Explanation
BACKGROUND: This legislation authorizes the Director of the Department of Development to enter into a grant agreement with the Columbus Chamber of Commerce for the purpose of providing support to the Urban Business Connection Program, which is a partnership between the Columbus Chamber of Commerce and the Columbus Urban League, to authorize the expenditure $200,000.00 in support of the program, and to allow for reimbursement of expenses beginning January 1, 2023.
The Columbus Chamber of Commerce (Columbus Chamber) is the largest chamber in the Columbus region and with membership comes access to great opportunities for participating businesses in the Columbus community. The workforce development, government advocacy efforts, and business solutions ensure businesses in the Columbus Region grow and thrive.
In an effort to reach a broader net of the Columbus business community, the Columbus Chamber and Columbus Urban League combined efforts to advance a shared priority of improving racial inequities, specifically amongst black entrepreneurs and businesses. Through this collaboration, the City's grant funds will assist the Chamber in providing free memberships to one hundred black-owned businesses for the 2023 fiscal year. Through this Urban Business Connection Program, businesses have access to a suite of services (including business connections, specialized consultations, research capabilities for targeted expansion, government advocacy, and member pricing at Columbus Chamber events), as well as expanded services in marketing and visibility in the Columbus community. The City of Columbus funds will help expand participation for up to 30 black-owned businesses for a new cohort size of 100, and develop key partnerships that foster the stabilization and growth of minority-owned businesses.
FISCAL IMPACT: Funding is available within the Job Growth subfund.
CONTRACT COMPLIANCE: The vendor’s contract compliance number, 006073, is acti...
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