Small businesses are an essential part of New York City's economy, providing jobs, strengthening communities, and contributing to the vitality of their neighborhoods. Local governments have a major role to play in helping small businesses in the city succeed. Before the pandemic, the Bronx was experiencing steady growth in population, employment, and new businesses. Mayor Adams and the City Council should create a new capacity-building fund for Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to increase investments in people and technology.
This would enable them to provide tailored support to small businesses and help them access loans and grants that could help them grow. Additionally, it is essential that New York's policy makers take steps to ensure that small businesses have the tools and resources they need to succeed in the digital age. Ensuring greater participation in existing programs would strengthen new and existing companies and help them avoid or overcome the challenges that often burden small businesses. The New York Small Business Development Center (NYSBDC) provides free business advice, training, and research to small business owners and entrepreneurs. On Tompkins Avenue, Bridge Street Corporation has partnered with the Tompkins Avenue Merchants Association to host TAMA Sundays, a weekly summer festival featuring BIPOC-owned businesses. The reopening of New York City's economy has given small businesses in all five boroughs hope for a sustainable recovery.
To help these new small businesses thrive, the city should strive to create a mentoring system in all five boroughs, where new business owners can learn from their more experienced counterparts or invest to expand existing networks. The biggest challenge faced by CDFIs is not a lack of credit capital, but rather an extreme shortage of operating funds. This leaves them with too few staff to take out more loans and provide personalized business advice that entrepreneurs need, as well as too little money to invest in technology that allows them to be more efficient in their lending processes. To ensure that small businesses in the Bronx have the best chance of success, Mayor Adams and the City Council should create a capacity-building fund for CDFIs. This would enable them to provide personalized support to small businesses and help them access loans and grants that could help them grow. Additionally, it is essential that policy makers take steps to ensure that small businesses have the tools and resources they need to succeed in the digital age.
Furthermore, increasing participation in existing programs would strengthen new and existing companies and help them avoid or overcome the challenges that often burden small businesses. The reopening of New York City's economy has given small businesses in all five boroughs hope for a sustainable recovery. To ensure their success, it is important for local governments to create a mentoring system where new business owners can learn from their more experienced counterparts or invest to expand existing networks. Finally, CDFIs must be provided with adequate operating funds so they can take out more loans and provide personalized business advice that entrepreneurs need.
