The leader of The Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce says he appreciates President Joe Biden's visit to his organization Wednesday.
Ruben Hopkins spoke with reporters just after the Biden event. "I think it's inspiring. The community needs to know somebody's paying attention. Over the years, when politicians come, normally they don't come specifically and point out a specific focus," Hopkins said, adding that Biden did so.
The Wisconsin Black Chamber of Commerce has already benefitted from the Biden Administration. It's one of several Black business organizations in the state that have received a total of about $22 million in American Recovery Plan (ARPA) funds by going through a competitive grant program managed by the state of Wisconsin.
Hopkins told the audience at the Biden event that some of that money has gone into running access to capital boot camps, "That shows many businesses why they're always broke. We give each business that attends financial assistance with the goal and focus of making them bankable. We have serviced approximately 600 businesses since beginning the program in February 2023," Hopkins said.
Hopkins says the Black business community is better off now than it was four years ago. But he says there is still the problem of raising money.
"It's access to capital. But they have to be prepared for that access. So, we work with them to prepare them, to get them to the point where they can actually access capital," Hopkins told reporters.
Hopkins said his goal remains to help create 3,000 new Black-owned businesses by next year.
A U.S. Commerce Department announcement on Wednesday may eventually bring more assistance. The agency announced the Grow Milwaukee Recompete Plan, led by the Northwest Side Community Development Corporation, which hopes to bring economic prosperity to the 30th Street Industrial Corridor, is one of 22 finalists for the federal agency's Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program. Hundreds of locations across the U.S. applied.
The federal initiative targets areas where employment for 25- to 54-year-olds is significantly lower than the national average, with the goal of closing the gap through locally driven investments.
Biden says Milwaukee and the other finalists will be vying for implementation funding authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act.
"Competing for tens of millions of dollars for federal grants to grow small businesses, create good paying jobs and build factories of the future. It matters," Biden told the audience.
The deadline for Milwaukee to apply for the Recompete funding is the end of April, with grants expected later next year. Does Milwaukee have a leg up on the competition because Biden is counting on a strong local vote to help him carry the battleground state of Wisconsin?
Stranger things have happened in politics.
