The State Loan and Investment Board (SLIB) will consider six Business Ready Community (BRC) grant requests during its Jan. 17 quarterly meeting at 8 a.m. in the Wyoming Department of Transportation Auditorium in Cheyenne.

Board meeting materials are available for review at http://wyomingbusiness.org/slib.

BUSINESS READY COMMUNITY (BRC) GRANT APPLICATIONS 

Business Council staff review each application, conduct site visits, or conference calls in the case of planning grants, and make presentations to a board subcommittee before making final recommendations to the full board.

About the Program: The Wyoming Business Council administers the Business Ready Community grant and loan program, which provides financing for publicly-owned infrastructure that serves the needs of businesses and promotes economic development within Wyoming communities.

The Business Council board is required by statute to forward BRC grant and loan recommendations to the State Loan and Investment Board (SLIB) for final approval. The SLIB comprises the five statewide elected officials: the governor, secretary of state, state auditor, state treasurer and state superintendent of public instruction.

The SLIB will make final decisions on BRC project requests Thursday.

BUSINESS COMMITTED

• Alpine requests a $3 million BRC grant for a brewery waste pre-treatment system/facility and expansion of the existing Melvin Brewing Company facility. Increasing volumes of wastewater with high concentrations of organic materials and solids have resulted in a 20-fold increase in the volume of residual waste solids generated in the brewing operations. Alpine’s water treatment facility is unable to handle the volume and is transporting it to Afton at an average cost of $20,000 per month. In addition, a 23,000 square-foot expansion to the Melvin facility will focus on packaging, shipping and office space to free up space for expanding kitchen and tasting room space and allow the facility to grow into a brew pub. (Business Council board does not recommend funding.)
• Guernsey requests $717,792 in BRC Business Committed grant funds to extend 260 feet of single-rail across the Buffalo Road in the Guernsey Business Park. The expanded rail will allow the privately-owned transportation and logistics company John Bunning Transfer Company to grow and create eight to 10 new jobs. The expansion will also better position the town to attract other related businesses to the industrial park. (Business Council board recommends full funding.)
• Sheridan Economic and Educational Development Authority requests a $2,850,000 BRC grant and a $1,510,761 BRC loan for the construction of a manufacturing facility of up to 40,000 square-feet with offices and a parking lot on approximately four acres in the Sheridan High Tech Gateway subdivision. The facility would allow Kennon Products, Inc. to expand and increase their capacity to deliver new products to clients and take advantage of emerging opportunities. (Business Council board recommends full funding.)

COMMUNITY READINESS

• Campbell County Public Land Joint Powers Board requests a $3 million BRC Community Development Readiness grant for the renovation and remodel of the Energy Hall and Heritage Center at the CAM-PLEX Multi-Events Facility in Gillette. Renovations will include replacement of flooring, skylights, wall and ceiling finishes, new doors and hardware, replacement of lighting and plumbing fixtures, ADA upgrades, mechanical system upgrades and other necessary improvements. (Business Council board does not recommend funding.)

COMMUNITY ENHANCEMENT

• Town of Glenrock requests a $72,687 BRC Community Development Enhancement grant to expand and enhance the walking and biking trail system spanning the town of Glenrock. Enhancements will include pedestrian crosswalk striping, solar-powered crosswalk lighting, landscaping, parking area, signage, benches, ADA ramps and bollards. (Business Council board recommends full funding.)
• Town of Pinedale requests a $179,062 BRC Community Development Enhancement grant to construct a dump and water filling station for recreational vehicles, tour buses and industrial tank trucks. The location will be marketed to tour bus companies that travel through Pinedale on the way to Jackson and Yellowstone, increasing tourist traffic in Pinedale and spurring economic growth in the immediate area. Funds will also be used to add a power box near the American Legion to replace the need for generators at events such as the Green River Rendezvous, brew fest and other gatherings. (Business Council board recommends full funding.)

For more information about these projects, visit the Wyoming Business Council website, www.wyomingbusiness.org, or call 1-800-262-3425.