Explanation
This ordinance authorizes the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Catholic Social Services, Inc. in support of Mercadito Raices.
Latino businesses represent a significant growth opportunity for central Ohio. Over the last ten years, the number of Latino businesses owners has grown by 44%, compared to 4% for all other business owners. Within Columbus, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce reports that there are 16,000 Hispanic-owned businesses. However, Columbus ranks below the national average in terms of its share of very small businesses (fewer than 20 employees) and representation of Hispanic-owned businesses.
¡Festival Latino! and the Hispanic Heritage festival are two prime opportunities for launching Hispanic businesses. However, in past years many of the food vendors at ¡Festival Latino! were from out of state. A primary reason for low local participation in the festival was unfamiliarity with the requirements of becoming a vendor. There is an opportunity to build capacity in greater Columbus and assist Latinos in creating businesses.
In recent years, the Ohio Small Business Development Center at Columbus State has provided a series of workshops prior to ¡Festival Latino! to help Hispanic entrepreneurs prepare for the event. The goal of this program, called Mercadito Raices (“The Roots Market”), is to demonstrate to Latino businesses the value of community outreach by assisting them through all the steps needed to prepare and have successful sales in community events and open the doors to a wider market.
In 2023, the Ohio Small Business Development Center partnered with Catholic Social Services’ Our Lady of Guadalupe Center (OLGC) to offer Mercadito Raices, in conjunction with both ¡Festival Latino! and the Hispanic Heritage festival. Ten Hispanic entrepreneurs completed the Mercadito Raices workshops in 2023, nine of whom launched their businesses at ¡Festival Latino! on August 12-13, 2023.
Catholic Social Services is requesting support from the City of Columbus to continue and expand the Mercadito Raices initiative to aspiring Hispanic entrepreneurs in 2024.
Catholic Social Services’ Our Lady of Guadalupe Center works to reduce poverty in the rapidly growing Hispanic population in Central Ohio by providing access to professional social services, case management, emergency assistance, workforce development, and social connectedness. The OLGC is the only center of its kind in Franklin County offering the full services of a food pantry and case management to the Hispanic population.
Participating entrepreneurs will:
* Have a more stable business model.
* Develop a network of peers to collaborate with and learn from.
* Obtain contracts to work with larger organizations and community festivals.
More broadly, Mercadito Raices will:
* Increase awareness of local Latino businesses that support the healthy and steady growth of our local economy.
* Demonstrate the diversity of the Latino community with food and merchandise vendors, as well as entrepreneurs providing services or starting online businesses.
* Promote the talented businesses available in our local community.
* Keep the money spent locally at the festivals in Central Ohio.
Fiscal Impact: Funding is available within the Job Growth subfund.
Emergency action is requested in order to provide Catholic Social Services, Inc. with the resources necessary to avoid any delay in the delivery of programming to entrepreneurs.
Title
To authorize the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Catholic Social Services, Inc. in support of Mercadito Raices; to authorize an appropriation and expenditure within the Job Growth subfund; and to declare an emergency. ($50,000.00)
Body
WHEREAS, Catholic Social Services’ Our Lady of Guadalupe Center works to reduce poverty in the rapidly growing Hispanic population in Central Ohio by providing access to professional social services, case management, emergency assistance, workforce development, and social connectedness; and
WHEREAS, Latino businesses represent a significant growth opportunity for central Ohio; and
WHEREAS, the goal of Mercadito Raices (“The Roots Market”) is to demonstrate to Latino businesses the value of community outreach by assisting them through all the steps needed to prepare and have successful sales in community events and open the doors to a wider market; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists in the usual daily business of the City Clerk in that it is immediately necessary to authorize the City Clerk to enter into a grant agreement with Catholic Social Services, Inc. in order to avoid any delay in the delivery of programming to entrepreneurs, all for the immediate preservation of the public health, peace, property, safety and welfare; and now, therefore,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
SECTION 1. That the City Clerk is hereby authorized to enter into a grant agreement with Catholic Social Services, Inc. in support of Mercadito Raices.
SECTION 2. That the appropriation and expenditure of $50,000.00, or so much thereof as may be needed pursuant to the action authorized in SECTION 1, is authorized in the Job Growth subfund, fund 1000, subfund 100015, per the accounting codes in the attachment to this ordinance.
SECTION 3. That the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this ordinance are deemed appropriated, and the City Auditor shall establish such accounting codes as necessary.
SECTION 4. That the City Auditor is authorized to make any accounting changes to revise the funding source for all contracts or contract modifications associated with this ordinance.
SECTION 5. That for the reason stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor, or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.