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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCAO-15-027 - City of Kitchener - Waterloo Region Small Business Centre - Agreement with Cities of Cambridge and Waterloo Staff Report K jT(HF,-Ni., CA0 Office www.kitchener ca REPORT TO: Finance and Corporate Services DATE OF MEETING: September 21, 2015 SUBMITTED BY: Chris Farrell, Manager, Small Business Centre 519 741-2200 ext 7294 PREPARED BY: Chris Farrell, Manager, Small Business Centre 519 741-2200 ext 7294 WARD (S) INVOLVED: All DATE OF REPORT: September 9, 2015 REPORT NO.: CAO- 15-027 SUBJECT: City of Kitchener—Waterloo Region Small Business Centre—Agreement with City of Cambridge and City of Waterloo RECOMMENDATION: That the CAO and Clerk be authorized to sign a three year funding agreement between the City of Kitchener, City of Cambridge and City of Waterloo to collaborate on delivery of the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre services and programs funded in part by the Province of Ontario. Said agreement to be to the satisfaction of the City Solicitor EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: To support the continued success of small business within our community, the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre requires the authorization of the CAO and Clerk to sign a three year funding agreement between the City of Kitchener, City of Cambridge and City of Waterloo to collaborate on delivery of the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre services and programs funded in part by the Province of Ontario. BACKGROUND: The Waterloo Region Small Business Centre (WRSBC) under the Economic Development Division of the City of Kitchener was established in 1999 as one of 57 Province of Ontario's Small Business Enterprise Centres, funded by the Province of Ontario. The Centres provide information, workshops, events, guidance and consultation on a variety of issues to entrepreneurs in all industry sectors and at all stages of business from startup to expansion. The businesses are primarily traditional and main street ventures having fewer than 5 employees. A funding agreement between the Province of Ontario and the City of Kitchener, since 2001, supports the core services of the Kitchener location and the 2 satellite office locations in Cambridge (2000) and Waterloo (2006). WRSBC Annual funding sources include: • The Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation ***This information is available in accessible formats upon request. *** Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance. 3 - 1 • The Region of Waterloo • The Cities of Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo • Other revenue: Sponsorships, Projects/Programs and Event Fees The City of Kitchener's Waterloo Region Small Business Centre office currently operates with 4.5 Full Time Employees. Each of the satellite offices has one City of Cambridge and City of Waterloo employee. The Centre has a volunteer Board of Advisors consisting of 10 local business professionals and funders meet six times per year and recruits over 100 volunteers supporting programs and events offered in the community. Annually, throughout the Region, the Centre responds to over 15,000 inquiries, 1,500 one-on- one consultations, assists over 460 new startups, facilitates over 250 workshops and hosts up to 40 events. The Centre also delivers entrepreneurial programs supporting startups, youth, newcomers, and opportunities for individuals to become job creators instead of job seekers. For example; the Summer Company program has assisted 227 students age 15-29 to start and run a summer business over the past 14 years. Newcomer training and outreach has engaged over 660 New Canadians to learn about starting a business in Canada over the past 5 years. The organization is dedicated to diligent fiscal practises and has operated in a small surplus for over 5 years. The City of Kitchener (Waterloo Region Small Business Centre) has received support from the Province of Ontario since inception. Each year for the past 5 years the Province has maintained an annual contribution of $155,000.00 for the core services. The province provides additional funding to the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre for business events, Summer Company program and Starter Company program. The provincial funding flows through the City of Kitchener to support management and operations of all 3 centres including: all liaisons with the Province of Ontario, program delivery, event coordination, youth programs, community outreach, marketing, promotions, sponsorships, mentor recruitment, web management and content, accounting, collection of data and staffing. REPORT: The City of Cambridge and the City of Waterloo Economic Development Departments independently fund one staff and office space as an in-kind contribution. They also provide a grant contribution to the centre. The purpose of the agreement between the City of Kitchener, the City of Cambridge and the City Waterloo is to maintain a collaborative Waterloo Region Small Business Centre partnership and a monetary contribution to offset the increasing cost of management and operations of the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre based on a per capita formula. ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN: 3 - 2 The Waterloo Region Small Business Centre aligns its goals with the City of Kitchener Economic Development Strategy 2011-2015. Kitchener is a great place to start a business with the best programs, facilities and community support for business owners. In the strategy under Community Context 2. Entrepreneurial Spirit, it is stated, "Entrepreneurship and innovation have always been traits of our city". There is a critical need to attract and retain talent, support entrepreneurship and small enterprise during early stages of startup. The services offered by the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre ensures all citizens have access to explore business ideas and support to implement viable and sustainable business ventures. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: None. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: Entrepreneurship and innovation contributes to economic growth in the community. The Centre provides programs and services that support and compliment other community entrepreneurial initiatives essential to the commercialization of small business as a collaborative partner in within this ecosystem. INFORM — Municipalities will announce once the agreements have been signed. COLLABORATE — The City of Kitchener — Waterloo Region Small Business Centre communicates, consults and collaborates with a broad range of community groups, organizations, agencies, secondary and post-secondary institutes, municipal, regional and provincial governments to ensure the entrepreneurial services and programs address the needs of small business in the community. The volunteers for the Waterloo Region Small Business Centre and the Board of Advisors are representative of these community groups. ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Jeff Willmer, CAO 3 - 3