Business

Businesses, lenders celebrate partnership

State Rep. Chuck McGrady speaks during a news conference.

By Miranda McFalls, Published: September 23, 2014

Lenders who helped fund the new Hendersonville Community Co-Op and a solar farm in Edneyville celebrated the partnership that is creating jobs and boosting economic development on Tuesday.

"To have the kind of energy here was what I was thinking about back in June," Rebecca Rogers, assistant general counsel for the Self Help Credit Union, said during a news conference. "It's not just about thanking people, it's about saying what's going on in an organized way."
Self Help loaned money for the Co-Op's new $4 million store and for FLS Energy, a solar farm in Edneyville.
"Today means the opportunity to see the leadership, meet the leadership and bring the leadership together of people who are involved in these projects that really mean economic development, greener jobs, greener energy, healthier lifestyles," said Gretchen Cummins, outreach coordinator for the Co-Op. "What I see this day doing is celebrating these groups coming together to make things like the new Co-Op happen as well as the solar farms through Self Help, which is a credit union, so it's not about big corporate money being thrown at something, it's about real grassroots organizations getting together to make something happen."
Mayor Barbra Volk and State Rep. Chuck McGrady said sustainability and grassroots businesses make North Carolina special, especially in Henderson County.
"For a while there, about five years ago I guess, sustainable, sustainable development, sustainable economic development were nearly curse words when elements in the political spectrum viewed them in a very negative way," McGrady said. "We're moving in a different direction and Henderson County is clearly there."