This Tuesday, Greater Ohio Policy Center (GOPC) co-hosted the Roundtable, "Rebuilding Neighborhood Markets: Strategies for Linking Small Business Support and Commercial Vacant Property Reuse in Ohio’s Communities" in partnership with the Ohio CDC Association and the Finance Fund. This Roundtable was part of ongoing work that GOPC will be conducting to promote the combination of small business support and commercial vacant properties in Ohio's communities. We've included presentations and materials from the event below. Introductory presentation by Lavea Brachman, Executive Director of the Greater Ohio Policy Center, framing the event:
Brachman introduced the discussion by demonstrating the need for further efforts to connect small business growth and commercial revitalization throughout Ohio.
Presentation by Mihailo (Mike) Temali, Founder and CEO of the Neighborhood Development Center in St. Paul, MN:
Temali presented the Neighborhood Development Center's unique approach that involves training local entrepreneurs and redeveloping commercial vacant properties where their new businesses can locate.
Temali also provided the following materials:
- "Bringing Vitality to Main Street: How Immigrant Small Businesses Help Local Economies Grow" by Americas Society and Council of the Americas and the Fiscal Policies Institute (PDF)
- NDC: More than Two Decades of Small Business and Job Creation handout (PDF)
- 2013 Stories of Community Impact (PDF)
- A job-creating nonprofit that pays back... and more (PDF) handout on the annual economic impact of NDC activities
- National Journal article: "The Nonprofit That Gives Broke Entrepreneurs a Chance" May 2014 (PDF)
- Joint Working Protocol and Statement of Principles for Twin Cities Nonprofit Business Lender Collaborative (PDF)
- Overview of NDC Program Performance (PDF)
- NDC Entrepreneur Training Statistics (PDF)
Presentation by Kimberly Faison, Director of Entrepreneurial Initiatives for ProsperUS in Detroit, MI:
Faison discussed how they are adopting the Neighborhood Development Center's model in Detroit by concentrating micro-enterprise development in low-income immigrant and minority neighborhoods.
Faison also provided the following materials:
- ProsperUS Detroit Quick Facts (PDF)
- Link to video of 2014 ProsperUS Detroit Annual Convening, also featuring Mihailo Temali
- Link to Challenge Detroit presentation by Data Driven Detroit, which presents major issues that affect Detroit
- Link to the video “A Hurricane without Water” – 18 minute long video on the property tax crisis in Detroit
- Link to ProsperUS Detroit's YouTube Channel
Overall, this Roundtable provided an opportunity to discuss the merits of this model, relevant existing programs and practices in Ohio, and efforts needed for a potential longer-term effort that would connect small business growth and commercial revitalization throughout the state. We look forward to engaging further in this work!