E-Community

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The goals of the E-Community partnership are to:

• Grow a flourishing, sustainable entrepreneurial environment supportive of business startups and expansions
• Engage and/or develop entrepreneurial resources to meet identified community and business needs
• Create a revolving loan fund to provide matching loans to entrepreneurs and small businesses with local control of decisions and terms

Learn More About E-Community Loan Program

One of the resources that an E-Community offers is a locally administered revolving loan fund used to provide gap financing to entrepreneurs within the E-Community. Gap financing is used when the combination of available bank loans and an entrepreneur’s personal savings fall short of the amount of money needed to start or grow a business. The “gap” refers to the difference between the available amount and the amount needed for the project. Gap financing is approved to be spent on the purchase of land, the purchase of real estate, the purchase of business inventory, the purchase of business equipment, and working capital. Generally, the following are not approved uses: paying off or refinancing existing debt, salary or owners draw, payroll taxes, and building renovation not tied to a specific business.

The following resources are also offered by NetWork Kansas through the E-Community program:

• Priority access to NetWork Kansas opportunities for youth entrepreneurship, networking, funding, high-powered technical assistance for second-stage businesses, and more
• The opportunity to attend a statewide conference to participate in peer-to-peer discussion with other E-Communities focused on developing strong entrepreneurial environments
• Materials and support for fostering the E-Community, including marketing materials, training opportunities, leadership team guidance, and more
• Opportunities to engage with entrepreneurship experts for consulting including Kansas Entrepreneurial Communities Initiative (KECI) representatives and the national economic gardening team

The Douglas County E-Community is comprised of Douglas County, Baldwin City, the City of Eudora, and the City of Lecompton. The initiative was formed in 2011, with the first loans being made in 2012. To date, 40 projects have been funded.