Downtown Alliance - Salt Lake City, Utah

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Salt Lake City's retooled loan program for small business seems to be a big hit.

The city has been trying to make the loans more user friendly for the past year.  The City Council approved some changes this month that include more variety and smaller loans that aren't a six-figure commitment.

The loans can be used for things like startup and expansion costs, marketing and cosmetic changes like a new sign.

"It seemed like it was an underutilized asset," said Bob Farrington, Mayor Ralph Becker's economic development director.  "There was a tendency to think of it as a last-gasp loan.  We're trying to fit the program to the need."

Farrington said the goal is to promote both the program and the city with a broader approach to lending and borrowing. 

In a deal brokered with outdoor-clothing company Discrete Headwear, terms from the city call for the owner - a professional skier - to help promote Utah's capital at trade shows.

"We're looking for ways to brand the city," Farrington said. 

The program had been averaging four loans a year.  That figure has increased to 20 since 2009 and the city expects applicant numbers to keep growing with the overhaul.

"It was definitely a void that needed to be filled," Becker spokeswoman Lisa Harrison Smith said.  "We see the progression of this as something that will benefit the growing small-business community."

One new business is Epic Brewing, which has set up shop in a former Vietnamese noodle house on State Street.  Co-founder David Cole said he got one loan for equipment and another to help in the real-estate deal - both with a nice, favorable interest rate.

"It allowed us to grow the business faster for sure," Cole said.  "It's a great tool that people in the city should know more about."

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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune