The city of Akron wants to give $750,000 in American Rescue Plan Act federal funding to local nonprofits to serve the city's small businesses.
Susie Graham Moore, the city's economic development director, told the Beacon Journal that specific amounts have been allocated to three organizations:
She said at least 150 small businesses would benefit if the plan is approved by City Council.
“But there may be more,” she added.
At Monday's meeting of the Akron City Council's Planning and Economic Development Committee, Graham Moore said businesses eligible for the program must be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic or comply with U.S. Housing Development Department (HUD) regulations. He said it was necessary to prove that it was within the range. are referred to as “eligible census tracts.”
HUD's website states, “Census tracts eligible for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit include households with incomes below 60 percent of the area median gross income (AMGI) or households with a poverty rate of 25 percent or higher. Must contain 50%.
Lynn Puryear, vice president of entrepreneurship center and operations for the Akron Urban League, told the commission on Monday that the organization is working with African American-owned, women-owned and veteran-owned businesses throughout Ohio. He said he is providing services.
“We know that eight out of 10 African American-owned businesses go out of business within a year,” Puryear said. “A lot of it has to do with things not necessarily being set up correctly on the front lines and on the front end.”
The Akron Urban League helps its companies get their financial structures right and obtain certifications to improve access to capital, as well as other ways to ensure their success. Puryear said he plans to do so.
“Currently, we serve approximately 800 businesses a year,” Puryear said. “Of those 800, about 300 new businesses are born every year. And we want to slow down and be more intentional about helping people grow their businesses as they come in. thinking about.”
Rachel Bridenstine, executive director of the Western Reserve Community Foundation (WRCF), told the committee that ARPA's funding expands its reach beyond the more than $9.5 million in loans the organization has already provided to communities. He said it would help. Of the loans issued by WRCF, the governing body of the Summit County Development Finance Authority, about 76% went to black-owned businesses and about 50% went to women-owned businesses.
“So we all know that a lot of the key to supporting small businesses in particular is access to capital, but also access to technical assistance and professional services such as accounting, marketing and legal. '' Bridenstine said. “This will allow us to provide more services to the people we serve.”
Latonda Mobley works to improve neighborhood business districts as the administrator of the Great Streets Akron Initiative. She told the committee she would host dialogues in each section of Great Street every Wednesday from May 15 through August.
“As we work with business and property owners in the Great Street District, this is one of the best ways to ensure business owners are informed about the resources available to them,” Mobley said. “We also engage with them through various networking events and word of mouth around the city.”
Patrick Williams covers growth and development for the Akron Beacon Journal. You can contact him via email at pwilliams@gannett.com or via his X, formerly known as Twitter, @pwilliamsOH.
