Durham's Finance Department is rolling out the welcome mat for local small businesses looking to get a piece of the city contract pie, with a particular focus on those dabbling in construction, architecture, engineering, and surveying gigs. The city is hosting a free outreach event on May 22 with the aim of guiding these businesses through the qualifications maze for city contracts.
During the event, set from 6 to 8 p.m. at the City Hall Annex at 101 City Hall Plaza, entrepreneurs can have face-time with the SLBE Program's brain trust, get the scoop on the application grind, and snag tactics for staying on top of bidding , and proposal games. Tim Flora, Durham's Finance Director, underscored the program’s value in boosting the local economy, and in a statement obtained by Durham's official website, he stated, "This event is a great chance for these businesses to ask questions and connect with the people who manage our program."
Here's the deal: if you want to be in the know and rub elbows with the city staffers, you better hit up the pre-registration by the May 18 deadline. To dig deeper into the SLBE Program's nuts and bolts, you can take a stroll over to the program's webpage or reach out via email or a good old-fashioned phone call to 919-560-4180.
So what's the SLBE Program all about? It's an attempt by Durham's powers that be to give a leg up to homegrown small businesses in Durham, Orange, Person, and Chatham counties – without getting tangled up in the thorny issues of race or gender. The focus is on construction contracts that don't exceed $500,000, professional services up to $100,000, and other services that keep under the $500,000 ceiling. The city's Underutilized Business Compliance Division, tucked in the Finance Department, is the operation's command center. And hey, it's not just talk. This initiative is the real deal, backed by North Carolina legislation.
