Contact Information
County Economic Development
500 E. San Antonio, Suite 312
El Paso, Texas 79901
[view map]
Monday - Friday
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Phone (915) 546-2177
Fax (915) 546-2195
Email economicdevelopment@epcounty.com
More Information
County Incentives and Guidelines
Chapter 381 Incentives Policy
Mission Trail Guidelines
Infill Development Guidelines
Healthy Food Financing Initiative Guidelines
Chapter 381 Incentives Application
Infill Development Application
Historic Structure & Façade Application
Customized Training Application
Economic Impact Fund Policy
HEALTHY FOOD FINANCING INITIATIVE
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Deadline Extended through April 30th
EL PASO COUNTY HEALTHY FOOD FINANCING INITIATIVE PROGRAM GUIDELINES
The El Paso County Healthy Food Financing Initiative (EPC HFFI) is a public-private partnership that offers grants and loans to businesses and non-profit organizations to support and accelerate the construction, establishment, rehabilitation, and/or expansion of food retail and food retail structure that will increase healthy food options for current underserved residents in El Paso County.
PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY. Applicants and projects should meet the following minimum requirements:
INELIGIBLE ENTITIES & ACTIVITIES: Ineligible entities include large department stores of which groceries are only one department, restaurants, cafes, bakeries, pharmacies with grocery sections, businesses with alcohol or tobacco sales as the primary source of revenue, and public entities. EPC HFFI funds may not be used to refinance existing debt, pay tax arrearages or government fines, engage in political or religious activities, buy out any stockholder or equity holder in the borrower’s business, nor to purchase instruments or investments for the sole purpose of a return on investment.
ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES:
HEALTHY & AFFORDABLE FOOD: Applicants should refer to the Texas WIC guidelines and Smart Foods Planner from Alliance for a Healthy Generation to determine which products to include in the healthy and affordable products reported in the EPC HFFI application. If the applicant believes that other products if offers or expects to offer should be included as healthy and affordable food, it may list those products separately.
TEXAS WIC APPROVED FOODS SHOPPING GUIDE
AREAS WITH GREATEST NEED: The areas with greatest need in El Paso County will be determined by the “Food for Every Child” report published in 2017 by Paso del Norte Institute for Healthy Living and The Food Trust. The areas with greatest need for more supermarkets and other healthy food retail outlets are areas with low supermarket sales, low income, and high incidences of diet-related deaths. Applicants should consider these areas priorities for EPC HFFI, though projects located outside of the areas with greatest need will also be considered.