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Annual survey garners positive reviews
Each year PDC’s business finance team surveys program clients to rate customer service. The 2007 results are in with very positive responses. A sampling of questions follows:
Business Finance:
- How would you rate the overall staff service: 100% of respondents rated the quality of staff service as "High"
- How would you rate staff knowledge about the process: 100% of respondents rated staff knowledge as "High
- A question on whether the project would have gone forward without public assistance revealed a continuous shift from a strong "No" to a weak "No". An indication that a shift from "lender of last resort" to "gap financing" is working well for our customers.
Storefront (Community Economic Development):
- How would you rate the overall staff service: 100% of respondents rated the quality of staff service as "High"
- How would you rate staff knowledge about the program: 100% of respondents rated staff knowledge as "High"
- Did the program meet your expectation: 100% responded with a "Yes" answer.
Contact a PDC Business Finance team member
PDC connects people and resources to create more jobs for Portland
Improved sustainable practices, storefront improvements, and direct business support are among the PDC tools that help businesses flourish in Portland. Here are a few examples:
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PDC helps Bradley Angle House improve sustainable practices
The Sustainable Business Assistance Program, our partnership with Zero Waste Alliance, provided assistance to longtime women's shelter Bradley Angle House, which is located in one of the city's urban renewal areas. ZWA evaluated the shelter building for energy efficiency and solar opportunities, researched tax credits and available financial incentives, and made several recommendations, including installation of a solar water heater. Both shelter and occupants will benefit from reduced environmental impact, financial savings related to reduced heating costs, and improved indoor air quality.
Founded in 1975, Bradley Angle House is the oldest domestic violence shelter on the West Coast for women and children.
The PDC-ZWA partnership provides matching funds to help Portland businesses identify cost and resource savings in protecting human and environmental health while creating and protecting jobs.
Find out more about the ZWA sustainability program.
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New loan fund launched
The Near-Equity Small Business Loan Fund is a new source of financial assistance to fuel growth for small business. The fund is intended for direct business support, such as working capital and equipment purchase. Funding will focus on small businesses with 20 or fewer employees in the city's targeted industries including activewear, bioscience, creative services, high tech, metals and transportation equipment, specialty foods and sustainability. Learn more about the Near-Equity program.
Changes in Storefront access broaden program reach for 07-08
PDC's popular Storefront Improvement Program is now available in targeted neighborhoods citywide, thanks to a new allocation of $550,000 from the city’s general fund for fiscal year 07-08. The selected areas now eligible for funding are primarily business districts which have not received help in the past through the program, but where the need is clear for exterior improvements. The Parkrose neighborhood is eligible for the first time, along with specific blocks in Lents and north and northeast Portland.
The Storefront program is also now available in an industrial neighborhood of the Central Eastside (CES) urban renewal area. PDC worked with the CES Urban Renewal Advisory Committee to determine the strategic focus for the storefront funding, which shifts eligibility to businesses located west of Southeast Third Avenue. Funding will now be available exclusively within a newly-created employment opportunity section of the urban renewal area. The selected neighborhood, which is zoned for industrial use (IG1), falls between Southeast Third Avenue and Southeast Water Avenue, south of Burnside. The change directs resources toward enhancing the viability of the industrial area.
The new Signage and Lighting Improvement Program (SLIP), a grant match supplement to PDC's existing Storefront program, has already assisted several downtown businesses and more than a dozen additional applications are in the pipeline. Funds are available in the three downtown urban renewal areas: Downtown Waterfront, South Park Blocks, and River District, and are intended to encourage a positive retail and pedestrian environment, particularly along the transmit mall. Contact the Storefront Improvement Program. |
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