Your Monthly Update
from the Community Development Partnership
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In this month’s E-news, you will find an article on our Small Business Technical Assistance programs and our work to support Lower Cape entrepreneurs in creating and growing businesses. Since 1992, the CDP has been a critical resource in our community for small businesses. My first experience with the CDP was in 1998 when I sought help writing a business plan for CHESTER Restaurant in Provincetown. The CDP played a critical role in helping to transform a dream into a thriving business.
Over the past year, we have assisted 260+ small businesses on the Lower Cape, including over 200 owned by women, BIPOC, immigrant, veteran, and LGBTQIA residents. An essential part of our work has been providing capital through microloans to businesses not eligible for loans from traditional lenders such as banks. Over the past three decades, we have lent over $4M to local small businesses.
These critical programs are made possible thanks to support from many philanthropic sources, including our generous local banks: Cape Cod Five, the Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod, Rockland Trust Bank, Seamen’s Bank, Santander Bank, and USDA Rural Development. Our most significant support comes from the Mass Growth Capital Corporation’s Small Business Technical Assistance Program (MGCC-SBTA). Unfortunately, the State’s Fiscal Year 2024 budget cut the MGCC’s Small Business Technical Assistance Program Budget by $2 million – a 27% reduction in the funding provided last year.
In the coming months, we hope the legislature will restore funding for this critical program to the $7 million provided last year, and even increase this amount since the CDP and some 80 organizations across the state have submitted funding requests totaling $9.5 million. Should you have an opportunity to speak with members of our Statehouse delegation -- Senator Cyr, Representatives Peake, and Representative Flanagan -- please share with them how important it is for the State to support local businesses and nurture entrepreneurs through this critical funding.
Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy and play a critical role in helping the CDP achieve our mission to lead the Lower Cape in building a diverse year-round community of people who can afford to live, work, and thrive here.
Happy Labor Day, and enjoy September – the Cape’s second summer!
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Jay Coburn
President & Chief Executive Officer
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Supporting Local Business |
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CDP Empowers Business Owners and Entrepreneurs |
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“You don't have to go to them -- the CDP comes to you. They meet and support community members where they are."
– Bernadette Waystack, Local Artist and CDP TA Client
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Last year, our team assisted over 260 small businesses, including over 200 businesses owned by low- and moderate-income (LMI) residents and represented by women, LGBTQIA, veterans, and immigrant communities. During the past 27 years, the CDP has partnered with over 2,800 small businesses and provided over $4 million in loan capital to small businesses, helping create stability and economic growth in our region.
The Small Business Technical Assistance (TA) program is a core part of the CDP’s Business and Credit Program. The Small Business TA program provides free one-on-one support to owners at any stage of development tailored to the specific needs of each business. Our CDP team offers small business owners training on best business practices, including record keeping, sales and marketing, financial management, and staff recruitment and retention. For clients starting new businesses, support can also include:
- Creating a business plan
- Navigating local and state regulatory and licensing requirements
- Preparing initial business projections
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A Key to Housing is in Our Backyards |
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“ADUs can create housing for residents earning more than 80% of Area Median Income, so they don’t have to rely on the non-existent rental market”
– Talitha Abramsen, ADU Resource Center Program Manager
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Can Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) help address the region’s affordable housing crisis? According to Talitha Abramsen, the CDP's ADU Resource Center Program Manager, ADUs can be a piece of the puzzle in creating rental housing for Lower and Outer Cape residents who earn too much to qualify for traditional affordable housing. "ADUs may cost less to create than new construction and they can be financed by their owners,” said Abramsen. “They can create housing for residents earning more than 80% of Area Median Income, so they don’t have to rely on the non-existent rental market.”
ADUs are additional units built on existing residential properties; they may be basement living suites, apartments above garages, in-law apartments, or detached structures. While ADUs are not new, some people are unfamiliar with them. A recent Freddie Mac consumer survey found that 71% of homeowners were unfamiliar with the concept, though 32% expressed interest in having one on their property once they learned about it.
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Thank You for Making the 9th Annual A Summer Evening on the Farm One of the Best Yet!
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"Having a stable, affordable, and nice place to live was a dream come true. A place where we could get back on our feet. Because of the support and kindness of the community, we have been able to rebuild our lives on the Lower Cape
and move forward."
– Arelis Cruz-Aleman, Former CDP Rental Housing Resident
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Your support and energy made this year's event an astonishing success. Thank you for being so committed to supporting affordable housing and economic development solutions on Lower and Outer Cape! The CDP hosted the 9th annual A Summer Evening on the Farm on Thursday, August 24, to raise funds to help individuals, families, and seniors access affordable housing, and support small business development on the Lower and Outer Cape.
Over 200 supporters hailing from across the Cape joined together at Greenhouse By The Sea to celebrate the CDP's impact and support the organization’s affordable housing and small business programs that work to build a stronger and more diverse year-round community on the Lower and Outer Cape. The evening was full of smiling faces, of all ages, enjoying the sunshine and the bright atmosphere of the event. Guests enjoyed live music performed by the Old Guys Quartet, local bites by Cosmos Catering, fresh-shucked oysters from Elwood’s Raw Bar, and drinks provided by Truro Vineyards and Devil's Purse Brewing.
Guest speaker Arelis Cruz-Alemán, a former CDP rental housing resident, shared her family's emotional and important story. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, the Cruz-Aleman Family left Puerto Rico for a new life on Cape Cod. Thanks to the stability and support they received while living at Fred Bell Way, a CDP-owned rental property in Wellfleet -- and through Alfred Cruz's employment at Mac's Seafood, a CDP Microloan recipient -- the Cruz Family found their footing and a home on the Cape. The CDP's low rental fee enabled the family to work, live, and save money to purchase their new home. And with additional support from Habitat for Humanity's affordable homeownership program, they became homeowners in 2022. (Click here to watch Arelis's speech.)
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SPECIAL THANKS TO
Our Host Committee
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Polly Bryson
Steve Cole and Adele Blong
Lindsay Cole and Chris Ward
Matt and Katie Cole
Jennifer and Jeff Cusack
Alison and John Ferring
Lisa Guyon
Judy Keller
David Koven and Diane Gordon
Mary Kay Leonard
Fran and Alan McClennen
Lori Meads
Aaron and Courtney Polhemus
Marin Reinhardt and Matt Wettmore
Carole and Scott Ridley
Paul Ruchinskas
Anne Sigsbee
Andrew Stern and Emily Miller
Dan Wolf and Heidi Schuetz
Barbara Wood
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Expanding Housing Through ADUs |
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Free Small Business Assistance
The CDP's Business & Credit team is available to provide small business owners and entrepreneurs with one-on-one, no-cost technical assistance to help them succeed.
Meetings can take place remotely via phone or video conference, or in person at the Provincetown Commons, The 204 (Harwich Cultural Center), and Chatham Works.
Click below to schedule a 30- or 60-minute appointment.
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Sign up for Inside Scoop, our monthly newsletter with useful tips, resources, and news for Cape-based small business owners and entrepreneurs.
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Keep Updated -- Follow the CDP |
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