In May of this year, RHRocs hosted a Road Rally Event designed to introduce our residents to businesses in our own town. This may not seem like a big deal to some, but the potential sales tax dollars spent in our own city make a big difference in our budget. Sales Tax revenue is significantly more than property tax, so the healthier the businesses in our town, the more income we have to spent on needed items.
I have been studying the works of Chuck Marone – Strongtowns.org – and he believes that small businesses are what build economic stability in towns. He has some very good ideas about encouraging small businesses and I would like to share what I have learned.
Somethings I have experienced:
- the need to supplement income as pensions and social security don’t meet needs anymore for most people. Small businesses give opportunities for seniors.
- Mom’s need flexibility to create earnings and have time for their families. Small business did this for me and many others.
- Small businesses have historically provided tax breaks for many.
So small business creates revenue for the city and opportunity for the residents.
The main issue with starting a business is capital. Chuck has some good incites on helping small businesses starting out – giving them time to grow so that failure rates are lower.
I would love the opportunity to sit down with the entrepenuers of our town and brainstorm some ideas about building businesses for ourselves and our town.
Tenatively, I am selecting Saturday 8/12 as a meetup date. A local vendor has offered a meeting room, and I am working out the details this week.
Let me know if you are interested in attending this meeting.