HUD OKAYS ALMOST $3.8 MILLION LOAN GUARANTEE TO SUPPORT RESTORATION & RENOVATION OF PASCO FARMERS MARKET
Like "parades & picnics, everyone loves farmers markets," says HUD Regional Administrator

SEATTLE - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has approved a $3,781,000 loan guarantee sought by the City of Pasco, Washington to support the Pasco Farmers Market Redevelopment Project at the corner of South Fourth Avenue and West Columbia Street & in downtown, HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Jeff McMorris and Pasco Mayor Matt Watkins announced today.

The loan guarantee is provided under HUD's Section 108 Loan Guarantee Assistance program (www.hudexchange.info/programs/section-108/section-108-program-eligibility-requirements/#overview) under the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, which permits local governments to borrow money from private investors at reduced interest rates. In return, the local government pledges current and future Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) allocations it receives annually from HUD to cover the loan amount as security for the loan.

The Section 108 loan approved for Pasco will provide for the restoration and renovation of the Pasco Farmers Market which is now in its 31st year of operation and which attracts 100 or more vendors and up to 5,000 customers on a typical Saturday during its six-month season from May to October. In addition to allowing local farmers and craftspeople to sell directly to consumers, the Market's renovation will also generate economic activity for businesses in the surrounding area and, further, will complement the City's investment in restoration of adjacent Peanut Park as well as the Pasco Specialty Kitchen, a state-of-the-art certified commercial kitchen for local entrepreneurs located across the street from the Market.

"Like parades and picnics, everyone loves farmers markets. Now in its 31st year, that's certainly true of Pasco's market," said HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Jeff McMorris. "Section 108 loan guarantee is a tried and tested tool expanding local government's financial capacity to meet its economic and community development priorities. We're very pleased that a HUD program can help the Market and its environs prepare for even greater over the next 30 years."

"The Section 108 loan program award makes possible the reconstruction of the City's Farmers Market and Peanuts Park downtown to meet the needs of Pasco today and into the future," said Pasco Mayor Matt Watkins, adding that "this iconic structure has served the community for two generations, its rebirth is a central piece of the City's efforts to revitalized Downtown Pasco."

The Section 108 loan guarantee program permits CDBG entitlement communities to borrow up to five times their latest CDBG allocation for projects that either principally benefit low- and moderate-income persons or aid in the elimination or prevention of slums and blight. The funds generated by a Section 108 loan guarantee may be used for:

• Economic development activities eligible under CDBG;
• Acquisition of real property;
• Rehabilitation of publicly owned real property;
• Housing rehabilitation eligible under CDBG;
• Construction, reconstruction, or installation of public facilities (including street, sidewalk, and other site improvements);
• Related relocation, clearance, and site improvements;
• Payment of interest on the guaranteed loan and issuance costs of public offerings;
• Debt service reserves;
• Public works and site improvements in colonias;
• In limited circumstances, housing construction as part of community economic development; Housing Development Grant, or Nehemiah Housing Opportunity Grant programs.

A number of communities in Washington State previously have made use of the program - the City of Seattle to launch a capital access fund for small businesses; King County to develop the White Center commercial center, Mt. Vernon to protect its downtown from Skagit River flooding, Federal Way to develop a performance center, Tacoma to help finance the LeMay Museum of the American Car, Olympia, Yakima and Lakewood to start economic development loan funds. Nationwide, the Section 108 program has generated $4 of private investment for every $1 in Section 108 guarantee.

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