subdivision east of the Buffalo corporate limits. Twelve thousand square feet would be leased to a business start-up, Mountain Meadow Wool. 
• Lincoln County was approved for a $70,241 Business Committed grant to install a fire hydrant and extend an 8-inch water main approximately one-half mile along Highway 89 north of Etna, an unincorporated community in northern Lincoln County. The project would provide adequate fire suppression necessary for the expansion of Teton Truss. 
• The town of Pine Bluffs was approved for a $1.5 million Business Committed Grant to construct an 8,500 square foot, single-story, building on five lots in downtown Pine Bluffs. The building would be owned by the town and leased to ABC Direct, a mortgage brokerage, as well as other future tenants.
• The city of Riverton, in partnership with IDEA, Inc., a community development organization, was approved for a $3 million Business Committed grant to construct a 48,000 square foot heated and insulated oil rig manufacturing and service building to be owned by IDEA, Inc. and leased to R & R Rig Service.
• Albany County was approved for a $3 million Business Committed grant to purchase a 14,000 square foot building to be constructed at the city-owned Turner Tract.  The project will facilitate the expansion of CBM Associates.  A five acre lot was recently sold by the city to Wyoming Community Development Group, LLC. Wyoming Community Development Group, LLC (WCDG) will condominiumize the five acre lot into five parcels.  The parcels would ultimately be developed into a five acre technology office park with multiple buildings. 
• The Northern Arapaho Business Council was approved for a $653,250 grant for highway widening to accommodate traffic resulting from a casino expansion and future business park near Riverton. The original application was for $3 million, but the board decided to recommend partial funding.
• The city of Sheridan was approved for a $1,500,000 Business Committed grant to construct a portion of a new 11,500 square foot early childhood education center to be operated by a child care provider and managed by the Sheridan Quality Child Care Initiative. 

The mission of the Wyoming Business Council is to facilitate the economic growth of Wyoming. For more information, please visit the Web site at www.wyomingbusiness.org.
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