(Image: Ooink)
The City of Seattle has revamped its Small Business Capital Access Program to deliver fixed 4% interest rate loans to local entrepreneurs facing rising operational costs and predatory lending risks.
Announced by Mayor Katie Wilson, the Seattle Office of Economic Development, and nonprofit partner Grow America this week, the updated initiative enables qualified small business owners to secure up to $350,000 in financing with locked-in, lifetime interest rates. Funds can cover essential day-to-day overhead, including payroll, rent, utilities, and supplies.
Formerly the National Development Council, Grow America is a national nonprofit that partners with local governments and community lenders to deliver affordable financing, technical assistance, and investment capital to small businesses and underserved communities.
Six participating community lenders, consisting of local credit unions and Community Development Financial Institutions will administer the loans. The streamlined system is hoped to also limit paperwork from borrowers; lenders automatically process the CAP application once a business qualifies.
City officials emphasize that the program levels the playing field for historically underserved business owners navigating inflation, rent spikes, and supply-chain pressures.
Since launching in 2021, CAP has distributed nearly $7 million across 331 Seattle businesses, unlocking more than $27.8 million in affordable financing to keep neighborhood commercial districts vibrant and storefronts open and thriving.
Local recipients include 20-year-old Capitol Hill noodle bar Ooink which tapped the program to manage overhead and fund expansion into packaged nationwide distribution, while in the Central District, the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle has served as a technical assistance navigator, helping historically underserved and BIPOC entrepreneurs prepare financials and secure financing through participating mission-based lenders like Craft3, Business Impact NW, and Community Capital Development.
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