About

A Brief History of Addison County Economic Development Corporation

The Addison County Economic Development Corporation (ACEDC) was officially chartered on November 8, 1991 as a 501 (c) (6), not for profit Vermont Corporation. ACEDC evolved out of Addison County regional economic development activities that formally began with the chartering and start up of Otter Creek Development Corporation (OCDC) in 1985. OCDC represented all Addison County towns with the exception of Hancock and Granville which are located on the other side of Breadloaf Mountain. ACEDC was initially a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Addison County Chamber of Commerce. It became a freestanding corporation in July 1994, one of 12 regional development corporations throughout Vermont.

In 1993, ACEDC was one of five regional development corporations to receive a $200,000 grant to create a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) for Addison County businesses. ACEDC has since been the recipient of several additional loan funds in 1995, 1998, 2009, and, most recently, a special appropriation for a Champlain Bridge Loan Fund to support businesses that were negatively impacted by the closure of the Champlain Bridge on October 16, 2009. Since the inception of the first RLF, ACEDC has lent millions of dollars to dozens of businesses to support their growth and help them retain and create jobs.

ACEDC's Mission

Addison County Economic Development Corporation is dedicated to helping businesses in all stages of growth retain and create good paying jobs in Addison County.

As stated in the by-laws, ACEDC is organized exclusively for promoting the common business and economic interests of commercial enterprises in Addison County.

The purpose of this corporation is:

To promote sound economic development of the Addison County area, consisting of all the municipalities in Addison County, except Granville and Hancock, and to work with federal, state, and local governments, commissions, private organizations, businesses, and private individuals to obtain that goal;
To coordinate public and private efforts directed toward the expansion, retention, attraction, encouragement, financing ,and development of desirable private industry in Addison County; and to assist businesses in dealing with governmental agencies, commissions, and boards in order to expedite the compliance with federal, state, and local regulations;
To foster, encourage, and assist in the physical location of new businesses and expansion of existing business enterprises within the area;
To encourage and help the agri-business community through all available avenues;
To cooperate with existing local development groups to attain mutual objectives;
To accept financial support and enter into financing arrangements for the furtherance of ACEDC’s objectives, as prescribed by the By-Laws; and
To perform any other lawful act appropriate to the furtherance of the corporate purpose.


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