Minutes 10-16-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Steve Brantley said there is an 18,000 square foot office building sitting next to the old Orange County Health Department. He said this is a great space for offices and incubator type tenants. Alderman Gist said maybe this needs to be marketed more as a small business startup center. Commissioner Price asked if there is a maximum grant amount one person can apply for, and if the grants can be used in cooperation with a loan from the County or the Town of Carrboro. Steve Brantley said the current proposal has a multi-tiered application for grants as low as $1000 with limited required information, and up to as much as a $10,000 grant with greater proof of how a potential business will deliver. He said there could be a combination of grants and loans. Chair Jacobs said in this last budget cycle the Board approved a position for business retention. He said the Board hopes that this person would go and see if someone needs assistance. He said if the relationships were good, then perhaps there could be better retention of small and larger businesses. Commissioner Gordon said it is an excellent idea to have an integrative approach. She said if all of the resources could work together, more businesses could be attracted to the County. Commissioner McKee said he sits on this loan committee, and the applications he has seen have run the gamut in terms of focus and detail. He said the committee has gone out of their way to make sure loans are approved. He said there is also a realization that these are tax funds, and the committee does not want the County to be in the position of having to take someone's home, since people use that as collateral. He said once the application and rules are in place for the grant, it may be possible to do a combination of a grant and an additional loan. He said it might be possible to collaborate with the towns if the amount was too large for one entity. Steve Brantley said he and Bonnie Hammersley met with the Chair and Vice Chair to provide direction. He said there is a draft of the kind of document that Commissioner Gordon referred to. He said this will touch on state areas of assistance, as well as non-profits in order to create a comprehensive view of the services that are available. Commissioner Pelissier asked if Hillsborough is more affordable than the American Tobacco space or the other towns. Steve Brantley said incubator space can be well served in Carrboro and Hillsborough. He said Hillsborough has a healthy menu of products and space. He said anything that adds space to Carrboro will affect market rate and give businesses an opportunity to be there. Alderman Haven O'Donnell said one of the things that has been learned about loans in Carrboro is that people come there as the last possible resort. She said many of the people who come for loans lack business experience, and there is a need to provide training for loan applicants. She said they need mentorship during the first 3-5 years. She questioned whether funds in the small business loan program can be used throughout the County. She said that businesses get started in Carrboro and then they reach certain size and the space rate is too expensive, so they move elsewhere. She said there is no graduation of space within Carrboro, and this is a retention issue. She said incubators say that they need to reduce costs with the space, and there is no public private partnership to provide this. She said the other piece is to have a shared space with shared administrative assistance. Bonnie Hammersley asked Steve Brantley to provide an update on the business retention and recruitment position.