OLYMPIA, Wash. -- The community helped the Olympia Coffee Roasting Company grow over the past 10 years.
City Hall is now helping it nearly triple in size.
"It's good all around," said co-owner Sam Schroeder. "It allows us to grow and really do what we love."
Schroeder's company is the first to benefit from the Grow Olympia Fund.
The city is granting loans to businesses looking to expand, as long as they've been open for more than three years.
Olympia Coffee is receiving a $320,000 loan to help pay for an expansion.
The length and annual rate is lower than Schroeder said they would have paid with a private bank loan.
Schroeder said increasing the footprint of the coffee company allows them to hire an additional 11 employees.
Olympia Mayor Stephen Buxbaum called the project a win-win.
Buxbaum said the city will benefit from the increased business and the loans don't impact the city's general fund.
The loans are paid for with federal funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
"We're investing in what we believe makes our community strong which is small, locally owned businesses," said Buxbaum.
