U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Https

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

USDA Announces Business Grants for North Dakota

Name
Samantha Evenson
Email
samantha.evenson@nd.usda.gov
Phone
(701) 893-2220
City
Bismarck
Release Date

Jasper Schneider, USDA Rural Development state director, today announced $566,000 in business grants to eight North Dakota recipients. The funding will provide technical assistance to spur additional economic activity in rural and tribal regions.

"Diversifying North Dakota's rural economy is the key to our long-term success," said Schneider. "The grants announced today target a wide-variety of business activities in the west and our tribal areas."

The funding is being provided through USDA’s Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) and Rural Business Opportunity Grant (RBOG) programs. Rural Business Enterprise Grants help small and emerging businesses. Rural Business Opportunity Grants promote sustainable economic development in communities with exceptional needs.

  • Artspace Projects, Inc. – $90,000 RBEG. To provide technical assistance to Native American entrepreneurs.
  • REAP Investment Fund – $60,000 RBEG. To provide technical assistance to the cities of Rolette and Hettinger for the establishment of a childcare cooperative.
  • Bowman County Jobs Development – $50,000 RBEG. To conduct a feasibility study to determine whether ABLE, Inc. can launch a retail business in downtown Bowman utilizing the existing Sears building.
  • Prairie West Development Foundation – $41,849 RBEG. To purchase and lease equipment to the Sip ’n Sew business in Beach. This will create three jobs.
  • Rural Economic Area Partnership Investment Fund – $85,000 RBOG. To determine the feasibility of establishing a car ferry across Lake Sakakawea to increase local commerce.
  • Dickinson State University Strom Center – $74,204 RBOG. To provide technical assistance and training to rural entrepreneurs on the use of social media technologies for marketing.
  • Dickinson State University Strom Center – $65,000 RBOG. To conduct a feasibility study to develop an innovation gym-fabrication lab.
  • Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa – $99,970 RBOG. To provide technical assistance and training to rural entrepreneurs and create a business incubator.

The grants are being awarded in areas designated as Rural Economic Area Partnership (REAP) Zones. North Dakota has two REAP zones that include 14 counties and 3 tribal reservations in the southwest and north central parts of the state.

Since 2010, USDA Rural Development has invested more than $3 million in business grants to spur economic activity and revitalize communities in North Dakota. For more information on USDA programs, please call (701) 530-2037 or visit http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/nd.