A new small business loan program is attracting entrepreneurs to open up shops in Harrisonburg.

A local restaurant owner says that he is very interested in taking advantage of this loan to expand.

“As a business owner here, when I was going door to door, chatting with different banks about ways to fund the opening, and investments, this is a great way for a low interest loan to be offered to business owners,” said Aaron Ludwing, owner of Billy Jack’s and Jack Brown’s.

The program has actually been around since this past fall. With help from federal funds, $125,000 is available to rotate among small businesses wanting to open or expand.

The program director says more businesses are preparing to apply right now.

“We did have a lot of general interest right in the very beginning, which is natural. A lot of the potential applicants still had a lot of work to do, getting their business plan together, because that’s a key component of it.”

The first business to take advantage of this program is Court Square Coffee, but some bigger names like Capital Ale House will open in the Harrisonburg area soon.

The owner of Capital Ale House says Harrisonburg is a great place for a new location.

“Harrisonburg mirrors our Fredricksburg location where it’s a historic downtown district, there’s a college near, there’s a good, local community,” said owner Matt Simmons.

The owner of Billy Jack’s and Jack Brown’s is actually excited for the Capital Ale House to open.

“To have a draw like Capital Ale House, people are going to look and see, wow, they have four in Richmond. They overlooked Charlottesville and Winchester, to come to Harrisonburg?” said Aaron Ludwing.

For more information on how to take advantage of this loan and if you qualify for it, you can visit Harrisonburg Development.