Orleans Parish Businesses Receive Assistance

Effort Will Support 250 Businesses with Funding, Technical Assistance

NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/

Small businesses in Orleans Parish will soon have additional options for rebuilding support from the Collaborative for Enterprise Development. The Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation (LDRF) is funding the effort with private donations from the Bush- Clinton Katrina Fund.

Through the LDRF, the Collaborative for Enterprise Development (The
Collaborative) will fund enterprise redevelopment in the New Orleans region and provide technical assistance and capital to entrepreneurs and small businesses committed to re-opening and expanding in Orleans Parish. The services include loans, business planning, marketing and accounting assistance. In order to participate in the Collaborative's programs, for-profit and not-for-profit small businesses must have been operational in Orleans Parish prior to Hurricane Katrina.

The LDRF made the grant and selected the Collaborative partners, due to the organizations' strength, capacity and proven track record to get the money and services into the hands of local businesses.

"It is important that the resources get into this sector effectively,"
said Landon Williams, LDRF Director of Housing and Small Business
Development. "These organizations are trusted by and know the businesses in the neighborhoods. This would be beneficial to the businesses and support the process."

"We formed the Collaborative to assist now, and to affect the long-term impact," he said. "The Collaborative is building capacity to handle small business recovery if interruptions in business were to happen again, whether on an individual business basis, like a fire, to another major disaster event."

The Collaborative includes ECD/HOPE, Good Work Network, The Idea
Village, Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations, and NewCorp.
During an 18- month period, the Collaborative will help retain, re-open or expand more than 250 businesses, and provide capital for more than $5 million in the form of loans and capital.

"Many entities are in the New Orleans region helping businesses
rebuild, and the Louisiana Disaster Relief Foundation's support provides a needed resource for small, disadvantaged businesses," said Bill Bynum, ECD/HOPE CEO, which will provide business services and also serve as intermediary and fiscal agent of the LDRF grant.

A special commitment has been made by Collaborative partners to include historically socially and economically disadvantaged businesses that are diverse in gender, ethnicity, and income. The Collaborative's focus will be on businesses important to New Orleans, those that provide products or services to enhance and support re-population.

"The Collaborative offers a seat at the table for everyone in the
rebuilding process," said Donna Addkison, chief development officer for the City of New Orleans, Office of Planning and Development. "It is important to the New Orleans and Orleans parish to have all businesses engaged to make our economy strong and have access to the enormous opportunities that exist here."

Fact Sheet

The Collaborative for Enterprise Development
Partner Organization Information

ECD/HOPE
Phone: (504) 581-4673 Web Site: http://www.hopecu.org
ECD/HOPE is a regional community development financial institution,
leveraging private, public and philanthropic resources to tackle
development hurdles facing low-wealth communities (such as jobs, housing, child care, health care, etc.) that cannot be addressed with the resources of any one sector by itself. In addition to serving as intermediary of the Collaborative, ECD/HOPE will provide:
-- Affordable loans and financial services to small businesses and
non-profit organizations adversely affected by Hurricane Katrina,
-- Contract with high-quality TA providers to bring necessary expertise
to strengthen select borrowers, and
-- Partner with a wide variety of public and private entities to
undertake comprehensive outreach efforts for potential clients.

Good Work Network
Phone: (504) 309-2073 Web Site: http://www.goodworknetwork.org
Good Work Network is a micro enterprise development organization that focuses on connecting small under-served businesses to the resources they need to succeed by providing training, technical assistance, back office support services, market access programs, and capital access assistance.
Good Work Network will provide:
-- Business recovery, stabilization and capacity building services,
-- Business service and market referral assistance, and
-- Capital access and direct loan assistance.

The Idea Village
Phone: (504) 304-3287 Web Site: http://www.ideavillage.org
The Idea Village is a nonprofit assisting high-growth businesses by
providing in-depth business consultation, connecting entrepreneurs to
business mentors, and facilitating access to professional services and
capital resources. The Idea Village will provide:
-- In-depth business consultation,
-- Mentor/protege relationship facilitation, and
-- Assistance in securing capital.

Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations
Phone: (225) 343-5266 Web Site: http://www.lano.org
Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations (LANO) is a statewide
network of nonprofits, foundations and individuals dedicated to the vision
of strong, accountable, efficiently run nonprofits. LANO will provide:
-- Organizational assessments, capacity development and service
delivery plans for up to 50 organizations,
-- Support for staffing, and fundraising efforts,
-- Mini-grants to participating nonprofits for internal operational
support and program services.

NewCorp, Inc.
Phone: (504) 615-1900 Web Site: http://www.newcorpbac.com
NewCorp, Inc. is a nonprofit organization operating as a business
assistance center specializing in small, minority and women-owned
businesses. NewCorp will provide:
-- Business assessments and planning,
-- Strategy implementation and technical assistance,
-- Business lending, and
-- Post investment counseling.