Resources

There are numerous programs available to assist prospective and existing small business owners. Many are wholly or partially funded by federal or local government entities and can provide services to you at low or no cost. Sometimes staffed by university professors and graduate business students, retired business executives, or small business consulting specialists, these programs are excellent sources of advice.

Types of Assistance

Small business assistance programs generally fall into two categories: training programs, which teach business owners technical and financial skills, and loan programs, which offer loans or loan guarantees for small businesses.

Training Programs

Depending on the organization and on your particular needs, training programs offer skill-building assistance either in the classroom for several weeks or in individual counseling sessions.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS can cover a wide range of topics and their applicability depends on the nature of your business. Topics may include production, marketing, distribution, packaging, import/export documentation, and human resources or staff management.

FINANCIAL SKILLS ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS may include basic accounting, cash flow management, sales projections, feasibility studies, and tax planning.

BUSINESS PLAN DEVELOPMENT COURSES include components of both the technical and financial programs and assist you with composing, preparing, and presenting your business plan and loan proposal to prospective lenders.

Loan Programs

LOAN PROGRAMS are among the resources offered by small business investment corporations and state or local development corporations. These programs typically have funds available to lend directly to new or expanding businesses. They also may offer guarantees or other support for a loan given by a traditional lender, such as a bank, to help mitigate the bank's risk of lending directly to a new small business.

One advantage of approaching an organization with a loan program rather than a bank is that the organization may have funds dedicated solely to the new small business market. It also may be receiving some type of government subsidy that permits it to offer lower interest rates for small business loans. Programs that provide guarantees from a government agency to pay the loan if your business fails may convince a bank to lend to your business when it otherwise wouldn't.

Small Business Administration

Created in 1953, the Small Business Administration (SBA) provides management and financial assistance to small businesses. Mainly, the SBA guarantees loans through financial institutions. The loans may be used for working capital, machinery and equipment, acquisition of real estate, and expansion.

Information Guide

More information about technical assistance programs and loans offered by not-for-profit groups and government agencies in New York and New Jersey is available in the "Resource Guide for Small Business Lending."

To order the Resource Guide, write: Federal Reserve Bank of New York Community Affairs Office 33 Liberty St. New York, NY 10045

The following is a partial list of the organizations that appear in the Resource Guide.

New Jersey

Economic Development Corporation of Essex County (EDC)
Burton Sebold, Executive Director
443 Northfield Ave.
West Orange, NJ 07052
(201) 731-2772

Middlesex County Certified Local
Development Corp.
Angel Guikoff, Management Specialist
303 George St., Suite 304
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
(908) 745-4005

Somerset Alliance for the Future (SAF)/District Management Corp.
of the Borough of Somerville (DMC)
Richard Close, Design Coordinator
(SAF), or Richard Reitman, Chairman (DMC)
166 W. Main St.
Somerville, NJ 08876
(908) 704-1010

Downstate New York

ACCION New York
Delma Soto, Director, or
Hector Carino, Operations Manager
235 Havemeyer St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 599-5170

Bedford Stuyvesant
Restoration Corp.
Bernice McRae, Project Coordinator
1368 Fulton St.
Brooklyn, NY 11216
(718) 636-6924

Brooklyn Economic
Development Corp. (BEDC)
Joan Bartolomeo, President
30 Flatbush Ave., 4th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11217
(718) 522-4600

Greater Jamaica
Local Development Co., Inc.
William F. Johnson, Assistant Secretary
90-04 161st St.
Jamaica, NY 11432
(718) 291-0282

Harlem Restoration Project, Inc.
Dorothy Keller, Counsel
461 W. 125th St.
New York, NY 10027
(212) 662-8186

Long Island Development Corp.
Roslyn D. Goldmacher, Executive Director
255 Glen Cove Rd.
Carle Place, NY 11514
(516) 741-5690

Manhattan Borough
Development Corp.
Patricia Swann, Executive Director
15 Park Row, Suite 510
New York, NY 10038
(212) 791-3660

Nassau/Suffolk Minority Business
Development Center
Kathleen Percival Greene, Executive Director
150 Broad Hollow Rd., Suite 304
Melville, NY 11747-4901
(516) 549-5454

New York City Comptroller's Office
Stuart Baron, Project Manager
1 Centre St., Room 736
New York, NY 10007
(212) 669-2017

New York City Economic
Development Corp.
Allison Clark, Urban
Fellow (Finance/Lending)
110 William St.
New York, NY 10038
(212) 312-3900

New York State Small Business Development Center
Judith M. McEvoy, Director
Harriman Hall
State University of New York
at Stony Brook
StonyBrook, NY 11794-3775
(516) 632-9070

PortJervis Development Corp.
John A. Russell, Executive Director
P.O. Box 3105, 19 East Main
St. Port Jervis, NY 12771
(914) 858-8358

Queens Minority Business Development Center
Albert G. Longoria, Executive Director
110-29 Horace Harding Expressway
Flushing, NY 11368
(718) 592-1001

Upstate New York

Adirondack Economic Development Corp.
Jamie Y. White, Economic Specialist
Trudeau Rd., Box 747
Saranac Lake, NY 12983
(518) 891-5523

Alternatives Federal Credit Union
Mary Ziegler, Director of Lending
301 West State St.
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 273-4666

Erie County Industrial
Development Agency
Miguel Coty, Director of Communication
424 Main St., Suite 300
Buffalo, NY 14202-3595
716) 856-6525

Ibero American Investors Corp.
Emilio L. Serrano, President & CEO, or
Jerry Murtha, Chief Lending Officer
104 Scio St.
Rochester, NY 14604
(716) 262-3440

Mohawk Valley Rehabilitation Corp.
Michael Reese,
Executive Vice President & CEO
26 W. Main St.
Mohawk, NY 13407
(315) 866-4671

Monroe County Industrial
Development Corp.
Judith Seil,
Economic Development Specialist
One West Main St., Suite 600
Rochester, NY 14614
(716) 428-5060

New York Business
Development Corp.
Robert W. Lazar, President & CEO
41 State St., PO. Box 738
Albany, NY 12201
(518) 463-2268

Rochester Economic
Development Corp.
Charles Andrus, Secretary
30 Church St.
Rochester, NY 14604
(716) 428-6808

Rural Opportunities, Inc.
RobertJ. Aronson
Deputy for Economic Development
339 East Ave.
Rochester, NY 14604
(716) 546-7180

NY State Government Programs

New York State
Science & Technology Foundation
Tom Smith, Finance Associate
99 Washington Ave., Suite 1731
Albany, NY 12210
(518) 473-9741

New York State
Urban Development Corp.
Leslie R. Byrd, Vice President
1515 Broadway
New York, NY 10036
(212) 930-0452

Federal Government Programs

Farmers Home Administraffon
Lowell Gibson, Chief,
Community and Business Programs
James M. Hanley Federal Bldg.
Room 871
Syracuse, NY 13261
(315) 423-5290

U.S. Department of Commerce,
Minority Business
Development Agency
John F Iglehart, Regional Director
Jacob K. Javits Federal Building
Room 3720
New York, NY 10278
(212) 264-3262

Small Business Administration
Ronald Goldstein, Chief of Finance
26 Federal Plaza
New York, NY 10278
(212) 264-1480

Walter Barnes, Chief of Finance
Military Park Building
60 Park Plaza
Newark, NJ 07102
(201) 645-3582

Regulatory Agencies

The following is a list of Community Reinvestment Act contacts in New York and New Jersey.

Federal Reserve Bank of New York
James K. Hodgetts,
Community Affairs Officer
(212) 720-5898
Elizabeth Rodriguez-Jackson,
Special Assistant for Community Affairs
33 Liberty St.
New York, NY 10045
(212) 720-5921

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Pamela Lea Mount, Compliance Manager
112 Madison Ave., Suite 400
New York, NY 10016-7416
(212) 779-4537

Office of Thrift Supervision
Ada Moran, Community Affairs Liaison
10 Exchange Place Center
Jersey City, NJ 07302
(201) 413-1000

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
Donna Gambrell, Community Affairs Officer
452 Fifth Ave., 17th Floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 704-1230

New York State Banking Department
Consumer Services Division
Peter Zanko, Assistant Deputy Superintendent
2 Rector St.
New York, NY 10006
(212) 618-6408

New Jersey State
Banking Department
Paul Buytkins, Administrative Analyst
CN040
20 West State St.
Trenton, NJ 08625
(609) 989-4151

Reprinted with permission of Tracy L. Penwell, Tuko Fujisaki, Publication Productions and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Public Information Dept.
33 Liberty Street
New York, NY 10045
(212)720-6134