Photo by Deb Gau Outreach workers talked about the resources available this week at the SBA outreach center in Marshall.

MARSHALL — A new resource for area residents affected by this summer’s flooding and severe storms opened its doors today in Marshall. Staff at the U.S. Small Business Administration outreach center at the MERIT Center said a steady stream of people had been coming in all morning to apply for low-interest disaster loans.

“It’s been a good flow,” said Sandra Lawson, public affairs specialist for the SBA. Lawson was in the area on Wednesday to help spread the word about the outreach centers. Centers will be open in Marshall and Redwood Falls through Sept. 12, to answer questions and help residents apply for loans.

Last week, the SBA announced it would be offering federal disaster loans to assist residents and businesses in Lyon, Redwood, and surrounding counties.

“It’s a resource that’s available to help,” Lawson said. While residents can apply for SBA disaster loans online, outreach workers encouraged people to come to an outreach center this week. When you meet with SBA loan officers in person, Lawson said, “They’ll be able to walk you through the process.”

SBA disaster loans are available for businesses and residents of Lyon, Redwood and all neighboring counties affected by flooding, tornadoes and severe storms between June 15 and July 12. The loans are available to repair or replace damaged property for both homes and businesses. Loans for homeowners and renters go up to $200,000 for repairing or replacing damaged real estate, and $40,000 to repair or replace personal property. That includes vehicles, Lawson said.

The SBA is also offering disaster loans for businesses and private nonprofit organizations to repair or replace damaged property, including real estate, supplies, machinery and equipment.

A third type of loan being offered is Economic Injury Disaster Loans. These are working capital loans to help small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, and private nonprofit organizations.

The loans the SBA is offering are all low-interest, Lawson said. The interest rate each applicant receives depends on factors like the amount of funds they have and whether they have credit elsewhere. However, interest rates can be as low as 1.938 percent for homeowners and renters, 3.61 percent for businesses, and 2.5 percent for nonprofit organizations.

If applicants are approved for a loan, they may also be eligible for additional funds to cover the cost of improvements, like sump pumps, to mitigate future storm damage.

Dennis Walter, volunteer resource coordinator with Homeland Security and Emergency Management, encouraged members of the public to go through the application process.

“You’re not committing yourself to anything, until the point when they offer you a loan,” Walter said. And in some cases, going through the application process could also help area residents find other assistance, even if they’re not eligible for a loan.

The application deadline for loans covering physical damage is Oct. 29. The deadline for Economic Injury loans is further out, on May 28.

Disaster loan applications can be done electronically at the SBA website. But outreach workers said coming to one of the centers can help members of the public get questions or issues with their application cleared up more quickly.

The SBA outreach centers will be open at the MERIT Center, located on West Erie Road (Lyon County Road 33) in Marshall, and at the Redwood County Government Center, located on South Mill Street in Redwood Falls. The centers will be open from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. on weekdays, and from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 8. The centers will be closed Sunday.

Lyon County Emergency Manager Tammy VanOverbeke said many of the people who came to the outreach center in Marshall on Wednesday had also been to the Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) event held in Tracy in August. That event included a wide variety of organizations and resources geared toward area residents hit by flooding and other storm damage.

VanOverbeke said she is still waiting to hear if southwest Minnesota will be receiving FEMA assistance for public infrastructure like roads and bridges.