Published: April 15, 2009 04:53 pm      

BUSINESS: Road show promotes county incentive programs

Corey Frank has dreamed of opening his own business in the City of Niagara Falls for years.

Up until Wednesday, he had no idea how many services were available to aspiring entrepreneurs like him in Niagara County.

“With all of the issues that are going on in this city right now, these events should be filled,” said Frank, one of a handful of people who attended a special workshop on business development at City Hall. “There’s a lot of people who don’t know programs like this exist.”

While county, state and federal agencies all offer various programs for small business owners and business-owners-to-be, economic development officials say it is often the case that people with good ideas still do not know where to go to find the expertise necessary to develop viable projects. With the downturn in the economy forcing more and more people to consider new career paths, county officials are renewing efforts to promote programs for those who may now be thinking about going into business for themselves.

“When you are doing economic development, you can’t do it by simply sitting behind your desk or behind your computer,” said Mike Casale, coordinator of the workshop series and director of business development in the county.

During Wednesday’s workshop, visitors received information about where to go to find information about business financing, low-interest loan and grant programs, real property and sales tax incentives and low-cost power available through the county’s Empower Niagara program. They also learned about the county’s Small Business Development Center at Niagara County Community College, which provides free help to individuals who are looking to take the crucial step of developing a formal business plan.

“After going through the entire process, people should be really prepared to go to their financial institutions to present their proposals,” Casale said.

Wednesday’s workshop marked the first time the county’s business development road show has made a stop in Niagara Falls since the program’s inception in 2003.

Jeff Stunkel, owner of Trail’s End Country Store on Beebe Road in the Town of Wilson, came to Wednesday’s meeting looking for ways to cut costs. Stunkel said his store has been impacted by the downturn in the economy, a situation made far worse by the state’s recent decision to raise taxes on cigarettes.

“I figured it out that about 300 less people are walking into my store,” Stunkel said.

Economic development officials admitted that current economic conditions are not ideal for business development, but there are signs of improvement, including new guaranteed loan incentives being offered by the federal government in an effort to promote more lending and borrowing in the marketplace.

“People are nervous about the risk,” Casale said. “When you are going into business, there’s a certain amount of risk involved.”