USDA: Agriculture Secretary Vilsack announces Recovery Act support to repair infrastructure, finance community centers, public safety buildings and health care facilities

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WASHINGTON — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that rural communities in 32 states will benefit from loans and grants provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

“These projects help rural communities build and upgrade essential infrastructure and demonstrate President Obama’s continued efforts to improve the quality of life for rural residents throughout the country,” Vilsack said. “We are seeing towns and communities across America receive significant benefits through the Recovery Act, even as these projects are putting countless people back to work.”

The $193 million in Recovery Act projects being announced today are funded through USDA Rural Development’s Community Facilities Program and will be matched with $68.5 million from other sources. Funding of each loan and grant is contingent upon the recipient meeting the conditions of the agreement.

In rural Wisconsin, Polk County Adult Development Center has been selected to receive a $355,000 loan and a $137,000 grant to improve and construct community facilities that will provide job training opportunities for adults with disabilities. The current facility is not ADA compliant, limiting who can benefit from the programs provided. The project includes new office space and two greenhouse areas that will have energy saving components incorporated. For the past two years the Center has been leasing a greenhouse facility which is very old and inefficient; and has resulted in the loss of entire crops and needed revenue for the Center. Wisconsin Focus on Energy has estimated there will be annual energy savings of $31,322.

The Redevelopment Authority of the Village of Gays Mills, Wis., has been selected to receive a $1,081,500 loan to relocate and renovate the Village Community Center from a flood zone area due to back to back flooding in 2007 and 2008. The new Community Center, to be located in the new Central Business District of the Village of Gays Mills, and will house the village offices, library, community meeting room, as well as the community’s Commercial District Manager’s Office. This project, which supports USDA’s ‘Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food’ initiative, also includes facilities for a farmer’s market, pedestrian facilities, storm water management, and adequate public parking.

“The Recovery Act funds provided today will help support Wisconsin rural communities’ efforts to serve their residents by providing public services and other vital community needs,” said Stan Gruszynski, State Director. “These projects demonstrate a continued effort on behalf of USDA Rural Development to help create or save jobs, and to assist communities in providing expanded access to health care, supporting first responder efforts, and financing essential services necessary for our rural areas to thrive.”

The funding is provided through USDA Rural Development’s Community Facilities program, which helps finance essential community facilities for public use in rural areas. These facilities include child care centers, hospitals, medical clinics, assisted-living facilities, fire and rescue stations, police stations, community centers, public buildings and transportation. Through this program, USDA ensures that such facilities are available to all rural residents. These funds are available to public bodies, non-profit organizations and federally recognized Indian tribes. More information about USDA Rural Development can be found at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov.

President Obama signed The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 into law on Feb. 17, 2009. It is designed to jumpstart the nation’s economy, create or save millions of jobs and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The Act includes measures to modernize our nation’s infrastructure, enhance energy independence, expand educational opportunities, preserve and improve affordable health care, provide tax relief, and protect those in greatest need.

More information about USDA’s Recovery Act efforts is available at http://www.usda.gov/recovery. More information about the Federal government’s efforts on the Recovery Act is available at http://www.recovery.gov.

USDA Rural Development’s mission is to deliver programs in a way that will support increasing economic opportunity and improve the quality of life of rural residents. As the lead federal agency for rural development needs, USDA Rural Development returned more than $744 million dollars this past year to rural Wisconsin communities. Funds are used to finance and foster growth in homeownership, business development, and critical community and technological infrastructures. Further information on USDA Rural Development programs is available at a local USDA Rural Development office or by visiting the web site at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/wi.