Frontenac CFDC seeking municipal support

Jeff Green | Sep 28, 2016

The Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation (FCFDC), which is funded by Industry Canada, has been a source of grants and loans to businesses in Frontenac County for over a decade.

Now, for the first time, they are looking for some money to flow in from the local community.

Anne Prichard, the executive director of the FCFDC, has appeared before Frontenac County and South Frontenac Councils over the past week seeking financial support.

At her presentation to Frontenac County on September 21, she outlined how the agency had its operating funding cut by over $70,000 in 2012/2013, and as a result has had to cut one staff position.

At the same time, the loan portfolio of the FCFDC has increased by 41% since 2013.

“That has only accelerated in recent months” she said, “and while we are pleased with this success, it has placed stress on both our operational and investment funds.”

In 2015, in order to cover operating expenses, with the approval of its funder and its board of directors, the FCFDC diverted a small portion, $35,000 of its interest revenue to cover operating expenses.

The rest of the interest revenue is returned to the pool of funds that are available for loans.

“However, with the increasing demand for loans, in 2016 we need that money to lend out,” said Prichard.

The FCFDC is presenting two options for support to Frontenac County and also to the Township of South Frontenac.

Option one is for a grant of $35,000 to cover the shortfall in operating funding, and option 2 is for $30,000 to go directly to the Food and Beverage (FAB) region program.

The money would be used, in part, to participate in a number of trade shows that are coming up over the next six months. As an example of the impact of these shows, Prichard talked about one Frontenac County restaurant that the FCFDC works with, the Wolfe Island Grill.

“A spot opened up at a conference in Montreal, and we offered it up to Casey Fisher of the Wolfe Island Grill to bring a line of home meals he had developed. The contacts he made there changed his whole business outlook,” she said.

Prichard said that the funding model that is used for the community futures development corporations across the province makes it difficult for smaller, newer ones like Frontenac to operate and a new funding model is in the works, which should alleviate the financial issues in the future.

“In a sense, you are a victim of your own success,” said North Frontenac Councilor John Inglis at the presentation to Frontenac County on September 21. “But would not the CFDC be self-sustaining with a larger loan portfolio?”

“Yes, and that is the advantage that the larger, more established CFDCs have. For us, we would have to almost double our portfolio to get there,” said Prichard.

After delivering a similar presentation to South Frontenac Council, Councillor Ron Sleeth asked Anne Prichard how many businesses the FCFDC serves in a year.

“I can tell that since April 1st of this year we have made 26 loans. We give out from 50-95 grants each year and do about 150 consultations with businesses each year,” Prichard said.

South Frontenac Mayor Ron Vandewal then said, “As everyone knows we are a very big part of he county as far as paying into the budget. I would like to see how this is played out there before we look at it for our own budget.”