USDA Feasibility Studies in Tennessee

Hotel and resort projects in rural Tennessee serve the Great Smoky Mountains, the most-visited national park, along with Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, the Tennessee Whiskey Trail towns, and the TVA lakes. Outside the metro cores, these markets sit on eligible rural ground where the Business and Industry program is an established financing path for lodging.

RV park and campground projects in rural Tennessee draw on the Great Smoky Mountains, the Cumberland Plateau, the Cherokee National Forest, and the TVA lake system. These outdoor hospitality assets occupy eligible rural counties and pair naturally with the Business and Industry program.

Rural restaurant and food service projects in Tennessee anchor county seats and tourism towns across the whiskey trail counties, the Smokies gateway, and the river towns. As an established Business and Industry asset class, they support the workforce and visitor demand generated by the state's distilling and tourism economies across eligible rural counties.

Event venue and agritourism projects in rural Tennessee combine wedding and corporate event demand with farm tourism, distillery tourism along the Tennessee Whiskey Trail, and heritage tourism across Middle Tennessee. These projects occupy eligible rural counties and fit the Business and Industry program.

Rural manufacturing projects in Tennessee span automotive and supplier plants tied to a deep base, including Nissan at Smyrna, GM at Spring Hill, Volkswagen at Chattanooga, and Ford's BlueOval City at Stanton in rural Haywood County. The Business and Industry program finances plant construction, expansion, and equipment across eligible rural counties outside the metro cores.

Food and beverage processing projects in rural Tennessee span value added processing from West Tennessee row crops to Middle Tennessee livestock, alongside the beverage pipeline anchored by the distilling sector. The Business and Industry program is an established path for processing capacity across eligible rural counties.

Meat and poultry processing projects in rural Tennessee address cattle and poultry processing capacity across eligible counties. Projects can pair the Business and Industry program with the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program to add capacity.

Winery, distillery, and brewery projects in rural Tennessee are the heart of the state's signature sector, anchored by the Tennessee Whiskey Trail and the Lincoln County Process. Named anchors include Jack Daniel's in Lynchburg, George Dickel near Tullahoma, and Uncle Nearest in Shelbyville. The Business and Industry program finances distillery and barrel warehouse capacity, and the Rural Energy for America Program funds energy systems.

Sawmill and wood products projects in rural Tennessee draw on East Tennessee's Appalachian hardwood forests and the Cherokee National Forest, which support a significant wood products base. The Business and Industry program finances mills, and the Rural Energy for America Program funds kilns and mill energy systems across eligible counties.

Assisted living and senior care projects in rural Tennessee address measurable demand across aging Appalachian and rural Middle and West Tennessee counties. These facilities are a significant share of Business and Industry healthcare lending and can also draw on Community Facilities financing in eligible rural communities.

Rural medical and dental clinic projects in Tennessee address acute access pressure, with sixteen rural hospitals at risk of closure and fourteen at immediate risk per late 2025 CHQPR data, one of the highest immediate-risk shares in the country. Clinics qualify for both Community Facilities and Business and Industry pathways across eligible rural counties.

Childcare center projects in rural Tennessee meet workforce enabling demand in automotive, distilling, and tourism labor sheds where care capacity is thin. These facilities qualify for both Community Facilities and Business and Industry pathways across eligible rural counties.

Gas station and convenience store projects in rural Tennessee leverage corridor traffic on I-40, I-24, I-75, and I-81 across eligible counties and are an established Business and Industry asset class. Rural fuel and retail sites have also drawn Rural Energy for America Program energy investment.

Self-storage projects in rural Tennessee serve growing exurban counties along the I-40 and I-24 corridors and the recreation markets around the Smokies and the TVA lakes. As a stabilized asset class, self-storage is a recognized Business and Industry use across eligible rural counties.

Solar and renewable energy projects in rural Tennessee are primarily funded through the Rural Energy for America Program, with in-state evidence including an office solar and storage project in Oak Ridge that received a 50 percent USDA REAP grant. Note the August 2025 changes that narrowed eligibility for certain solar configurations.

Express and tunnel car wash projects in rural Tennessee address corridor and county seat traffic across eligible counties and have established Business and Industry program evidence as a recognized commercial asset class.

Cold storage and refrigerated warehousing projects in rural Tennessee address first mile and distribution capacity demand along the state's interstate logistics corridors, including the Mid-South distribution hub's rural edge and the Middle Tennessee freight corridors. The Business and Industry program finances cold chain capacity across eligible counties.

Marina projects in rural Tennessee anchor recreational marine demand on the Tennessee River and the TVA lake system, including Norris, Watts Bar, Chickamauga, Center Hill, Dale Hollow, and Kentucky Lake. These assets occupy eligible rural counties and fit the Business and Industry program.