Federal Funding Means a Boom in Business for Rutland

Photo: CEDRR

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AS “NEW FEDERAL FUNDING MEANS A BOOM IN BUSINESS FOR RUTLAND” By Adrian Pastor

OCTOBER 11, 2022

NBC 5

Rutland has received an additional $1.5 million in federal funding as city officials work to drive economic development and create new jobs in an effort to bring more people to the region.

The Chamber of Economic Development in the Rutland Region just secured new federal funding through the Venture Challenge Grant, part of the U.S. Economic Development Administration's Build-to-Scale Program.

The additional funds are meant to empower rural communities and support entrepreneurship initiatives along with tech job creation.

The grant, in addition to matched funds from the city of Rutland have furthered the development of a co-working facility and the future home of Rutland's Tech Startup Incubator.

The space is set to cultivate tech innovation and support local business startups.

Lyle Jepson, the Executive Director of the Chamber of Economic Development, said the funding is a big step in a series of projects looking to revitalize Rutland's downtown.

"The funding is making all the difference, but what has really made the difference is the collaboration that has happened with our local business community, local nonprofits," he said. "We have a very long list of partners on this project, and we will be bringing programming to the table that will support entrepreneurs primarily in the tech-based industries."