Brookings-based BC Fisheries recently cut the ribbon on a new $9.6 million seafood processing facility that will benefit southern Oregon coast crabbers and shrimpers. The facility will create new jobs, eliminate the need for long-distance shipping of locally-caught seafood for processing, and is the first of its kind to use cool steam technology on the West Coast.

Family-owned BC Fisheries was founded in 2007 as a small fish buying company. Despite offloading about 1.5 million pounds of shrimp per month by 2013, the company was unable to process the seafood, and the long-distance shipping to far-off processors resulted in hefty transportation costs. Additionally, the local community did not benefit from the revenue or jobs generated through the processing side of the industry.

The owners of BC Fisheries eventually decided to expand the business. With assistance from a $6.3 million loan from the nonprofit Craft3, partially guaranteed through Rural Development’s Business and Industry Program, along with financial support from the Oregon Community Foundation, Ford Family Foundation, and U.S. Bank, BC Fisheries built an insulated processing building at the Port of Brookings Harbor adjacent to off-loading docks. The loan also provided working capital and enabled the company to purchase equipment.

The new facility, which recently began operation, will be able to process up to 2.4 million pounds of shrimp per month. It will create 30 new jobs for this small coastal community, and help grow the local economy.

On September 27, approximately 60 funders and technical assistance providers traveled to Kerby, Oregon, to participate in a Rural Resource Forum sponsored by the Oregon Rural Development Council (ORDC). Residents of southern Josephine County’s Illinois Valley presented the vision and projects they identified in a recently completed community strategic plan known locally as the “IV20/20 Vision.”

A Rural Resource Forum is a one-stop opportunity for rural communities and regions to discuss their highest community-identified priorities with a variety of state, federal, nonprofit, educational, and other entities that can advise on funding, technical assistance, and additional tools to help move the local plan forward. In Kerby, the IV20/20 group discussed local progress, opportunities, and ongoing needs related to public safety, affordable housing, community health, visitor and business amenities, and local capacity for plan implementation.

Since the forum, ORDC has been working with partner organizations to assist the IV20/20 group in identifying and applying for implementation assistance. As a result of the forum so far, the local group has applied for capacity funding, planned a follow-up meeting with multiple philanthropic organizations, and received a $16,000 USDA Rural Development grant to support a regional lodging study.

The forum built on the hard work local residents put into the recently completed IV20/20 collaborative planning process facilitated by the Illinois Valley Community Development Organization (IVCDO) and Rural Development Initiative and funded by USDA Rural Development, The Ford Family Foundation, and local organizations. Through this effort, local people are collaborating with partners at all levels to move their plan into action and positive outcomes.

The Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) will provide training to tribal fishers in the Columbia Gorge region of Oregon and Washington on food handling techniques and processing requirements and help them access workspace to develop specialized products with assistance from a USDA Rural Business Development Grant.

Approximately 600 tribal fishers exercise their treaty-reserved fishing rights by harvesting salmon on the Columbia River for subsistence or to sell through a variety of markets. With the Rural Development grant, CRITFC will provide training and assistance to help these fishers learn about the recently enacted Food Safety Modernization Act and adapt their business models to meet new regulatory requirements for food processing and recordkeeping. These extra steps to document that tribally caught fish are handled and processed at the highest safety and quality standards and in a uniform manner will increase its value on the market. The increased revenue will help tribal members support their families while continuing their traditional fishing practices sustainably and profitably. Tribal fishing also supports tribal and local economies throughout the region as the fishers re-invest their revenue in fuel, boat supplies, and other commodities.

In addition, Rural Development funds will help CRITFC identify community-based commercial food kitchens that meet federal food safety regulations where fishers can develop specialized products and learn about recipe development, packaging, labeling, and other product development techniques. This effort will open new opportunities to tribal fishers, increase options for business start-up and expansion, and improve job opportunities. Learn more online…

The Umatilla Electric Cooperative has been providing electric power to rural areas of northeastern Oregon for eight decades. In recent years, the cooperative has experienced a robust increase in demand, in large part due to industrial customers seeking to purchase additional renewable energy to meet public expectations and regulatory requirements. To keep pace, this local, consumer-owned electric cooperative constructed a 1.3-megawatt solar photovoltaic system with assistance from a Rural Development grant of nearly $250,150 provided through the Rural Energy for America Program. Constructed on six acres, this $2.8 million renewable energy project consists of nearly 4,000 interconnected solar panels. The system should produce 1.7 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year, which is enough to power approximately 110 homes.

The expansion of the cooperative’s renewable energy sources will not only help it to comply with Oregon’s renewable portfolio standard, which requires large utilities to provide 25 percent of their retail sales of electricity from clean, renewable sources by 2038; it will also help the cooperative meet local demand and increase options for its consumers to go green. The grant funding from Rural Development reduced the electric cooperative’s up-front investment in the project, and any revenues generated in excess of the organization’s operating expenses will be credited to consumer-owners’ accounts, reinvesting back into the local community. Read more online…

The Medical Springs Rural Fire Protection District (RFPD) serves 135 residents in a 125-square-mile area in eastern Oregon near the Idaho border. In recent years, however, it had become a struggle for their aging water tender to reach portions of their remote service area. The vehicle was difficult to drive and frequently broke down, resulting in costly repairs. Additionally, few firefighters at this entirely volunteer department were proficient operators, and it was often a challenge to reach emergency calls.

The Medical Springs RFPD was able to obtain a retired military truck through an Oregon Department of Forestry program. With a $26,250 grant from Rural Development provided through its Community Facilities Program, along with grants from three partner organizations, the department purchased a new 3,000-gallon water tank and converted the truck from a transportation vehicle into a water tender.

The new vehicle is able to navigate the varied terrain in this service area, and it meets National Fire Protection Association standards. With the replacement of this essential piece of equipment, the Medical Springs RFPD will improve their response to emergency calls and continue providing an invaluable service to residents of this remote area of eastern Oregon. Read more online…

Rural Oregon residents who want to own their own home, but who can’t get a mortgage from a private lender, may be eligible for a loan from Rural Development. The loan may be used to buy an existing home, build a new home, or buy and prepare a lot for new construction.

Rural Development’s homeownership loans offer:

• No down payment
• 100-percent, affordable fixed-rate financing
• Closing costs and repairs may be included
• No private mortgage insurance
• No prepayment penalties

Rural Development also partners with private lenders to provide affordable mortgage options to rural residents by guaranteeing the loan provided by your financial institution. Additionally, if your home needs repairs or improvements, and you can’t get a loan elsewhere, we may be able to help. In some areas, Rural Development is also partnering with nonprofits to help families build their own homes, reducing the overall cost of the mortgage.

We are helping people achieve the dream of homeownership every day. During federal fiscal year 2016, Rural Development provided $10.7 million in direct USDA home loans to more than 60 rural Oregon families; helped low-income households access affordable mortgages through their private lenders by guaranteeing 2,000 loans totaling $367.4 million; and helped 35 rural families repair their homes with more than $106,000 in loans and $132,000 in grants.

Rural Development is currently accepting applications for home financing assistance. Assistance is only available for homes in rural areas with populations up to 35,000, and eligibility requirements apply. Learn more about the available programs and eligibility requirements online, or contact a local Rural Development staff member directly: (866) 923-5626, extension 1.

For years, the Ortiz family had no choice but to live in substandard housing. Wasco County in north central Oregon, like many other areas of the state, is experiencing a critical housing shortage, which has driven up rent beyond what many working families can afford. The Ortiz family simply could not take on higher rent payments with their single income—Cora Ortiz is raising their four children at home while her husband works in the agriculture sector at the local orchards.

When they learned about a new affordable apartment complex specifically for farmworkers and their families, Cora filled out an application that very day. Two weeks later, they were approved as tenants at the new Heritage Heights Apartments.

Built with $3 million in funding provided by Rural Development through its Farm Labor Housing Program, Heritage Heights offers two-, three-, and four-bedroom apartments for 23 farmworker families. The Ortiz’s new apartment is larger than their last rental, and more affordable. With the help of rental assistance from Rural Development, which ensures low-income tenants pay no more than 30 percent of their income on rent, their monthly housing bill has decreased.

Heritage Heights is not only providing an affordable, safe place for the Ortiz family and others to raise their children, it is also creating a community with facilities that bring the tenants together, including a playground, community room, computer lab, and community garden. Learn more online…

Caroline had worried about the leak under her house and struggled to use her non-accessible bathroom for some time. At age 72, living in rural eastern Oregon’s Malheur County, Caroline found that the maintenance needs of her home had begun to outpace her finances. She applied to a local weatherization program, but when she finally moved off the waitlist and received the home improvements, the workers found additional issues with the house that their program could not address. Caroline could not imagine how these problems would ever be resolved given her single, limited income.

Then in the summer of 2016, Caroline learned that she qualified for assistance from the nonprofit Community in Action, which had received a Housing Preservation Grant from Rural Development to help low-income residents make critical repairs to their homes. Caroline was one of the residents in Malheur County to receive a grant through Community in Action to cover the costs of her home’s maintenance needs.

With this financial assistance, Caroline was able to repair the leaking pipes under her house, install a new hot water heater, and make accessibility upgrades to her bathroom, including the installation of a new walk-in shower and a handicap toilet.

Caroline says she cannot believe these issues are finally resolved, and without any additional strain on her budget. She now feels comfortable in her own home and plans to continue living there for many years to come.