REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
August 15, 2019
FROM: WILMA QUAN, City Manager
Office of the Mayor & City Manager
BY: KELLY TREVINO, Economic Development Analyst
Office of the Mayor & City Manager
SUBJECT
Title
Approve a 10-year agreement with Cen Cal Business Finance Group, Inc. (Cen Cal) to administer the Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Program
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Council approve the 10-year agreement with Cen Cal to administer the City of Fresno's RLF program.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Fresno currently has approximately $795,000 of Economic Adjustment Assistance grant funds from the Economic Development Administration of the United States Department of Commerce (EDA) established in a RLF. Currently, the balance of the loan portfolio is approximately $651,000 with a remaining $144,000 available to lend.
On March, 11, 2019 a Request for Proposals (RFP) was released to solicit proposals to administer this program and one proposal was received. That proposal was from the current service provider, Cen Cal, who has been administering the City's RLF Program for over 20 years.
The proposal from Cen Cal was deemed satisfactory by the Evaluation Committee. In addition, over the past 20 years Cen Cal has demonstrated the ability to meet stated service requirements and conform to all City and EDA requirements. Therefore, it is staff's recommendation that Council approve a new 10-year agreement with Cen Cal to continue to administer the RLF.
BACKGROUND
In 1980, the EDA approved a $600,000 Grant to the City of Fresno to establish a RLF. In 1989, the EDA deobligated $100,750 of the grant funds resulting in a RLF balance of $499,250. Since then, the funding has grown to approximately $795,000 with around $144,000 currently available to lend.
The goal of the RLF is to provide financial assistance to businesses that, while credit worthy, are not able to obtain financing from the private sector. The RLF serves as a critical component of...
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