Small Business Development Initiative
Our Small Business Development Initiative is a program created to bolster the operating capacity and sustainability of local business owners through a long-term engagement of classroom instruction, individualized consulting, peer to peer roundtables, and increased access to capital.
The Partnership for New Communities funded the pilot for this program which serves small business owners on the Near West and Mid-South Sides of Chicago. These areas were chosen because of their proximity to Chicago Housing Authority developments that are part of the Plan for Transformation. Business development will be a crucial part of the success of the CHA’s transformation because it will create employment and shopping opportunities near to the new housing.
Eleven small businesses are currently participating in the program. Since the creation of the pilot program in April 2005, these businesses have reported a 30% growth in employment, and their gross revenues have more than doubled.
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