Montpelier, VT – The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) approved $8 million in financing to support several commercial and non-profit development projects, as well as agricultural, small business, and technology projects totaling $17.2 million. Among the projects approved for financing by the Authority are:

• The King Arthur Flour Company, Inc., Hartford – The Authority gave final approval for up to $3.5 million in revenue bond financing to help fund The King Arthur Flour Company’s second phase of an ambitious $4.011 million expansion plan. King Arthur Flour plans to construct a 23,900 square foot building in Hartford’s Billings Farm Commercial Park to house the company’s food manufacturing operation, now located in leased space in the park. Brown Brothers Harriman (BBH) has committed to purchase the tax-exempt Bond. As part of the expansion, the space currently leased will continue to house the company’s warehouse and fulfillment center for King Arthur Flour’s catalog and web-based sales. Founded in Boston in 1790, King Arthur Flour is America’s oldest flour company. Located in Vermont since 1984, the company offers everything from top-quality baking products to inspiring educational programs. King Arthur Flour now employs 229 full-time employee owners, a number expected to grow to 274 within three years of the expansion project.

• Vermont Granite Museum of Barre, Inc., Barre – The Authority gave final approval for the reissuance of $553,156 in tax-exempt revenue bond financing to significantly lower interest payments on the balance remaining from first-phase renovations to the Vermont Granite Museum in Barre. In 2001, VEDA issued a $1 million tax-exempt revenue Bond for the Vermont Granite Museum of Barre, Inc. (VGM) to partially fund Phase I of a $6.4 million project to purchase the former Jones Brothers granite manufacturing building and the former Pinsley train Depot in Barre and to complete the renovations, sitework, equipment, purchase, design and engineering needed to create this new museum celebrating Vermont’s granite industry. As a result of Phase I stabilization work, the VGM opened a 6,000 square foot Stone Arts School, teaching design and the stone work craft, as part of the 25,000 square foot Jones Brothers’ building. Also, the former Pinsley Depot has been leased to two tenants. Museum management has created a limited number of exhibits, but has plans for exhibits on geology, technology, and tools that will display examples of stone at different stages of processing and showcase the important contributions of immigrants from various countries to the success of Vermont’s granite industry. The Bond being reissued has been backed solely by the Guarantee of the City of Barre, which pays the debt service on the bond. TD Bank continues to hold the bond and is its own Trustee. The reduction in interest rate now offered by TD Bank will substantially reduce the City of Barre’s annual debt service payments associated with the museum project over the remaining eight years of the bond term.

Also approved by VEDA:

• Financing of $2 million to Vermont farmers through the Authority’s agricultural loan program, the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation (VACC);

• Financing of $1.3 million through the Authority’s Vermont Small Business Loan Program, which assists growing Vermont small businesses that are unable to access adequate sources of conventional financing;

• Financing of $414,000 through the Authority’s Vermont 504 Loan Program, which provides assistance for commercial real estate development projects; and

• Financing of $250,000 through the Authority’s Technology Loan Program, which assists companies whose major activity is offering technology-based goods and services.

About VEDA

The Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA) is Vermont’s statewide economic development finance lender. VEDA was created by the General Assembly in 1974 with a mission “to contribute to the creation and retention of quality jobs in Vermont by providing loans and other financial support to eligible and qualified Vermont industrial, commercial and agricultural enterprises.”

Over the years, VEDA has grown and adapted its financing programs to keep pace with an ever-changing economy. VEDA offers a wide range of low-cost lending options for Vermont businesses and

farms of all sizes, and the Authority’s lending solutions are customized to each borrower’s individual needs. Whether in the form of direct loans, tax-exempt bond issuance or loan guarantee support, VEDA’s innovative financing programs help ensure that Vermont businesses and farms have the capital they need to grow and succeed. VEDA most often lends in conjunction with banks and other financing partners, helping to stimulate economic development activity in Vermont.

Since 1974, VEDA has provided over $1.9 billion in financing assistance to thousands of eligible Vermont entrepreneurs, manufacturers, small businesses, family farms, and agricultural enterprises, helping them to realize their business growth goals, create jobs, and enhance the vitality of Vermont’s economy. For more information about VEDA, visit www.veda.org or call 802-828-JOBS.

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