DAVENPORT, Iowa — City officials and lawmakers' staff toured economic projects in Davenport as part of National Community Development Week.
An April 13 bus tour brought staff for U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R), U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R), and U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) to the Blue Spruce Bakery on 217 E. 2nd Street.
The business is supported by the city's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG).
Blue Spruce Bakery owner Brandon Carleton explained that the grant is a loan with more favorable terms for small business owners.
"You don't have to pay for 6 months, so it allowed us to work through a lot of kinks as a new business before we had to start paying on it."
He added that the loan is 25% forgivable, with a low interest of 2%. Carleton's businesses was awarded $90,000 through the program.
He added that the funds helped grow his business by enabling him to hire more staff and expand the grocery and deli parts of Blue Spruce.
"Maybe it's where they come every morning to get their coffee and their pastry, or they come here to get their cake for a special occasion, or they get their bread," Carleton said. "Whatever it is, it really has allowed us to very quickly build this nice little community of people."
The bus tour also visited housing projects in Davenport headed b the city's Urban Homestead program and Habitat for Humanity.
National Community Development Week runs from April 10 through April 14.
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