TX-PACE funds ready for use – Wharton Journal Spectator

As Wharton County grows, new businesses will enter the area, providing residents with new retail, dining and entertainment options.

Existing businesses, especially those in historical buildings, can also playa part in tlut growth by keeping facility infrastructure up to date.

However, such improvements can prove costly, especially for new businesses that take over aging properties, often requiring a massive investment before being able to open to the public.

There isa program in use in counties and cities across Texas that allows such projects to be financed and paid off in long term, flexible installments.

The Texas Property Assessed Clean Energy (TX-PACE) program was enacted in 2013 and to date has facilitated over 500 million and has been passed by 103 local governments, including Wharton County in2023.

“Wharton County is allowing business owners to use future savings to access water and energy upgrades today,” said Texas PACE Authority President Charlene Heydinger.

TX-PACE is a mechanism that connects business owners with private equity to create long-term, affordable loans that mitigate risks to both the owner and thelender in ways that traditional funding avenues do not.

“Equipment loans are traditionally the riskiest loans that lenders hate to do,” Heydinger said. ’technologies are expensive and the return on investment is long. But this program takes the riskiest loan and make it the safest.”

The key, Heydinger said, is that the local government acts as the enforced on the loan, but that the loan is treated as a tax, in the sense that a government cannot force someone to pay their taxes early.

Therefore, if a business owner were to default on a payment, thelocal government could only enforce the missed payment, not the entire loan, thus incentivizing all parties to each a solution that would allow the agreement to continue.

“Normally, a new business making these energy investments wouldn’t break even with savings for six years,” Heydinger said. “If they geta loan, it might be eight years, because now you have the interest on top of it.” With the PACE program, the savings are seen instantly and are then used to repay the loan. For a community such as Wharton, El Campo orEast Bernard that are set to see potentially substantial growth in the next decade, the need to keep up with energy efficiencies is all the more pressing and Wharton Economic and Development Corporation Executive Director
Courtland Holman believes local businesses utilizing the PACE program can be a substantial piece of that growth.

“I think this is one of the best tools out there,” Holman said. For more information on TX-PACE including how to determine eligibility, connect with financial institutions or find project contractors, visit www.texaspaceauthority.com. For more information on how the Wharton Economic Development Corporation helps Wharton Growth, contact Holman at (979) 531-9015 or visit www.whartonedc.com.

https://www.journal-spectator.com/news/article_47507f2a-d200-11ef-86f7-0f1cf2bb48d2.html