|
Since 1992 we have made a significant impact on local entrepreneurs and communities:
Enterprise
- Over 3,400 small business clients have been supported.
- Approximately $16M has been raised in loans for low and mid income entrepreneurs.
- Opened an office in the Western Addition in 2004 where we have served over 125 clients and are currently expanding our presence further.
- In the last year alone, our loan packaging services secured 54 loans for $2.21 million and we provided technical assistance to 228 clients. Our average loan size has decreased over the last two years while we continue to increase our total number of loans. This change reflects our increased service to low income entrepreneurs who typically qualify for smaller loans.
Job creation
- Over 383 jobs have been created or retained since 1992 as a direct result of our support. 260 jobs have been created since 2002.
Neighborhood revitalization
- We created and are implementing a long-term economic revitalization program on Sixth Street called The Sixth Street Economic Revitalization Program (formerly Six on Sixth).
- We have managed completion of 61 facade and tenant improvement projects to date and have another 35 in progress.
- We have actively assisted property owners, business owners and prospective tenants enhance the neighborhood's ability to attract and retain community-serving businesses and change public perception of the street. Twenty-eight new businesses have opened on the street since The Sixth Street Economic Revitalization Program began in 2003.
- Last year, the Mayor's Office of Economic and Workforce Development (MOEWD) and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) engaged Urban Solutions to partner with community based organizations to conduct business attraction services in six other commercial corridors throughout the city. The pilot project, termed the Neighborhood Marketplace Initiative (NMI), aids communities that have difficulty attracting and retaining businesses. We are performing business attraction efforts in the following neighborhoods: Visitacion Valley, Ocean View/Merced/Ingleside, Portola, Tenderloin, Third Street, Excelsior and Lower Haight/Western Addition. Since the program's inception, we have helped 19 businesses lease their spaces.
Community empowerment
- We conducted community outreach and provided administrative support to enable the establishment of the South of Market Business Association (SOMBA). SOMBA was created in order to push for stronger support for local businesses and organize the merchants in the South of Market.
- We work in partnership with community based organizations to attract businesses to commercial corridors throughout the city.
|
Success with Minority Communities
|
|
Clients served
In the last year we provided technical assistance to 336 clients, of which 228 received small business consulting services and 70 were Sixth Street clients. Of our small business consulting clients, 70% were minorities and 67% were low income.
We have been especially active serving African-American entrepreneurs. Last year, we served 97 African-American clients and over the past 5 years have helped African-Americans secure 42 loans for $3.2 million.
42% of the loans secured in the last five years have been for women.
Urban Solutions has expanded the number and range of free small business workshops it offers to include topics such as Commercial Property Leasing, Marketing, Insurance and Improving Damaged Credit. These workshops are run from the Fillmore office.
|
Headquarters: 1083 Mission Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94103![Urban Solutions home [button]](../images/logo.jpg){kind=logo}
