As part of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority’s (EDA) efforts to raise awareness of financing resources available for small businesses and not-for-profit organizations, Chief Executive Officer Melissa Orsen visited Riding High Farm in Upper Freehold Township on June 30.
Staff at Riding High Farm recently worked with the EDA to refinance the facility’s mortgage, demonstrating the EDA’s ability to help organizations in all industries and stages of growth meet their unique financing needs, according to a press release.
Riding High Farm, which was founded in 1979 as a not-for-profit 501c(3) corporation, is dedicated to providing special needs riders with recreational and therapeutic instruction, according to the press release.
“Riding High Farm illustrates the dual role not-for-profit organizations play in the state’s economy,” Orsen said. “They contribute to the community by improving quality of life for the individuals and families they support while creating jobs and opportunities for members of the community to give back.”
Riding High Farm first received a direct loan from the EDA through its Small Business Fund in 2010 to refinance existing debt. The savings generated from this refinancing were used to support a program called “Equine Care and Farm Management Day Program for the Disabled.” Riding High Farm recently closed on a refinancing of its loan, enabling it to maintain a low interest rate and manageable payments, according to the press release.
“Support from the state has helped Riding High manage cash flow and continue programs that encourage the assimilation of the special needs population with the able-bodied, and help us to recruit and train volunteers and community service workers,” said the farm’s president, Dennis Kahn.
The EDA’s Small Business Fund requires that a business be in operation for at least one full year. Not-for-profit corporations that have been operating for at least three full years may also be eligible.
Other programs offered by the EDA for small businesses include the Premier Lender Program, through which the EDA partners with more than two dozen banks to provide new, low-cost financing opportunities with faster turnaround; and the New Jersey Advantage Program, a joint program of the EDA and TD Bank, offering creditworthy small and mid-sized companies financing for fixed assets, working capital or refinancing of existing debt, according to the press release.
To learn more, visit http://www.njeda.com/small_midsize_business