The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority reported providing over $88 million in financing to various organizations across the region during 2022. Through their multiple financing programs, they aided in the creation of more than 800 new jobs.
The Port Authority’s Northwest Ohio Bond Fund (NWOBF) saw a record year with the issuance of $38 million across five projects. Additionally, eight U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 Loans, totaling $6.4 million, and five Ohio Regional 166 Loans, totaling $4.1 million, were approved and/or closed. Both programs are managed and administered through the Port Authority Financing Program offerings.
“The Port Authority is proud to be a financial asset serving local businesses throughout our region,” said Thomas Winston, president and CEO of the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority. “Supporting businesses of any size with creative financing solutions, and watching these projects come to fruition, is a very rewarding part of our job. We are excited to see what new opportunities come forward in the new year.”
The Port Authority’s NWOBF promotes economic development, including the creation of new investment and private and public sector jobs in the Northwest Ohio region. The organization is designed to provide private companies and public entities access to fixed, investment grade, interest rates in the national capital markets.
Some projects the port authority helped finance last year included:
•$1.1 million in loans to assist Adventus Climbing with the construction and equipment for a new facility of full-service climbing, located on Reynolds Road, Toledo.
•$5 million in tax-exempt revenue bonds to aid the Toledo School for the Arts and finance a portion of the costs of renovating their existing 90,000 square foot building in downtown Toledo.
•Issuing an energy bond through the NWOBF, which was used to finance various projects totaling over $6 million through the port’s BetterBuildings Northwest Ohio energy efficiency program.
•Financing energy efficient upgrades to the new headquarters of JAM Best One Fleet Services. The company acquired a new building on Lewis Avenue in Toledo, where it will relocate to accommodate the growing business. These upgrades will result in $149,093 in annual energy savings. The Ohio Regional 166 Loan program was utilized for their equipment financing.
For more information about the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority and their programs, visit toledo port.org.
