Since its founding, the organization has focused on providing resources for small businesses and workforce housing alike throughout its 16-county service area in southeast Nebraska, which includes: Butler, Fillmore, Gage, Jefferson, Johnson, Lancaster, Nemaha, Otoe, Pawnee, Polk, Richardson, Saline, Saunders, Seward, Thayer, and York counties. SEND, Inc. currently offers two revolving loan fund programs that provide financial assistance to small commercial businesses in addition to the development of workforce housing.
Mission Statement
SEND, Inc.’s purpose is to address community and economic development opportunities in southeast Nebraska, with attention to low-to-moderate income persons, and to seek funds, grants, contributions, and any other type of funding to obtain these goals.
SEND, Inc. is governed by a Board of Directors and supported by SENDD staff. The Board of Directors is made up of a mixture of public and private stakeholders/community leaders. They currently have seven Directors. Those interested in serving on the Board may contact Kelly Gentrup, Director of Development Services.
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Doug Goracke | City of Tecumseh, President |
| Rod Reisen | I3 Bank, Vice-President |
| Ann Jansky | Farmers & Merchants Bank (Milligan), Secretary |
| Pat Kenner | Thayer County Bank, Treasurer |
| Tobias Tempelmeyer | City of Beatrice, At-large |
| Amy Behrends | At-large |
| Tara Korthals | At-large |
- NDO Revolving Loan Fund
The SEND, Inc. NDO Regional Revolving Loan Fund may be used within the designated service area and may include the City of Lincoln on a case by case basis. The primary goal of the fund is to provide accessible financing and refinancing for start-up and existing businesses who may not qualify for traditional lending. Eligible businesses include: manufacturing, service, telecommunication, food-based, childcare, retail, agricultural, etc.Loan activities may include acquisition, construction or renovation, working capital, equipment/ machinery, public infrastructure, etc. Loan amounts may not exceed $200,000 and cannot be lower than $25,000. Terms shall be determined based on the loan activity. Interest rates charged are at least 50% of the current Wall Street Journal Prime Rate. To check what your monthly payment will be, click on the loan calculator above. To determine if your project is eligible for a SEND, Inc. loan, please fill out the online pre-application. You will be contacted within seven days after the pre-application is submitted. If eligible, you will be invited to fill out the full application. - Rural Workforce Housing Fund
SEND, Inc. was awarded $639,000 in 2018, matched by over $950,000 from the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority (NIFA) and the, cities of Auburn, Beatrice, Deshler, Fairbury, and Geneva. The award was utilized to create a local Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) to assist developers, seeking gap financing to construct or renovate workforce housing. The funds are invested in eligible projects to increase the supply and reduce the cost of workforce housing within the southeast Nebraska region.
Eligible projects include:- New owner-occupied housing – no more than $350,000
- New rental housing units – no more than $250,000
- Owner-occupied or rental housing units for which the cost to substantially rehab exceeds 50% of a unit’s assessed value
- Upper-story housing
- Rehab/conversion of an existing building into housing
Loan limits are determined on a case-by-case basis and terms are set between 12-18 months. Current interest rate charged is 75% of the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate or a fixed amount to be agreed upon at the time of application. To determine if your project is eligible, please fill out the mini pre-application, which will be submitted to the RWHF program administrator. You will be contacted within 7 days of submission; at that time and if eligible, you will be invited to fill out the full application.