Sea-Legs, a non-profit that uses sailing to provide wider horizons for underprivileged youth in Southeastern Connecticut is moving to Falls Avenue and renting space from Thayers Marine. The space is still being worked on, but we are excited to see them move into the space soon.

Sea-Legs promises adventure and teaches young people key life skills. On-the-water and on-shore maritime activities provide real-life situations that help Sea-Legs cadets learn the importance of teamwork, gain self-esteem, and grow more independent.

On Thursday, June 16 Dick Lathrop Captain of the program sailed into the Norwich Harbor with students from Groton Youth and Family Services. NCDC was there, taking some photos.  Please visit our facebook page to see them all: FACEBOOK

You can find out more about the program by visiting their website: CLICK HERE

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration small businesses make up 63 percent of new private-sector jobs in the United States. Understandably, while job creation is essential for small business success, the cost of hiring an employee is expensive. To help small business in Connecticut, the DECD created the Small Business Express Program to cover some of the costs of job creation, working capital, and expansion.  The three facets to this program are the Revolving Loan Fund, Job Creation Incentive Loan and Job Creation Matching Grant program.

The Small Business Express Revolving Loan Fund provides amounts from $10,000 to $100,000 at up to a 4% interest for a maximum 10-year term to assist businesses with capital expenditures.  Eligible expenditures are working capital, purchase of machinery and equipment, construction or leasehold improvements, relocation within the state, or other business related expenditures authorized by the Commissioner of the DECD.  The DECD will determine loan terms, conditions, and collateral requirements in a manner that prioritizes job growth and retention.  Qualified applicants must employ less than 50 employees, be Connecticut based with operations in Connecticut, have been registered to conduct business in the state for at least 12 months and be in good standing with state and local taxes.  Priority is given to economic-based industries.

The Small Business Express Job Creation Incentive Program provides loans to small businesses that meet eligibility requirements for expenditures to support job creation such as training, marketing or working capital at a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $300,000. Prioritization is for loans that will assist in maintaining job growth. Additionally, the Commissioner of the DECD may offer loan payment deferral as well as some loan forgiveness upon assessment of the small businesses’ attainment of job goals. This loan is at a rate of up to 4% for a term not more than 10 years.

The Job Creation Matching Grant Program makes dollar-for-dollar matching grants available at a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $100,000 to provide money for specific job creation, capital investment and working capital goals.  Eligible expenditures are training, working capital, purchase of machinery and equipment, construction or leasehold improvements, relocation within the state, or other business related expenditures authorized by the Commissioner of the DECD.  Qualified applicants must employ less than 50 employees, be Connecticut based with operations in Connecticut, have been registered to conduct business in the state for at least 12 months and be in good standing with state and local taxes.  Priority is given to economic-based industries and businesses likely to maintain growth.

For more information or to apply for any of these programs, please contact Michelle Peters at 860-270-8052 or via email at michelle.peters@ct.gov. NCDC would also love to help step you through the process, just Ask NCDC 860.887.6964.

Norwich’s long awaited brewpub is open and ready for your business! Owners Raymond and Rebecca “Becka” Alberts with their partners Greg and Scott Demetri signed a lease at 78 Franklin Street in March of 2015 and spent the next 6 months and hundreds of thousands of dollars on the project and officially opened their doors in August of 2015.  Tin panels still grace the walls and ceiling of the establishment and industrial style lights hang from the ceiling.  Although the elaborate bar with wooden sculpted figureheads has been replaced, it is in storage.  In its place is a beautifully simple wooden bar.  Original brickwork had to be removed in what was the old stable area, brick work had to be removed to make room for the brew tanks, but the utmost care was taken to make the repairs look like they had always been there.

Becka (one of two female brewers in the state of Connecticut) has praised all city agencies involved in the tedious process of renovating and getting their certificate of occupancy. NPU also provided services to the property, helping to install new water and gas lines to the supply the new brewing operations. Additionally the property owner Ausable River LLC was able to take advantage of the Code Correction program to help brace the second floor so that the first floor could be occupied and These Guys applied for and received a Lease Rebate for the business.

Since their doors opened These Guys Brewing has been getting rave reviews including a great food review by The Bulletin, (http://bit.ly/1H4LEli) but please don’t take our word for it.  Stop in today for lunch, dinner or drinks.

These Guys is open Mondays 4-10, Tuesday-Thursday 11:30-10 and Friday-Sunday 11:30 to 11:30.

In April of 2015, NCDC began working with the City of Norwich to write a grant supporting the cleanup of the brownfield at Terminal Way along the west side of the Thames River. In July of 2015 the City of Norwich was awarded one of eight $200,000 statewide assessment grants through the Connecticut Remedial Action and Redevelopment Municipal Grant Program. This program administered by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) provides grants to municipalities and economic development agencies for environmental site assessments to support remediation, abatement, and demolition activities prior to redevelopment.
“Remediating and redeveloping these sites helps jump-start local economies by rehabilitating areas, putting them back into use for development, and creating jobs for residents,” Governor Malloy said. “Over the last few years we’ve made historic investments in remediating contaminated properties for redevelopment, and these additional projects further demonstrate our commitment to our cities and towns.”

Thayer’s Marine has been named the Top Single Market Dealer for Stratos Boats. This honor is presented to the dealership with the highest average of purchases in a single market and was presented to Rich and Dolores Thayer by Stratos Brand Manager Jason Bragg at the National Dealership Conference on July 29, 2015.

We are elated that Thayer’s Marine is part of the Norwich business community and congratulate them on the outstanding work they put into the business and customer service.

To find out more about Thayer’s, please visit their website:

ThayersMarine.com

NCDC is looking for an Executive Assistant!  Please visit our Jobs page for more information.

NCDC Jobs

Customer care is a top priority for NCDC, we pride ourselves on customer service.  That being said with the multitude of projects going on all the time letting a ball drop is a real possibility.  To aid the office with customer and project tracking, NCDC has adopted Prophet as our new CRM tool.

Prophet is an Outlook add on, that seamlessly meshes with Outlook mail, calendar and contacts.  It allows individuals to track projects and report out on progress.  It all starts at inception.  When a client walks through the door, pertinent information is gathered with a customer intake form.  This allows the individual to gather data on a client without having to sit at a computer during a meeting. Then clients can be assigned to individual team members depending on their needs. The program also alerts team members to new projects and sends reminders to follow up.

We are excited about the new tool and our quarterly reports are a direct correlation of being able to accurately track current projects.  If you want to see how our CRM tool is working, please check out our reports found HERE.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC                                                   Docket No. PF15-12-000

NOTICE OF INTENT TO PREPARE AN

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE PLANNED

ATLANTIC BRIDGE PROJECT,

REQUEST FOR COMMENTS ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES,

 AND NOTICE OF PUBLIC SCOPING MEETINGS

(April 27, 2015)

The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will discuss the environmental impacts of the Atlantic Bridge Project (Project), which would involve construction and operation of facilities by Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC (Algonquin) in New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.  The Commission will use this EA in its decision-making process to determine whether the Project is in the public convenience and necessity.

This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested agencies on the Project.  You can make a difference by providing use with your specific comments or concerns about the Project.  Your comments should focus on the potential environmental effects, reasonable alternatives, and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impacts.  Your input will help the Commission staff determine what issues need to be evaluated in the EA.  To ensure that your comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so that the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before June 11, 2015; however, this will not be the only public input opportunity for the Project.  Please refer to the Review Process flow chart in Appendix 1.^[1]

If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the opening of this docket on January 30, 2015, you will need to file those comments in Docket No. CP15-12-000 to ensure they are considered as part of this proceeding.

^[1] The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear in the Federal Register.  Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at www.ferc.gov using the link called “eLibrary” or from the Commission’s Public Reference Room, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371.  For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to the last page of this notice.

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