By KALIN KROHE
Panhandle Post
Daylight Donuts closed its doors on Feb. 21 in downtown Alliance.
The owner of the business Abel Garcia said the reason for closing the donut shop was not having enough help. Garcia owns the building located at 304 Box Butte Avenue.
"I have a couple people interested in buying the building," said Garcia. "I'd like to sell the business. The people that want the building, they don't want the business."
Box Butte Development Corporation Executive Director Chelsie Herian said the closing of Daylight Donuts will affect downtown business.
"Any business closing in downtown Alliance affects the downtown foot traffic and the morning draw," said Herian.
Although with Daylight Donuts closing its doors, there's always opportunity for new business to come in downtown.
Box Butte Development Corporation works hard to assist existing businesses and new businesses.
BBDC helps businesses with finding a location [for sale or lease], a business plan, and lots more.
"If you need help with your financial projections we have different templates that you can use to get those things going," said Herian. "If you're going for traditional bank financing...that's something that's going to be required. We also are the first point of contact regarding the city's LB840 application, Tax Increment Financing (TIF, as well as the Prema Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) that is available locally."
Herian also said that BBDC is a resource for USDA dollars and Rural Enterprise Assistance Program. They can also lend a hand with anything to do with the State of Nebraska and Federal funds.
What is LB840, TIF, and RLF:
-The Local Option Municipal Economic Development Act (LB840) authorizes incorporated cities and villages to collect and appropriate local tax dollars—including sales and/or property tax, if approved by the local voters—for economic development purposes.
-Under Tax Increment Financing (TIF, the property owner uses a portion of their property taxes to make improvements that would have otherwise gone into the city's general operating fund.
-PREMA's Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) is set in place to further enhance the economic climate of the area by helping finance projects that lead to the creation of jobs and long-term employment for rural residents, and sustained economic growth in the area.