The California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency plans to open a Financial Development Corp. office in Orange County later this year to offer loans, bond financing and credit lines to small businesses.
The agency, which hasn’t selected a location yet for an OC office, is looking for partners to host the development corporation, according to Technology, Trade and Commerce Secretary Lon Hatamiya. A winning proposal is expected to be picked in April, he said.
“Orange County has been an underserved area,” Hatamiya said. “There are a lot of good things happening across the board in business here,that is the beauty of OC.”
The office, like others around the state, plans to provide guarantees for up to 90% of a loan worth up to $350,000, with seven years to repay loans.
“We give companies the wherewithal to continue in business,” Hatamiya said. “This is linked to any products they might export.”
Hatamiya said the agency based its decision to open a development corporation office in OC on the county’s low unemployment rate and high level of small-business activity.
“OC is an extremely vibrant part of the state’s economy,” he said.
New development corporation sites also are set to open this year in San Jose, Ontario and the San Fernando Valley. There are two existing offices in Los Angeles alone and six in other parts of the state.
State development corporations signed 631 export finance guarantees for small and midsize businesses during the year ended June 30 for a total of $80.8 million.
The agency works with the U.S. Small Business Administration on the federal side, as well as a number of local entities that provide counseling and business services for small businesses.
Hatamiya said he also expects Disney’s California Adventure theme park to stimulate growth among small businesses.
“The new park will create spin-off demand for a lot of other services in the county catering to travel and tourism,” he said. n
