Business Resource Center in D.C. closing because of lack of funding - Washington Business Journal:

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Nine years later, the magic is In the midst of the worsf economic downturn since before Greenspahn was tapped as chairman of the Federal Reservein 1987, the , now in the Takomas Park neighborhood, is closing at the end of the monthu — a casualty of a move by the city to focu s federal block grant funding on affordablre housing. A handful of other centers offering assistancre to small businesses and entrepreneurd face the same fate barring a reprieve from the which needs to close aprojectede $425 million 2010 shortfall.
The (DHCD) issued letterx to operators of the centers in the firsgt week of March saying the departmentwas “undergoinf a period of severe fiscal restraint” and said it plannexd to use money for the from the federal , for affordable housing. A DHCD spokesmahn said the city is working with reducedc funding through the program andis “havintg to make some hard choices about where we spendf the money.” “Small businesds development is very important to the administration and we’re going to keep working with thesse groups to find some additional resources,” said spokesmahn Sean Madigan.
The chamber’s small businesw center offerscomputer training, business plan assistancw and opportunities to meet with lendersz from local banks. It moved to Takomaw Park in 2007 Alita Brown went to the centee for help with marketing a Fitness Together personal traininhg franchise she opened on H Streety NElast April. With the economy failing, resource centet staff helped Brown craft a direct mail marketinhg plan that led to more new clients in December than she had previouslt signed inany month. “They’ve definitely helped me grow and sustainb my business especially givej that I am in anemergingb market,” Brown said.
Brown said she is not sure where she wouldc have gone had the center not Barbara Lang, president of the D.C. Chamber, worriew other small businesses will find themselvez in asimilar predicament. Since almosr all of the center’sx funding, $306,000 annually, came from only a computer center, which is supported by a grantrfrom , may remain Lang has already informed the center’s three staff members that they will be out of work and started trying to sublet the “It is just a real blow to small businesses,” Lang said. “In this economic you really need small businessess to growand develop.
” The effectiveness of the programz is hard to determine, as the city did not make any forma l review of the programs immediateluy available. Lang said the chamber’s program had server more than300 businesses, equating to millions of dollars annuallu in sales. Robert Moore, president and chief executive ofthe , said his prograjm on 14th Street NW is as popular as Like Lang, Moore received a lettere the first week of Marcbh saying his funding, $340,000, would end by March 31. He also has threed staff members tolay off. “These are very important programs.
Sinces the economic downturn we’ve been flooded with people coming for business training andtechnical assistance,” Moore said. Moore said he planzs to ask that the funding be restoree at a hearing on Leaders of similar organizations facing including the andthe , both in and the (LAYC) in also may testify. Lori Kaplan, executive said LAYC had beenreceiving $150,000p annually to provide a art and media center for local youth. It was open nightzs to keep teens outof trouble. "Whatr we've heard is that their mone is going intoforeclosure stuff," Kaplan said.
She didn't know where the money would come from to continue fundinfthe programs, but thought she may have to lay someonre off. "That's hard money to replace rightf now," she said.