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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 4b. Review of DEI SLO Business Grant Subcommittee Funding Recommendations Item 4b Human Relations Commission Agenda Report For Agenda of: 5/3/2023 Item Number: 4b FROM: Nestor Veloz-Passalacqua, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Manager Phone Number: (805) 781-7073 E-mail: nveloz@slocity.org SUBJECT REVIEW DEI SLO BUSINESS GRANT SUBCOMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS AND PROVIDE A RECOMMENDATION FOR FUNDING TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR FINAL APPROVAL RECOMMENDATION Receive preliminary recommendations from the DEI SLO Business Grant Subcommittee and provide a recommendation for funding to the City Council final approval. BACKGROUND The offices of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion and Economic Development & Tourism partnered to provide financial support to local businesses and promote the economic and social well-being of community members through the DEI business grant. This program is a part of both DEI and Economic Recovery, Resiliency, and Fiscal Responsibility Major City Goals with the goal of making San Luis Obispo a more welcoming and inclusive place for all community members. Applicants did not have to be an underrepresented or underserved business owner to apply for the grant, but the specific proposal must be geared towards expanding services or access, but not exclusive to, those are underserved or underrepresented. There were 32 applications and $150,000 to distribute and the Commissioners took into consideration the funding criteria which was:  Applicants must be a business based in the City of San Luis Obispo with a current business license and be in good standing; or if the application is for a new business, the applicant must complete 5 hours of one-on-one SBDC consulting services and secure a business license prior to receiving the grant funds.  Funding requests must be for activities, services, or other concepts that primarily occur in the City.  Funding requests must be focused on serving underserved/underrepresented communities; however, all activities, services and other concepts must be accessible to all people.  Requests must be for activities, services, or other concepts with the ability to show measurable impact and/or successes. Page 15 of 21 Item 4b  Viability and sustainability are also key indicators in final review and recommendation to the City Council for grant awards. NEXT STEPS Receive preliminary recommendations for applications, discuss the subcommittee’s findings, open to public hearing, discuss comments from public hearing, and vote on the final funding recommendations for Council. ATTACHMENTS A - DEI SLO Business Grant Subcommittee Recommendations Page 16 of 21 Organization Project/Program Description of Project/Program Requested Amount Recommended Amount 1 Alpenglow Industries Soldering & Electronics for Folks Underrepresented in STEMs 8 workshops serving an estimated 105 people in collaboration with local organizations that serve underrepresented groups who typically receive fewer opportunities to engage in tech. Instructional material will be in both English, Spanish, and videos with subtitles. Intention is to build fundamental knowledge and confidence so participants can utilize skills learned to seek entry level tech or manufacturing employment.This is a new program requesting funds for 89% of project. $25,000 $18,353 2 Banchan Foods Kimchi Business New business seeking to increase culinary diversity and promote Korean culture in San Luis Obispo. Banchan Foods will produce and sell kimchi directly to consumers online, farmers market, and at the SLO Oriental Market. This is a new business requesting funds to cover a portion of their startup. $25,000 $25,000 3 CaliKids Fitness N/A Calikids provides inclusive and innovative mobile fitness classes for kids between the ages of 0-10 and their caregivers by bringing equipment to homes and schools for fitness sessions. This is a new program and is requesting funds for the entire program. $49,000 $0 4 Clarity Collective LLC Advancing Women of Color Symposium Projectfunding request is for development of a symposium centering woman of color (though open to all people) that will focus on developing skills, learning strategies, and building connections. The target number of attendees is 50-100 and it will all be organized and delivered by women of color. This is a new program requesting funds for entire project. $25,000 $0 5 Concussion Navigation Services Financial Aid for Concussion Care The program is built to provide specialty concussion rehab care to those who are uninsured, underinsured, marginalized, or economically insecure. This is a new program seeking funds for entire program. $10,000 $10,000 6 Corazon Café SLO LCC Café, Comida, Cultura & Community Downtown SLO storefront coffee shop and small Mexican fusion sourcing products from many diverse sources. Business will showcase underrepresented artwork in their establishment, create a system of donations to give back to the community, and be a hub for cultural experiences. This is a new program requesting funds for a portion of the project. $9,011 $9,011 Page 17 of 21 7 Dimensions of You DEI Dimensions of You (DOY) SLO Dimensions of You is an individualized health coaching platform that helps people by applying cognitive behavior coaching techniques for strategies individuals can implement to improve their lives. These services will be for those who have barriers to receiving help and will be no cost to the client. This is a continuation of an existing program requesting funds for entire project. $25,000 $0 8 Diringer & Associates SLO County Migrant Indigenous Community Survey Diringer and Associates has been contracted to perform an enumeration and community survey of the immigrant indigenous populations of SLO County, focusing on Mixteco and other indigenous language speakers. There is funding from CDC to conduct survey but that funding does not allow for compensation and this grant would provide $50 gift cards to approximately 50 people who will be interviewed. This new program is requesting funds to cover 15% of the overall project. $2,750 $0 9 Gymnazo Inc. Bridging the Gap: A Community Fitness Endeavor Gymnazo is expanding services as traditional fitness facilities fall short and will offer community classes and scholarships for mentorship program. Additionally, the funds would allow for a staffing position and equipment. This new program is requesting funds for the entire program. $25,000 $0 10 Lombards Stereo Lombards Stereo Vehicular Safety Outreach The project funding request would be to allow for revamped advertisement that will be geared towards underrepresented communities in SLO. Additionally, funds will be used to recruit and hire new employees. This is a new program requesting funds for the entire program. $150,000 $0 11 Mission Headstrong Autism Personal Training Program Mission Headstrong is a non-profit connected to Headstrong (business) to help close the equity gaps that exist in the fitness world. The funds would have 15 coaches certified by Autism Fitness ™ so all coaches at Headstrong will be appropriately competent to provide coaching for the Autistic Community. This is a new program requesting funds for the entire program. $23,336 $23,336 12 Neptune's Nursery LLC Sun Coast Kids This program focuses on providing opportunities for kids to experience outdoor exercise while learning about nature reserves and hiking through an empowerment curriculum. The funds will be for staff and transportation. This is a combination of a new and existing program seeking funds to cover 40% of the program. $20,000 $0 Page 18 of 21 13 PacSlo Transport LLC Electric Vehicle Fleet PacSLO aims to provide transportation to and from medical appointments, emergency room discharges, surgery procedures, and leisure outings. The funding request for the vehicle was carefully chosen to reflect the City's goal of carbon neutrality. This program is seeking funds for the entire project. $25,000 $0 14 Personal Touch Salon N/A Personal Touch Salon aims to provide specialized training and continuing education for local stylists to better serve underrepresented members of the community with diverse hair types. The training will cover various topics in order to improve the quality of their services. This new program is seeking funds for their entire project. $25,000 $0 15 Positive Xpression Design (PXDesign) DEI SLO Business Grant Positive Xpression is seeking funds to purchase a gently used automatic press and installation, as well as used needed screens, inks, and supplies for the operation of the new machine. This is a continuation of an existing program requesting funds for the entire project. $15,000 $0 16 Roxanne's Birkenstock Gifts From the Sky This would be an expansion of a existing program that has been going since 2003. The hope is to give higher quality shoes to nonprofits who focus on distribution of goods to disenfranchised community members. This is an existing program seeking funds for 40% of the project. $10,000 $0 17 Seeds Seeds Community Events Funding request has two (2) aspects to project. 1) Community events that advance DEI through wellness and environmental awareness, and 2) provide affordable and nutritious food options for underserved and underrepresented communities. This is both a new program and a continuation of an existing program and is requesting funds to cover 40% of project. $25,000 $14,800 18 SLO NOOR Foundation Whole Community Care Project This project will focus on bilingual outreach to employees to those in the lodging/restaurant industry in order to ensure those who do not qualify for government health coverage due to socioeconomic differences. This is an existing program requesting 46% of the entire project. $12,000 $0 Page 19 of 21 19 SLOCAR Inc.dba Certified Auto Repair Keep the Community Rolling SLO CAR proposes utilizing Jewish Family Services to help expand marketing to include Spanish translation, grow customer base particularly in underrepresented groups and to provide vital vehicle repairs to underserved communities. This existing program is requesting funds to cover 70% of the project. $25,000 $10,000 20 Snooka II Thomas Villa Women-owned family business serving the community of San Luis Obispo. Too little information from application to complete a project description. $100,000 $0 21 Studio Prime Architecture Expanding Housing Options & Educating the Underserved Funding request is focused on 1) distribution of education information in the form of targeted social media campaigns and 2) online workshops and videos, both for ADU and jADU in order to expand the use of such spaces and helping the community understand the laws. This is a new program requesting funds to cover 45% of the project. $25,000 $0 22 Susan Rose's Pool Service Create more Jobs Susan Rose's Pool Service provides clean and safe recreational swimming for all. The funds would create more hours for employees and to be able to respond to emergency work. This is a continuation of an existing program and is requesting funds for 40% of project. Incomplete application $10,000 $0 23 Ten Over Studio Ten Over Studio Affordable & Workforce Housing Feasibility Studies Ten Over Studio supports affordable housing in SLO by working with developers on feasibility studies. The grant would help team provide 5 feasibility studies to local nonprofit developers. This is a new and a continuation of an existing project requesting funds for entire project. $15,000 $15,000 24 Texture Retail + Admin Support Managed by R.A.C.E Matters SLO, this grant would give continued support to the Salon by providing product inventory for the Salon and for an administrative support position. $25,000 $12,000 25 The Beauty Bar Studios The Beauty Bar Studios The project funding request is to cover the cost of an esthetician program. Program is 4-6 month for 40 hours a week.$10,000 $0 26 The Moving Experience LLC The Moving Experience Inclusivity & Awareness Initiative Funding request is for a moving company that would like to target those who are disadvantaged and/or displaced minorities. Funds will be used for marketing and internal staff training. This is a new program requesting funds for the entire project. $150,000 $0 Page 20 of 21 27 Tiger Monkey Tattoo Artist Resilience Through Tattoo A.R.T.T was created to be a hub for young artistic alternative souls. Project funding request is to be used to provide training and mentorship to aspiring artists in the LGBTQ community along with continuing existing services. This is a new and a continuation of an existing program requesting funds for 70% of project. $25,000 $0 28 Trillium Massage Low-income health & wellness access Project funding request is to offer health education and massage to help improve the livelihoods and wellness of underserved communities. Project will also help decrease pain and stress and increase rate of motion and improve circulation. This request is for 100% of funding and it is the continuation of an existing program. $9,360 $0 29 Tropics Aquarium Professionals Bi-lingual Animal Care Sheet Database The funding request has two aspects, 1) is to create, maintain, and publish a database set of animal care sheets related to animals that will be sold and include accurate care description and processes. This includes a live form attached in various languages (English and Spanish first) and making this data base available. And number 2 is to develop tutorial videos (bilingual formats) with processes and descriptions and FAQs. This is a new program requesting funds for a portion of project. $20,000 $0 30 Twig & Arrow Salon Twig & Arrow Salon Diversity & Inclusion Project funding request is to be used to further education and training for entire staff on diverse and multicultural hair and makeup types, styles, and colors. This will comprise of 2 classes and hair products for multicultural hair. This is a new program requesting funds for 85% of the project. $15,000 $12,500 31 Wilderr Wilderr + SLO Inclusivity A Women's athletic clothing brand that will offer free fitness classes and workshops to women who may not have access to such opportunities. The project funding request is to cover pop up shops, marketing, community fitness events, and custom sizing. This is a new program requesting funds for 85% of the project. $17,000 $0 32 Zen Den Zen Den Expansion Program An acupuncture and healing center providing sliding scale services. Project funding request is to open a second location which will allow for more accessible community based acupunture. This is a new project requesting funds for the entire project. $50,000 $0 $997,457 $150,000TOTAL Page 21 of 21