The City of Fayetteville has restarted “Fayetteville Outfront,” a series of events where the public can interact with city staff to learn about initiatives and ask questions.
“We want to do this to get back into the community,” said Loren Bymer, the city’s marketing and communications director. “These were pretty frequent before Covid and since Covid they kind of fell off. We’re ready to now get back into the community and talk about relevant topics for residents and what they are interested in and what is beneficial to them.”
The first of these events was held Tuesday at the Kiwanis Recreation Center. The theme was ‘how to do business with the city,’ and it included city managers and staff as well as local entrepreneurs who have been able to jumpstart their businesses with help from the city. Though only a handful of people attended the event, the participants were passionate about investing in the local economy and supporting entrepreneurship in Fayetteville.
Derrick McArthur, the city’s economic development manager, works on the small business assistance programs the city offers. He’s passionate about what he does.
“Well, me being a native from Fayetteville, it means a lot to see the vitality of the city and grow and expand,” McArthur told CityView. “We can hire locally. It does so much just not for your area, but for the whole economy of the city. And we need all of that to grow.”
McArthur gave an overview of the city’s various small business programs aimed at revitalizing local communities and enhancing business growth:
- Business Assistance Loan Program: This program offers gap loans or down payment assistance up to $125,000 for new and existing small businesses within city limits to purchase commercial property. To qualify, the business must create or retain jobs for low- and moderate-income individuals.
- Commercial Exterior Grant: This grant provides financial assistance to small businesses or commercial property owners leasing to small businesses for improvement to their property’s facade. The program offers a one-time matching reimbursement of up to $25,000 for properties located in designated low- to moderate-income areas.
- Technical assistance: This program offers targeted support, guidance, and resources to entrepreneurs and small business owners. The Economic and Community Development Department assesses a business’s needs and goals to provide tailored assistance in areas like business planning, marketing or financial management.
- Workforce development: This program encompasses several initiatives aimed at strengthening the local workforce. These include job skills training at Fayetteville Technical Community College, apprenticeship programs, internships, coding in high schools, employment assistance for adults with disabilities, support for transitioning military members and families and a general contractor license prep program.
Local success stories
Latisha Perkins is the founder of Maybridge Development, a local construction company that focuses on new construction, affordable housing and government projects. Perkins said she was able to get her general contractor license last year through the city’s preparation program.
“And from there I’ve just been working very hard and working alongside the city to gain many opportunities that they have,” Perkins told CityView. Her company is currently working on the pre-construction phase of an affordable housing project on city-owned lots.
“We’re getting all our drawings together, making sure that everything is organized so that when we do break ground, it’s a smooth process,” Perkins said. “And we’re just looking mostly to exceed the community and the city’s expectations when we break ground.”
Andrew Artis is another local entrepreneur who came to Tuesday’s event to learn more about small business support services offered by the city. He and his wife Kellie’s upcoming venture, Bound and Vine, is a combination bookstore and wine shop set to open at 134 Person St. Inspired by the need for more community gathering spaces, they aim to create a hub for idea-sharing and cultural enrichment, featuring a 1920 Steinway grand piano for musical performances from local artists and groups like the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra and Sweet Tea Shakespeare.
“There’s a lot of opportunities available to small business owners here,” Artis told CityView. “And we’re trying to learn more to see where we can tap into some of those resources and then really get the word out. Because part of what we’re doing, we’ve lived here for 20 years, I’m in the military, retiring this year, and Fayetteville’s become home for us. We want to continue to build this community, and I think it works hand in hand with the city.”
Fayetteville Outfront to continue
Bymer said the city has two more Fayetteville Outfront events scheduled. One is set to take place in May and will be about city capital projects and infrastructure, such as the Mazarick Park Tennis Center and Rosehill Road sidewalk project, as well as city stormwater projects.
The third session will take place in June, and will be primarily focused on “how to connect with your city,” Bymer said. The city hopes to have hired a director of the Office of Community Safety by then and to have the director join the discussion.
Government accountability reporter Evey Weisblat can be reached at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
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