Plymouth, N.H.
Duncan Cooley, who assumed her new position April 3, had been executive director of the Upper Valley Housing Coalition for the prior 13 years. A 1978 graduate Hanover High School who earlier in her career spent 14 years with the Hanover firm Stebbins Bradley, she has been active in local government, including chair of the Orford Selectboard, as well as volunteer service as board chair of the Upper Valley United Way.
“We are fortunate now to have one of New Hampshire’s strongest leaders as our CEO,” said Mark LaClair, board chair of GRDC, in a news release. “There’s no doubt that Anne will continue to grow the organization and our mission in Grafton County.”
Duncan Cooley succeeds Chris Wellington, who is now business development officer at the Capital Regional Development Council in Concord. Wellington, who assumed the post in early 2015, had taken over from Mark Scarano, who had led the organization for nearly nine years.
The GRDC is one of 10 so-called regional development corporations in New Hampshire, most roughly corresponding to each of the state’s 10 counties, established to assist small businesses through loans, workshops and counseling. The Grafton County organization is ranked sixth among the 10 in terms of assets, according to federal tax filings.
Duncan Cooley, who lives in Orford and will commute to GRDC’s offices in Plymouth, said her “first priority is to get out and meet people all over the county,” including chambers of commerce, town managers and business leaders. “Grafton County is a big and diverse place,” she said.
The GRDC manages two loan programs to provide financing to businesses: One program offers loans between $25,000 to $575,000; a second program offers “micro-loans” of between $1,000 to $25,000.
“I would just like people to know we are here and available to help,” Duncan Cooley said, adding she plans to work to raise the organization’s profile, especially when it comes to the micro-loan program, “which is a very streamlined process and can help businesses pretty quickly.” Typically the loans are made to help small businesses buy a piece of equipment they need or for working capital.
In addition, the GRDC supports two business incubators: The Dartmouth Regional Technology Center at the Centerra Business Park in Lebanon, which it co-owns with the North Country Council, a regional planning agency serving the northern third of the state; and the Enterprise Center at Plymouth.
The GRDC says it has arranged more than $2.9 million in financing to Grafton County business over the past five years in addition to sponsoring more than 100 free workshops providing technical assistance for more than 1,000 businesses.
The nonprofit organization reported total assets of $5.9 million as of 2014, according to the most recent year for which form 990 tax filing information is available.
Last year the GRDC changed its name from the Grafton County Economic Development Council as part of a “rebranding” — along with a new logo and website — that it said was designed to reflect “a broader commitment to economic advancement in the region” and “to increase awareness for its services and coveys the company’s progressive approach to creating growth opportunities for entrepreneurs and businesses.”
