$400,000 In State Loans Issued To 2 Pittsfield Companies
Awards will preserve jobs in the Berkshires and finance working capital needsPITTSFIELD, Mass. - State Senator Benjamin B. Downing (D- Pittsfield) announces two loans totaling $400,000 given by the Massachusetts Community Development Finance Corporation (CDFC) to local businesses ArrowPress, Inc. and Pittsfield Rye Bakery & Specialty Breads Co. The loans will help the businesses maintain jobs in Pittsfield and finance working capital needs.
“Thriving small businesses are essential in our economy,” said Downing. “CDFC’s support of ArrowPress and Pittsfield Rye will ensure 25+ quality jobs in the Berkshires are fully funded this year and enable two local businesses to continue their growth, investment in our community and success.”
"CDFC has made a concerted effort to expand its lending in western Massachusetts and these two loans are a prime example of our success," said CDFC President Andres Lopez. "These two small businesses are poised for bigger and better things and we are proud to help them achieve their goals."
ArrowPress, Inc., located at 150 Lincoln Street, is a commercial printer, binder and mail house operation that offers a full range of high quality printing services. CDFC awarded ArrowPress a $150,000 term loan to provide working capital to maintain 12 jobs with the potential to add two more. A medium-sized printing and mailing facility with capabilities ranging from short-run digital color to specialized mailings, ArrowPress’ goal is to provide every customer with on-time delivery of high quality work at an affordable price.
“The benefits of this loan extend not only to our employees but to our customers as well by helping us to solidify our existing operation and to provide new and expanded service offerings,” explained ArrowPress President Robert Nackoul.
Pittsfield Rye Bakery & Specialty Breads Co., located at 1010 South Street received a $250,000 term loan for debt consolidation/refinancing from the CDFC. Pittsfield Rye employs 14 full-time and 4 part-time employees. Its mission is to provide exquisite products and service costumers expect and deserve. Pittsfield Rye focuses on creating breads and rolls that today’s consumer’s feel proud to serve and eat, knowing the products fit into healthy living standards.
“Without this support from the Commonwealth, Pittsfield Rye & Specialty Bread Co. would be unable to continue growing as quickly as we are,” said company President/Owner Rick Robbins. “The CDFC has enabled us to invest in our business, which in turn is an investment in our community. We appreciate their support.”
CDFC is a quasi-public corporation authorized by the Massachusetts Legislature in 1975, under Chapter 40F, as one of the nation’s first state-level community economic development finance institutions. The core mission of CDFC was to bring new economic activity and good quality jobs to Massachusetts’ low-income areas working in conjunction with community development corporations (CDCs). Over the past three decades, CDFC designed programs and activities in response to the expanding development activities of CDCs, new legislative mandates, and its own innovations to better address the capital availability problems of small businesses and lower income communities.
Today CDFC concentrates in lending to small business throughout the Commonwealth and plans to become a better recognized and more active economic development lender.
