Overview
The Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is a federal, Small Business Administration (SBA) funded program to assist small businesses with resources necessary to be successful. This includes creating business plans, assistance with human resources, access to capital to ensure business owners are creating a solid foundation for their company, and more. Over the last 12 months, SBDC has assisted 839 local businesses in Monterey County.
The SBDC is currently hosted by Cal Coastal (a financial institution) through U.C. Merced (UCM), who manages multiple SBDC’s for the Small Business Administration throughout California. Cal Coastal notified U.C. Merced in October that they are opting not to renew their agreement with UCM for the SBDC designation. The Request for Proposals to host the SBDC was released at the end of October, with a tight deadline to apply by December 15th, 2023.
The current SBDC and Monterey County Business Council (MCBC) have worked collaboratively for years, referring business owners back and forth to each other based on the needs of the companies. MCBC has been working in partnership with the County of Monterey to assist businesses recover from the pandemic - the entirely bilingual staff at MCBC is active in all areas of the county, both in seminars and on foot, engaging businesses. The opportunity to expand those SBDC services to MCBC is a seamless progression for MCBC.
Plan
If selected as the host, Monterey County Business Council plans to run the SBDC a little differently than its current setup---securing partnerships with the City of Soledad and City of Monterey for satellite offices in South County and Monterey Peninsula, in addition to the home base office in Salinas. This allows business owners to have access to the SBDC services in their area without traveling to Salinas, which is currently the only location. There is also a plan to expand outreach to South County and Monterey Peninsula, to ensure the assistance to those areas increases dramatically. (See Attachment A.)
MCBC currently has bilingual staff, expertly trained in outreach and assistance to businesses – the progression of working as the SBDC is a natural fit.
Funding
MCBC is currently the only local agency applying for the designation. MCBC recognizes the need for the SBDC, and understands if no one applies, Monterey County loses the Small Business Development Center entirely. There is a local match requirement of $120,000 for the $400,000 federal SBA Small Business Development Center (SBDC) program. There is CA GoBiz (Technical Assistance Program) funding available that MCBC plans to apply for in 2024 (the current SBDC has it), but with one month to submit the RFP, MCBC is unable to secure it from the state for the RFP application. The requirement for funding is promissory for the RFP – the local match would only be required if MCBC is awarded the designation.
MCBC has secured $10,000 from the City of Monterey and a satellite location in Monterey, and is currently asking for financial commitments from multiple cities. We have confirmation of the following:
Monterey - $10K - confirmed
Carmel - $5K - confirmed
King City - $5K - confirmed
Soledad - $10K and satellite office (going to council for approval on 12/5) Gonzales- $5K (going to council for approval on 12/4)
We are contacting with the funding request to:
Sand City - $5K
Marina - $5K
Seaside - $5K
Pacific Grove- $5K
Del Rey Oaks - $5K
Greenfield- $5K
MCBC is requesting the County of Monterey supplement the remaining amount.
Request
MCBC is respectfully requesting $5,000 from the City of Gonzales towards the local match requirement, for the Small Business Development Center. Both would be contingent upon the SBA grant being awarded to Monterey County Business Council. ***
ATTACHMENT A
SBDC BUSINESSES SERVED – JULY 1, 2022 – JUNE 30, 2023
Monterey County 839
Aromas 4
Big Sur 2
Carmel 69
Carmel Valley 27
Carmel-by-the-Sea 4
Castroville 14
Chualar 3
Gonzales 12
Greenfield 14
King City 33
Marina 46
Monterey 131
Moss Landing 3
Pacific Grove 37
Pebble Beach 6
Prunedale 10
Royal Oaks 11
Salinas 308
Sand City 3
Seaside 71
Soledad 28
Spreckels 3