►
Description
Docket #0469 - Order for a hearing regarding barriers to business.
A
Good
afternoon
everyone
I'm
the
city
councilor
from
district
four
brian
warrell,
chair
of
the
committee
on
small
business
and
professional
licensure.
It
is
monday
august
29,
2000
2022,
and
we
are
here
today
for
a
hearing
on
docket
number
zero.
Four,
six,
nine
order
for
a
hearing
regarding
barriers
to
business,
sponsored
by
myself
and
counselor
at
large
julie,
mejia
and
refer
to
the
committee
on
april
6
2022..
A
A
Backslash
city
dash
council
dash
tv
and
on
xfinity
8
rcn
82,
verizon
964..
It
would
also
be
rebroadcasted
at
a
later
date.
Written
comments
may
be
sent
to
the
committee
email
at
ccc
small
biz
at
boston.gov
and
will
be
made
part
of
the
record
and
available
to
all
counselors
public
testimony
will
be
taking
place
will
be
taken
at
the
end
of
this
hearing,
if
you're
here
in
the
chamber
and
wish
to
get
public
testimony.
A
A
Today
we're
joined
by
the
administration
chief
edu
mayor's
office
of
economic
opportunity
and
inclusion,
director
prasena
of
small
business,
daniel
greene,
executive
secretary
for
the
licensing
board
and
sorry,
sir,
your
name
mr
elijah.
Mr
elijah
miller
now
we'll
move
on
to
opening
statements
I'll
start
and
then
pass
it
on
to
my
co-sponsor,
counselor
mejia
and
as
a
local
black
owned
small
business
owner.
A
A
new
institute
for
justice
report
barriers
to
business
finds
that
starting
a
small
business
in
boston
is
already
a
costly
endeavor,
especially
compared
with
other
large
large
cities
across
the
country
fees
for
license
and
permits
to
open
a
mom-and-pop
wrestle.
Restaurant,
for
example,
top
5
500,
thanks
in
large
part
to
expensive
building
and
food
permits.
A
The
report
scores
boston,
one
out
of
the
five
in
a
one-stop
shop
analysis
reporting
that
cities
that
reported
at
the
city's
website
does
not
effectively
centralize
information
for
entrepreneurs
in
an
into
intuitive
organized
way.
The
report
revealed
the
extremely
complex
process
for
starting
the
business,
stating
that
food
truck
entrepreneurs
must
complete
37
steps,
restaurant
owners,
92
steps
and
barbershop
owners
81
steps
as
city
officials.
It
is
our
duty
to
do
everything
possible
to
support
our
entrepreneurs
and
small
business
owners.
A
B
So
I'm
really
excited
to
to
be
here
for
you
today
and
want
to
just
thank
you
for
inviting
me
to
be
one
of
your
co-sponsors
and
as
the
chair
as
the
former
chair
of
the
committee
on
small
businesses
and
who
oversaw
the
committee
during
the
pandemic,
which
was
the
hardest
hit
at
his
point
here
in
the
city
of
boston.
I
have
seen
firsthand
how
both
the
barriers
to
business
negatively
impact
communities
of
color
for
people
who
are
established
and
those
who
are
not
so
much
so
who
are
interested
in
starting
their
own
businesses.
B
B
You
know
how
to
do
something
about
it,
and
so
I'm
really
encouraged
to
you
and
your
team
for
all
the
steps
you've
taken
in
the
short
period
of
time
that
you've
been
here
and,
more
importantly,
looking
forward
to
not
only
identifying
what
these
barriers
are,
but,
more
importantly,
working
alongside
you
and
your
team
to
doing
everything
in
our
power
in
the
city
council
to
support
you
and
removing
those
barriers.
Some
of
the
things
that
we're
going
to
be
diving
in
a
little
bit
deeper
into
as
we
have
this.
B
B
Also,
language
access
is
one
of
the
things
that
I'm
always
talking
about
and
how
do
we
support
the
immigrant
community
navigate
some
of
these
barriers,
so
we're
really
looking
forward
to
diving
in
deeper
and,
more
importantly,
how
we
can
partner
right
because
when
we
know
better,
the
expectation
is
that
we
all
will
do
better,
and
I
know
that
together
we
can
make
some
really
good
trouble.
So
thank
you
for
being
here
and
looking
forward
to
working
alongside
you
all
to
close
this
wealth
gap.
Thank
you.
C
Thank
you,
council,
warrell,
and
congratulations
on
sharing
your
first
hearing,
it's
exciting
to
be
here
with
you
and
thank
you
also
around
your
leadership
around
in
advocacy
around
this
important
issue.
I
know
you
spoke
on
this
in
your
maiden
speech
and
you
continue
to
uplift
this
important
issue
and
working
alongside
everyone
in
the
mayor's
office
and
different
departments
across
the
city.
We
know
there
are
so
many
barriers
for
small
business
owners.
C
We
also
know
that
not
just
language
but
technical
support
is
needed
in
marketing
support,
and
I
know
that
many
of
the
offices,
many
of
you
here
who
will
be
speaking,
understand
that
and
are
providing
that
so
looking
forward
to
this
conversation
on
how
we
can
support
our
small
businesses
to
succeed
and
thrive,
because
we
want
everyone-
and
it's
also
what
makes
every
neighborhood
so
special,
every
neighborhood
is
a
little
different,
but
the
small
businesses
give
it
the
flavor
it.
You
know
also
uplifts
the
cultural
differences
that
our
communities
have.
C
D
Council
flynn,
thank
you,
counselor,
we're
all
for
your
important
work
and
to
counsel
me
here
as
well
for
her
important
work
on
this
on
this
issue.
I
want
to
say
thank
you
to
the
administration
team,
that's
here
and
for
your
work,
your
professionalism.
I
want
to
thank
the
chief.
We
had
an
opportunity
last
week.
I
think
council
were
always
there
too
mayor
wu
announced
a
major
major
policy
decision
on
this
related
issue.
So
just
want
to
say
thank
you
to
the
to
the
chief
and
to
your
team.
The
people
that
are
here
today.
D
And
I
also
want
to
acknowledge
chief,
we
we
did
a
lot
of
walk-throughs
in
chinatown
recently
with
your
team.
We
know
how
small
businesses
have
been
hit
there.
Most
of
them
are,
a
lot
of
them
are
women-owned,
and
certainly
the
immigrant-owned
restaurants
or
businesses.
I
I
should
say,
but
thank
you
for
your
support
to
them.
D
I
think
my
colleagues
also
mentioned
the
language
and
communication
access
has
been
a
major
issue.
That's
impacting
small
businesses,
especially
in
my
district.
I
think
I
represent
the
most
diverse
district
in
the
city
of
boston,
and
many
people
speak
various
languages
and
language,
language
and
communication
access
has
to
be
a
part
of
that
conversation
as
well.
We
talk
about
small
businesses.
D
I
was
up
at
6
30
this
morning
on
a
bus
ride
with
the
mayor's
office
in
with
the
mbta
and
d.o.t
in
chinatown,
and
as
we
know
that
some
of
the
shuttles
are
running
from
five
in
the
morning
to
seven
in
the
morning,
because
the
orange
line
is
shut
down.
So
you
know
in
the
heart
of
of
downtown
boston,
an
immigrant
community.
D
We
have
limited
bus
bus
service
there,
and
I
say
that
because
it's
difficult
for
our
seniors
to
get
to
their
medical
appointments
that
rely
on
the
mbta,
but
also
chief,
I
think,
of
what
what
about
the
business
community,
if
you're
trying
to
get
into
chinatown
and
there's
no
there's
really
no
train
system
to
get
in
there
and
can
be
confusing
at
times.
So
these
are
important
issues
and
again,
I
want
to
say
thank
you
to
counselor
warrel
for
the
important
work
he's
been
doing
since
he
joined
this
party.
A
Chair,
thank
you
to
my
colleagues
and
again
thank
you
to
the
administration
chief
edu
director,
persena
director
mitchell.
All
the
work
in
daniel
green.
All
the
work
that
you
guys
do
here
in
the
city
of
boston
does
not
go
unnoticed.
It
has
made
a
major
impact
in
your
around
what
under
250
days
here.
So
thank
you.
You
know
meeting
it
with
urgency
and
you
know
intentionality.
E
But
always
you
know,
as
as
we've
always
said
at
the
beginning
of
any
hearing.
I
appreciate
you
all
bringing
us
together
for
these
conversations,
not
only
because
they're
important
but
they're
opportunities
for
us
to
exchange
ideas
and
hear
from
all
of
our
constituents,
which
are
the
residents
of
boston.
So
thank
you
particularly
on
this
issue
around
small
businesses
and
before
getting
into
my
remarks.
E
I
just
want
to
say
when
we
started
off
here
in
our
for
some
of
our
new
roles
and
those
of
you
who
have
been
doing
this
work
since
before
we
got
here.
We
as
we
talked
about
small
business
right
in
january,
was
the
omicron
variant
and
our
businesses
were
deeply
impacted
by
that,
and
this
council
approved
five
million
dollars
to
get
up
to
small
businesses,
which
the
small
business
team
was
able
to
get
to
roughly
a
thousand
businesses
here
in
the
city
that
otherwise
would
have
suffered
and
closed
their
doors.
E
And
now
here
we
are
with
the
shutdown
of
the
orange
line
and
this
council
immediately
got
into
action
and
the
work,
particularly
as
you've
mentioned,
council
president
flynn,
around
chinatown,
but
other
parts
of
the
city.
As
well
in
making
sure
that
our
small
businesses
were
heard
and
that
their
issues
are
being
addressed
throughout
this
course,
I
have
to
give
credit
to
the
council
for
the
work
that
you've
been
doing
to
be
in
touch
with
our
office,
as
you
are,
are
part
of
our
connection
to
these
businesses.
E
So
I
want
to
thank
all
of
you
up
front
for
that
work
that
you've
been
doing,
and
so
now
the
remarks
that
were
written
from
I'm
kidding,
but
so
as
our
presentation's
up
so
good
afternoon,
mr
chair
and
I
I
have
to
say
too,
this
is
really
great
to
see.
It
was
great
to
work
with
you,
as
you
were
chair
the
last
few
years
and
then
to
see
you,
mr
chair,
and
in
this
role,
is
very
exciting,
and
so
anyway,
I'll
get
out
of
all
of
that.
E
It's
hap
I'm
happy
to
be
here.
I
do
want
to
note
at
the
top
of
this
presentation
that
we're
about
to
go
through,
and
I
want
to
thank
you
candice
for
helping
us
out
and
getting
through
this
that,
while
this
hearing,
as
you
mentioned,
mr
chair,
has
been
convened
to
talk
about
the
institute
for
justice
report,
this
presentation
is
going
to
take
a
more
holistic
view
of
the
problems
that
are
facing
our
small
businesses,
including
what
was
presented
by
institute
for
justice.
E
But
for
us
it's
important
to
talk
about
not
just
the
process
of
of
opening
a
business
but
then
maintaining
and
how
our
team
from
the
beginning
to
helping
them
sustain
all
the
work
that
they've
been
doing
so
on.
The
next
slide.
Just
to
reiterate
myself,
alicia
forsena,
the
director
of
small
business
elijah
miller,
who
is
the
director
of
policy?
E
Don't
worry
about
it,
no,
no
one
caught
it
all
right,
we'll
be
presenting
here
and
then
danny
joining
us
from
the
mayor's
office
of
consumer
affairs
and
licensing,
and
so,
as
I
have
done
at
every
single
hearing
on
the
next
slide,
we'll
see
just
the
vision
of
our
cabinet.
It's
important.
I
know
that
all
of
you
know
this,
but
because
these
are
recorded,
their
stream
live.
It's
just
always
important.
F
So
our
team
provides
and
connects
micro
and
small
business
owners
and
entrepreneurs
with
the
tools
and
guidance
to
successfully
start
grow
and
build
a
business
in
boston.
We
do
this
through
our
significant
programming
and
initiatives,
so
our
main
streets
program,
technical
assistance,
restore
and
design
mobile
enterprises,
outdoor
dining
and
the
wii
boss
program.
F
So
this
is
the
makeup
of
our
team.
We
have
about
16
full-time
staff,
who've
done
a
great
job
of
supporting
business
owners,
especially
in
the
height
of
the
pandemic.
In
particular,
we
have
seven
staff
who
focus
on
our
neighborhoods
and,
as
you
can
see,
we
have
some
vacant
positions
that
we're
hoping
to
fill
in
the
coming
months.
I
want
to
thank
the
council
for
supporting
our
department
through
the
budget
process
and
increasing
our
capacity,
which
is
very
much
needed
in
order
to
meet
the
needs
of
small
businesses
across
our
city.
F
Our.
I
also
want
to
note
that
our
our
department
or
our
office
is
able
to
provide
support
in
five
languages,
and
our
wider
cabinet
has
language
capability
in
11
languages,
so
our
top
three
main
main
funding
sources
for
our
work.
Our
community
block
development
grants
or
cdbg
the
operating
budget
and
arpa.
So,
prior
to
this
fiscal
year,
our
funding
came
primarily
from
cdbg,
which
are
federal
funds
that
are
restricted
to
low
and
moderate
income
communities.
F
You
can
go
to
the
next
slide.
Yeah
perfect
counselor
mahia
mentioned
this,
but
when
we
look
at
covert
recovery,
I'm
incredibly
proud
of
my
team
who,
in
the
height
of
the
pandemic,
responded
to
businesses,
needs
and
distributed
over
29
million
in
grants,
in
addition
to
their
work
of
providing
support.
F
H
G
Today,
as
chief
eru
and
director
por,
sena
have
already
laid
out
in
so
many
ways,
so
much
of
what
our
cabinet
does
is
focused
on
creating
an
ecosystem
where
people
and
businesses
can
thrive.
That
includes
efforts
we're
taking
to
streamline
the
regulatory
process,
which
I
can
tell
you
as
a
byproduct
of
the
covid
crisis.
We've
made
great
advancements
in
the
digitization
of
our
regulatory
processes,
but
what
we're
really
excited
to
talk
about
today?
G
We
do
a
lot
of
research
and
outreach
to
make
sure
that
our
policies,
programs
and
practices
that
we
champion
are
guided
by
analyses
that
maximize
impact
the
graph
that
you'll
see
on
slide.
13
of
our
presentation
is
published
by
boston
university,
and
it
highlights
something
that
I
think
anybody
could
guess,
but
the
biggest
barrier
to
small
by
park,
business
owners
and
entrepreneurs
is
access
to
capital.
G
The
city
council
has
heard
many
times
that
this
administration
is
making
transformational
investments
with
the
american
rescue
plan,
funds
we've
been
allotted,
and
that's
really
not
an
exaggeration
for
better
or
worse.
The
city
of
boston
does
not
have
its
own
money.
Printer
businesses
make
our
communities
dynamic,
nourishing
safe
places
to
live
for
a
lot
of
us.
The
reason
why
we
live
in
the
city
is
to
be
closer
to
the
businesses
that
are
important
to
us.
G
While
we
work
with
partners
to
upskill,
our
residents
for
emergent
and
growing
industries,
we're
also
intentionally
engaging
with
a
range
of
business
service
providers
so
that
we
can
bring
as
many
entrepreneurs
as
possible
into
our
networks
of
support.
So
we
can
maximize
the
reach
of
technical
assistance
while
minimizing
redundancy
and
all
of
that
work
comes
on
top
of
the
emergency
support
that
we've
been
providing
over
the
course
of
the
pandemic
and
as
I've
put
on
slide
14.
Just
to
reiterate
across
all
of
our
work,
we're
intentional
in
involving
multicultural
communities
in
the
policy
making
process.
G
F
We
are
excited
about
our
work,
we're
going
to
enhance
our
current
programming,
so
really
making
sure
that
our
programs
programs
are
adequately
funded
and
meet
no
local
needs.
I
want
to
thank
the
members
of
the
boston
city
council
for
their
tremendous
support
for
our
initiatives.
If
we
can
just
go
to
that
slide,
to
show
the
initiatives
that
they've
all
supported
each
one
of
you
have
played
a
support,
a
very
crucial
role
in
in
supporting
these
initiatives
and
through
these
programs
we're
going
to
be
able
to
make
deeper
investments
to
strengthen
our
ecosystem.
F
Earlier
this
summer
we
convened
an
internal
cross-departmental
group
which
we'll
be
meeting
regularly
to
address
many
of
the
challenges
we
will
hear
today,
but
part
of
our
our
work
also
means
having
more
targeted
workshops
and
trainings
within
our
communities
supporting
community
events,
increasing
outreach
and
engagement.
We
know
our
communication
efforts
need
to
improve,
while
also
increasing
our
language
accessibilities.
F
F
Of
course,
every
every
member
of
the
console
is
invited
you'll
be
receiving
an
invite
later
today
or
tomorrow
morning,
and
these
are
these
walks
are
very
informative
because
they
allow
us
to
see
the
gaps
in
our
work
and
then
figure
out
ways
in
which
we
can
dress
them
together
and
then.
Finally,
I
just
want
to
talk
about
some
new
programming
that
we're
doing
so
through
our
work.
We
want
to
re.
F
We
want
to
make
sure
that
we
are
servicing
and
providing
programming
for
key
groups,
so
we
want
to
revive
the
wii
boss
program
and
then
create
two
additional
programs
that
will
center
immigrant
and
veteran-owned
businesses
by
providing
them
with
the
opportunity
to
network,
build
community
and
expand
their
economic
potential.
Thank
you.
A
A
E
Oh
sorry,
oh
there
we
go,
I
think
you
know,
as
was
shared
earlier,
you
know,
the
biggest
thing
is:
is
finances
is
capital?
You
know
it's
especially
pointed
after
covid,
where
a
lot
of
our
businesses
actually
the
grant
money
we
gave
them
or
that
they
got
from
other
sources,
didn't
actually
go
to
them.
It
went
to
their
landlords
or
went
to
bills,
and
so
they
were
not
able
to
reinvest
that
money
in
operations
and
staff
etc.
E
The
capital
piece
is
big
when
it
comes
to
the
what
institute
for
justice
brought
up
around
the
bureaucracy
and
the
permitting
process
might
hear
that
occasionally
was
not
the
number
one
thing
or
the
number
two
or
three,
but
it
doesn't
matter
what
number
it
is.
It's
still
an
issue
that
that
we
need
to
address,
but
the
top
ones
had
to
do
with
capital
for
the
storefront
businesses,
it
was
a
rent,
the
rent
burden.
You
know
again,
money,
not
a
whole
lot
of
money
is
coming
in
due
to
the
decrease
in
customer.
E
You
know
foot
traffic,
but
rents
are
still
rising,
and
so
that's
why
we're
very
happy
that
you
all
approved
our
request
for
nine
million
for
the
subsidy
program.
But
those
are
two
big
things
and
then
marketing
is
another
piece
getting
the
word
out
there
about
the
business
where
it's
located,
what
they
sell,
etc
to
increase
the
customer
base,
but
I
would
say
across
those
across
the
16
walks:
we've
done.
Those
are
the
three
that
we
consistently
hear
about.
It's
part.
A
E
I
have
to
be
honest
with
you
and
if,
if
it
were,
I
would
say
that
it
is
something
that
we
hear
about,
but
the
things
that
people
are
thinking
about
when
it
comes
to
money.
Are
you
mentioned
one
of
them
renovations,
improving
the
space
being
able
to
hire
more
people
so
capacity?
Another
which
will
you
know
be
happy
to
talk
about
later
this
year
is
acquisition
business
owners.
E
But
those
are
the
types
of
things
that
we
hear
about
honestly
when
it
comes
to
permitting
it's
one-off,
like
we
might
get
reached
out
to,
or
I'm
saying
we
you
know,
our
small
business
team
might
get
reached
out
to
by
some
business
owners
over
the
course
of
the
year
who
might
highlight
that
they
can't
afford
to
pay
for
a
permit
or
things
like
that.
But
when
we're
walking
around
talking
to
folks,
it's
not
the
first
thing
on
folks
mine,
but
it's
still
an
issue
that
we
need
to
address.
E
A
And
then
can
you
dive
into
a
more
in
depth
on
how
we're
helping
small
businesses
you
know,
get
the
funding
that
they
need?
You
know
whether
it's
commercial
assistance
for
the
rent
or
renovations
you
know.
Can
you
talk
to
me
about
how
we're
going
out
into
the
neighborhood
making
sure
that
those
access
to
capital
is
available?
Sure.
E
E
Over
the
years
of
the
that
we
can
spend
down
the
arbor
money,
that's
where
we're
going
to
be
getting
the
source
from,
but
at
the
same
time
we're
talking
about
the
arpa
money
that
we're
going
to
use
for
these
programs.
We
are
an
active
conversation
with
external
partners,
because
all
that
money
has
to
be
spent
by
the
in
a
couple
of
years,
and
so
we
don't
want
to
have
it
spent
down
and
then
say:
okay,
never
mind
the
city's
not
going
to
do
this.
F
Right
and
so
in
terms
of
supporting
our
businesses,
we
thank
you
to
the
council.
We've
made
a
significant
increase
in
funding
for
our
main
street
program,
so
we
have
20
main
streets
organizations
across
the
city
and
so
through
through
the
fy23
budget.
We're
able
to
build
more
capacity,
look
more
locally.
The
main
street
directors
are
in
our
neighborhoods
and
understand
the
needs
and
have
the
trust
and
relationship
with
a
lot
of
the
business
owners.
F
That's
one
of
the
ways
we
do
have
a
restore
and
design
program
that
focuses
on
one
signage,
for
four
businesses,
for
brick
and
mortar
businesses
and
then
also
the
outward
facade
of
a
construction
of
a
business
as
well.
We
have
a
program
that
does
that
our
technical
assistance
program,
too,
is
is
helpful
for
businesses,
one
who
are
getting
started,
but
then
also
are
seeking
to
grow
their
business.
We
can
we
pair
them
with
a
other
local
business
or
a
business
to
help
them
get
one-on-one
support
as
well.
B
That's
a
minute
of
question
a
little
padding
for
extra
stuff,
so
I'm
going
to
start
off
with
the
engagement
question,
just
kind
of
follow
that
thread
a
little
bit
and
I
know
you
had
mentioned
around
data
driven.
You
know
evidence-based
kind
of
like
outputs
in
terms
of
kind
of
informing
your
thinking.
Can
you
just
talk
to
me
a
little
bit
about
what
you've
learned
from
businesses
that
has
informed
the
type
of
engagement
and
communication
strategies
that
you're
pursuing
moving
forward.
G
G
There
are
declining
sales
and
revenue
that
are
born
by
all
businesses
and
what
our
commercial
rent
rebate
program,
for
instance,
is
so
targeted
to
is
stopping
the
falling
dominoes
in
our
communities
and,
in
fact,
using
the
resources
to
be
more
forward-looking,
as
we
can,
so
our
business
owners
know
that
they
need
complimentary
businesses
in
their.
You
know,
hubs
to
survive,
we
see
it
in
the
research.
That's
just
one
example
of
what
we
learn
in
the
field
as
it
is,
and
yeah.
B
F
So,
besides
our
weekly
business
walks
we're
making
sure
we're
connecting
with
our
main
street
directors
who
are
also
out
in
the
field.
All
of
our
neighborhood
managers
have
a
day
where
they're
supposed
to
be
out
in
their
respective
districts,
making
sure
that
they're,
following
up
with
businesses
myself
and
the
chief,
have
also
committed
to
being
out
of
getting
out
of
city
hall
and
being
making
sure
we're
in
the
community,
but
then
also
attending
local
events.
I
don't
think
the
first
time
businesses
shouldn't
should
see
us
shouldn't
be
kind
of
like
when
there's
a
problem.
F
They
should
see
us
beforehand.
I
think
that's
when
our
programming
works
best
and
so
making
sure
our
engagement
is
twofold
and
and-
and
it's
not
just
kind
of
when
there's
an
issue
but
before
that
and
then
also
I
mean
language
access.
I
think
when
we
talk
about
engagement,
not
everyone
retains
information,
the
same
exact
way
so
making
sure
we're
using
fires
taking
leveraging
social
media
whatever
it
needs,
whatever.
We
need
to
do
to
get
the
word
out
about
our
work
and
our
programming
is
so
important.
F
The
legacy
business
program
that's
going
to
be
launched
next
week,
which
we're
really
excited
about.
We
have
a
qr
code,
so
when
we're
walking
around
and
we
have
flyers
when
we're
walking
around
the
businesses,
you
can
nominate
a
business
in
real
time.
We'll
sit
there
with
you
as
we
go
through
the
process,
you
can
do
it
on
your
phone,
so
making
sure
access
is
is
is,
is
there
is
very
key
for
us.
B
Thank
you
thank
you,
and
I
also
just
kind
of
want
to
uplift.
You
know
that
a
lot
of
our
immigrant
businesses
in
particular
many
are
folks
who
haven't
even
don't,
have
a
high
school
degree
in
their
reading
and
writing
low
literacy
levels
as
well,
so
want
to
encourage
the
use
of
audio
and
visual
in
other
ways
to
connect
and
engage
with
folks
who
who
struggle
with
reading
and
writing
even
in
their
native
language.
B
So
I
just
think
that
that's
something
that
I
just
want
to
uplift
that
I
always
talk
about,
so
I
just
want
to
encourage
you
all
to
think
that,
just
because
somebody
is
good
at
what
they
do,
they
have
a
craft
and
a
gift,
but
sometimes
they
struggle
with
retaining
information.
So
I
really
do
appreciate
that
insight
about
people's
learning
styles
and
retaining
information.
B
If
we
could
just
talk
a
little
bit
about
you
know
the
whole
language,
access
and
communication
gap,
for
example,
we've
come
across
a
lot
of
folks
who
have
received
letters
in
english
in
regards
to
these
taxable,
like
asset
access
tax
assessments.
I
just
don't
remember
the
name
of
it,
but
I
went
to
a
hair
salon
and
she
showed
me
the
letter
and
it
was
in
english.
B
She
said
it
came
in
my
husband's
name,
but
I
paid
for
it
because
it
was
taxes
and
I
didn't
want
to
get
in
trouble,
but
I
didn't
know
what
it
was
about
so
having
to
explain
to
her
what
it
was
for
and
why
she
was
getting
it.
This
was
based
after
a
number
of
folks
had
already
reached
out
to
our
office,
so
we
had
some
understanding
about
this.
I'm
just
curious,
like
what
opportunities
exist
for
your
department
to
really
help
support
other
city
departments
and
how
they
communicate
with
with
folks.
E
Sure-
and
so
alicia
mentioned
in
her
testimony,
so
earlier
this
summer
we
brought
together
a
key
group
of
folks
across
city
departments
to
start
talking
about
these
types
of
issues.
You
know
this
sounds
you
know
mostly
something
to
talk
about
with
our
new
cfo,
who
I'm
happy
started
a
couple
weeks
ago
to
bring
this
attention
to
her
matter
to
matter
to
her
attention,
but
that
that
is
the
opportunity
is
to
hear
things
like
that
and
again.
E
Why
we're
happy
that
we're
having
this
conversation
is
to
hear
things
like
that,
so
that
then
we
are
able
to
go
back
to
our
colleagues
and
say
here's
an
issue
that
we
need
to
address.
So
what
we
will
have
to
think
about
is
how
we
even
understand
you
know
who
needs
what
and
what
language
and
then
making
sure
that
it's
getting
to
them.
B
Properly
and
I'll
just
say
before
my
time
is
up
is
that
I
think
this
is
where
the
opportunity
really
lies
is
we
often
times
work
in
silos
and
there's
so
many
different
departments
that
are
interfacing
with
the
business
community,
and
I
think
that
this
is
where
you
know
in
terms
of
your
intentionality
is
really:
how
do
we
bring
these
departments
together?
So
there's
a
unified
voice
in
terms
of
how
we
engage
with
folks,
and
I
think
that
that's
what
I'm
really
looking
forward
to
and
working
alongside
you
all
to
help
support,
that's
it.
Thank
you.
B
C
Is
it
good,
okay,
I'll
start
again?
Thank
you,
and
I
appreciate
you
mentioning
that
you
want
to
get
out
of
city
hall.
I
know
there's
a
lot
of
work
to
do
in
here,
but
also
I
do
see
you
out
in
the
neighborhoods
and
talking
to
the
small
business
owners,
and
I
know
as
an
art
at
large
council.
That's
what
you
need
to
do.
You
have
to
go
meet
people
where
they
are
so
two
questions.
C
I
got
actually
from
a
constituent
and
I
know
you've
kind
of
touched
on
it
from
something
counselor
here
already
asked,
but
I
am
going
to
ask
them
in
order
to
assist
immigrant
owners
in
owner
of
color.
They
must
be
known.
Does
the
office
of
economic
opportunity
and
inclusion
direct
its
main
street
division
to
collect
information
so
that
all
immigrant
owners
can
be
reached?
C
So
it's
that
question
of-
and
you
did
mention
that
when
you
do
your
walkthroughs
like
you
find
them
right
and
it's
something
I
know
we
talk
about
on
the
council
and
also
in
my
office
like
we're
a
rich
city,
we
have
a
lot
to
offer.
But
what
I
hear
most
is
people
saying,
oh,
I
didn't
know
about
that
or
how
do
I
apply
for
that
or
it's
after
the
fact
and
they're
saying
I
wish
I
understood
so
if
we
could
address
that
question
that'd
be
great.
C
E
C
E
Well,
there's
a
number
of
metrics
that
the
office
of
small
business
determines
success
or
not.
When
it
comes
to
this
question
you
know,
I'm
thinking
of
you
know
how
many
people
we're
reaching
number
one
and
then
whether
or
not
the
people
that
we're
reaching
are
utilizing
the
resources
that
we
are
making
available
to
them,
and
I
think
it's
an
in
the
tension
there
is
is
what
helps
us
understand
how
better
to
provide
the
resources.
It's
like
it's
one
thing
that
you
know
you
have
ten
thousand
people
on
email
list.
E
C
C
If
you
could
just
speak
a
little
bit
more
as
the
chair
of
veteran
affairs,
the
veteran
boss
in
november,
if
you
could
just
share
or
follow
up
after
this
also,
so
I
can
make
sure
I'm
in
contact
with
commissioner
santiago
and
our
veterans
across
the
city
and
along
with
president
flynn,
to
help
share
this
out
for
all
of
them,
but
the
november
one
caught
my
eye.
Thank
you.
D
Thank
you,
councilor,
we're
all
that
could
share
world.
Thank
you
again
to
the
administration
team.
I
know
you
highlighted
language
and
communication
access
and
the
outreach
you're
doing
to
immigrant
owned
businesses.
Small
businesses,
women
owned
small
businesses
as
well.
So
my
question
is
well.
Let
me
just
go.
Let
me
just
go
back
a
little
bit.
I
have
five
people
on
my
staff
for
a
woman
of
color
and
they're
they're
immigrants
and
they
speak
languages
other
than
english.
They
speak
english
in
other
languages.
I
should
say
so.
D
I
referenced
that
by
saying
the
the
other
aspect
of
this
issue
is
also
digital
equity.
I've
worked
with
councilman
here
on
digital
equity,
digital
access.
A
lot
of
my
constituents
unfortunately,
are
not
engaged
in
in
in
social
media.
They
don't
have
access
readily
access
to
a
computer.
Sometimes
a
cell
phone,
their
apartment
that
they
might
be
living
at
is
really
not
hooked
up
to
adequately
assist
them,
sometimes
when
they
have
more
than
one
child
at
bps,
and
that
both
children
are
on
the
the
the
computer
for
school.
D
F
So,
thank
you,
councilor
finn,
so
as
a
daughter
of
immigrants,
I
I
understand
not
being
able
my
parents
not
being
able
to
fill
out
applications
and
part
of
the
reason
why
I'm
here
today
is
because
people
have
literally
walked
through
applications
with
me
growing
up
to
fill
it
out,
and
I
see
that
as
part
of
our
work,
when
we
talk
about
getting
out
into
the
community
making
sure
we're
sitting
down
with
business
owners
and
filling
things
out.
If
that
is
needed.
F
D
D
E
You
know
that's
a.
I
appreciate
that
question,
because
what
we
saw
at
the
height
of
the
pandemic
is
that
a
lot
of
small
businesses
weren't
even
able
to
apply
for
the
grants
at
the
federal
level
city
level
state
level
because
they
might
have
been
missing.
You
know
a
a
certificate
of
good
standing
from
the
secretary
of
state's
office
or
something
like
that
and
because
they
didn't
have
it,
they
got.
E
They
lost
that
on
twenty
five
thousand
dollars,
and
so
you
know
part
of
one
of
the
things
that
alicia
brought
up
in
her
presentation
and
and
some
of
her
answers
is
even
about
the
neighborhood
business
managers
who
are
out
in
the
community
who
are
talking
and
working
directly
with
businesses.
I
mean
they're,
essentially
operating
as
case
managers.
They
are
with
every
single
business
that
they're
interacting
with,
are
helping
walk
them
through
the
process
sitting
down
with
them,
but
it
also.
E
It
still
would
not
help
meet
the
need,
and
so
I
say
all
that
to
say
that
we
are
working
with
groups
like
the
coalition
for
an
equitable
economy.
Small
business,
strong
major
organizations
that
you
know
cee
is
a
compilation
and
an
alliance
of
hundreds
of
small
business
providers
across
the
state.
Many
of
them
here
in
boston
who
you
know
when
I
was
at
becma.
You
know
they.
E
We
were
also
out
on
the
street
working
with
people
to
kind
of
fill
in
the
capacity
that
the
city
didn't
have,
and
so
those
partnerships
are
critical
to
any
of
the
success
that
we're
talking
about
today
and
we'll
be
talking
about
in
the
future.
It's
these
external
organizations
that
are
helping
us
meet
the
need.
D
A
Thank
you,
council
flynn,
and
I
just
have
a
few
more
questions.
You
name
that
you
know
funding
is
one
of
the
top
issues
for
the
businesses.
Is
there
like
a
reason
like
why
small
businesses
are
not
accessing
the
funding?
Is
it
credit?
Is
it?
Is
it
the
revenue
that
they're
producing
inside
of
their
business?
You
know
what
what
is
some
of
the
reasons
why
they're
not
able
to
access?
Well,
I.
E
Appreciate
that
question,
but
this
is
one
that
always
gets
me
in
trouble,
because
you
know
someone
had
to
remind
me
you're,
not
the
president,
rebecca
anymore.
You
can't
be
talking
like
that.
So
you
know
many
businesses
have
a
problem
of
any
hue
or
shape
or
color
have
a
problem
accessing
capital,
and
it
can
be
due
to
credit.
It
can't
be.
They
don't
know
where
to
go.
E
You
know-
and
you
know
last
year,
all
signaled
to
us
why
we
should
you
know,
don't
want
to
get
loans
so,
but
when
it
comes
to
black
and
brown
people
in
particular,
you
know
when
I
was
in
my
previous
role.
I
used
to
always
say
it's
not
about
access
to
capital.
It's
about
the
dispersal
of
capital.
We
know
where
the
money
is.
It's
that
the
money
is
not
awarded
to
us
or
given
to
us.
E
You
know
non-city
funds,
private
funds,
a
lot
of
it
is
that
we're
some
people
don't
see
us
as
a
worthwhile
investment.
I
mean
all
many
small
businesses
fail
from
the
first
five
years
for
some
reason.
There's
something
particular
where
people
don't
have
a
lot
of
faith
in
the
fact
that
black
or
brown
businesses
or
even
women-owned
businesses
will
succeed.
They
receive
the
least
amount
of
venture
capital
funding
in
the
country.
Women,
I
I
think,
are
well
both
women
and
people
of
color
below
one
percent
in
terms
of
venture
capital
funding.
E
You
know,
I
often
say
you
know
you
will
not
meet
a
you,
will
not
find
a
black
adam
newman.
You
know,
adam
newman
could
walk
in
a
room
and
get
several
billion
dollars
to
start.
We
work,
a
black
person
would
go
in
and
might
walk
out
with
a
check
for
a
couple
thousand
dollars
and
and
black
or
brown-
and
you
know
they're
given
license.
People
are
given
a
license
to
fail
that
black
and
brown
entrepreneurs
are
not
adam
newman.
We
work,
you
know
all
that
stuff
happened.
E
Just
last
week
got
announced
getting
a
major
investment,
250
million
dollars,
the
largest
investment
that
that
firm
has
ever
given.
But
so
part
of
it
is
yes,
the
credit
part
of
it
is
yes,
you
know
if
the
source
that
we
might
or
might
not
be
going
to
some
of
it
has
to
do
with
a
lack
of
trust
in
black
or
brown
entrepreneurs,
and
I
know
here
at
the
city
since
we've
you
know
even
before
our
being
here,
I
have
to
give
credit
to
natalia
urdubay.
E
You
know
who
led
small
business
prior
to
alicia
and
her
team
and
then
the
team
now
who
have
made
sure
that
any
money
that
the
city
had
that
definition
I
put
up
about
equity,
remained
true
and
that
60
70
of
the
monies
went
to
black
or
brown
businesses,
because
when
they
go
other
places,
they
don't
get
that
same
respect.
Sometimes.
E
So
I'm
I'm
happy
to
work
with
your
team
to
help
develop
something
like
that,
but
I
have
to
be
honest.
Some
of
the
work
that
we're
doing
on
our
side
is
not
about
looking
at
the
business
owner
and
saying,
there's
something
wrong
with
you.
It's
looking
at
the
folks
who
control
the
system
and
saying
there's
something
wrong
with
you
and
what
you
have,
how
you
have
set
it
up,
and
so
it
is
our
you
know.
E
I
meet
with
bank
presidents
regularly
in
this
role,
which
you
know
they
wouldn't
do
in
my
previous
world,
but
anyway
I
meet
with
them.
You
know
regularly
now
talking
about.
Are
there
ways
for
us
to
think
about
a
loan
product
where
you're
not
taking
credit
into
consideration
where
you're
not
forcing
a
business
to
provide
collateral?
E
I
think
of
the
work
that
malia
lazu
did
when
she
was
the
president
of
the
eastern
berkshire
bank,
where
she
introduced
a
number
of
programs.
Chief
among
them
was
the
friends
and
family
fund
where
twenty
thousand
dollar
loan
zero
percent
interest,
no
collateral,
I
mean,
and
it
was
called
the
friends
and
family
fund
because
most
black
and
brown
people
don't
have
friends
or
family
to
give
them
loans
of
whatever
amount.
E
If
we're
going
to
talk
about
an
eight
dollar
net
worth
not
a
lot
to
go
by
to
help
someone
start
their
business,
you
know
so
there's
a
number.
You
know
a
number
of
things
that
we're
we're
doing
on
the
other
side
of
the
equation,
to
try
to
remove
restrictions
so
much
how
we're
talking
about
removing
barriers
on
the
permitting
or
regulatory
side,
same
conversation
we're
having
with
folks
in
the
private
sector
about
what
they
could
be
doing
if
it's
like.
E
If
you
want
to
hit
your
numbers,
if
you
want
to
actually
get
this
money
out
there,
you
can't
copy
and
paste
a
program
and
say:
oh
well,
because
there's
more
money,
it's
going
to
get
out
there.
It's
like
there's
a
reason
we
weren't
getting
the
money
to
begin
with
right
and
so
anyway,
long
tangent
to
say
yes,
we
can
do
that,
but
it's
also
talking
to
those
folks
and
saying
not
all
of
the
stuff
is
necessary.
A
Absolutely
no,
I
love
that
that
you
guys
are
pushing
that
forward
and
trying
to
get
more
banks
to
invest
into
our
businesses,
and
I
love
the
idea
that
you
guys
are
going
around
walking
and
talking
to
people
in
the
qr
code
that
instant
access
and
then
also
sitting
down
with
our
small
business
owners
and
filling
out
the
paperwork
is:
how
is
that
happening?
Often?
Is
that
happening
on
site
or
that
are
they
coming
in
to
city
hall?
Like?
Can
you
talk
to
me
about
how
that
part
of
the
process
is
going
so.
F
We're
we're
looking
to
do
that
more
in
fy
20.
So
now
our
business
managers
meet
with
businesses
in
the
community
and
so
they're
able
to
go
through
information
during
that
time,
and
then
we
also
have
the
main
streets
who
are
able
to
to
kind
of
review
information.
A
lot
of
them
have
been
doing
that
already
with
business
owners
and.
E
A
Yeah
I
love
that
idea.
I
just
envisioned,
like
the
comcast
guy
coming
over
with
his
tablet
and
signing
you
up
right
there
for
comcast
right
I
mean
if
we
could
do
the
same
thing
for
our
small
businesses,
whether
it's
you
know
helping
them
fill
out
that
credit
application
or
that
you
know,
loan
application
or
technical
assistance,
support,
we'll
love
to
see
our
you
know:
business
liaisons,
equipped
with
ipads,
going
business
to
business
and
just
well.
B
I
have
a
question
and,
and
just
a
quick
comment,
so
the
great
thing
about
these
opportunities
right
is
because
it
gives
us
the
insight
that
we
need
so
that
when
we're
crafting
up
ideas
and
policies,
we're
actually
listening
to
the
people
who
are
doing
the
work,
because
I
always
talk
about
those
who
are
living
the
realities
or
doing
the
work
know
best
right
and
I
can
sit
here
and
throw
grenades
all
day.
But
I'm
not
out
here
on
the
front
lines
like
you
are
right.
B
So
it's
important
for
us
to
be
in
constant
dialogue.
So
I
really
do
appreciate
these
opportunities
and
then
the
other
thing
that
I
would
say
is
that
I
could
call
out
the
reality
of
what
we
know
is
in
boston,
which
is
racism,
and
why
those
who
have
have
continued
to
have
and
those
who
have
not
have
been
working
really
hard
to
get
a
little
bit
of
that
pie.
A
B
B
B
So
all
that
rambling
just
to
get
to
my
question,
but
you
guys
are
here
for
it
right.
So
the
question
is
this
is
in
regards
to
you
know
from
the
institute
the
justice
report
that
we've
been
talking
about
called
barriers
to
businesses,
expressed
that
we
rank
low
on
accessibility
around
providing
step-by-step
guidelines
on
how
to
navigate
these
rules,
and
I
get
calls
from
people
like
what
does
this
mean?
And
why
can't
I
do
this
and
you
know
like
it's
difficult:
it's
like
trying
to
crack
the
da
vinci
code.
B
E
Yeah
well
a
piece
of
that
so
first
I'll
say
I'll
leave
it
to
the
institute
for
justice,
and
you
know
appreciate
them
for
meeting
with
us
a
few
weeks
ago
to
talk
more
about
the
report
itself
and
get
behind
the
numbers
and
information
that
was
in
the
report,
since
it
covered
many
cities
across
the
country,
so
I'll
leave
it
to
them
to
talk
about
kind
of
the
steps
and
how
they
got
to
where
they
got.
But
I
will
say
part
of
the
answer
to
this
question.
E
Is
the
group
that
we
brought
together
because,
as
you
mentioned,
there
are
a
number
of
different
departments
that
contribute
to
whether
it's
the
permitting
licensing
etc?
You
know-
and
so
you
know
it's
not
a
small
business
thing
right.
It's
a
city
of
boston
thing,
and
so
that
group
is
meeting
to
talk
about.
How
do
we
streamline
the
process?
And
you
know
whether
or
not
some
things
are
needed
or
can
be
done
away
with
you
know,
especially
after
the
pandemic.
E
You
know
a
lot
of
what
we
take
into
account
too
is:
like
you
know,
during
the
pandemic,
we
were
able
to
say:
oh,
we
don't
need
that
actually
right
to
make
things
easier,
so
the
question
becomes
well.
Do
we
need
to
re-implement
it
now
that
co?
You
know
we're
emerging
out
of
covid
or
you
know
you
know
so
anyway.
It's
the
meeting
that
we're
doing
on
a
regular
basis
is
our
way
of
streamlining
the
process
and
then
to
your
point
about
guides.
E
I
know
that
for
all
programming
they're
putting
together
now,
that
is
something
that's
being
taken
into
account
as
we're
developing
new
programs
and
initiatives.
We
are
putting
together
step
by
step,
it's
going
to
take
a
little
work
to
go
backwards
and
cover
you
know,
other
things
that
came
before
us,
but
we
are,
you
know,
taking
that
feedback
into
account.
That's.
E
B
And
I
I
would
just
encourage,
as
that's
at
some
point
right.
We
start
thinking
about
kind
of
like
these
external
stakeholders
to
help
inform
some
of
that
thinking,
as
you
all
continue
to
you
know,
to
do
this
work,
because
what
you're
doing
on
the
inside
may
be
totally
different
than
what's
happening
on
the
outside
and
so
kind
of
having
bring
bringing
those
people
into
the
fold
could
be
really
helpful
to
inform
some
of
that
thinking.
E
Was
about
how
the
city
would
just
do
a
thing
and
then
maybe
call
you
the
day
before
and
say:
hey.
Can
you
take
a
look
at
this
because
we're
having
a
press
conference
tomorrow,
so
so
what
I
would
envision
without
having
said
anything
to
the
team
here,
is
that
this
working
group
is
working
like
putting
together
recommendations.
That
would
then
be
presented
to
an
external
group
of
partners
to
say:
are
we
on
the
right
track.
E
B
A
E
A
Thank
you,
councilman.
Thank
you
to
the
administration
for
all
your
hard
work.
I'm
looking
forward
to
continue
working
in
collaboration
to
you
know,
invest
in
our
small
businesses,
tear
down
barriers
to
create
thriving
and
vibrant
neighborhoods.
So
thank
you
for
all
the
work
that
you
guys
do.
Thank
you.
Councilman.
E
A
A
B
D
A
B
B
J
A
J
Carlos
castillo
born
and
raised
in
boston,
we
run
a
few
different
types
of
businesses,
mostly
real
estate.
We
are
also
in
the
liquor
store
package,
tour
business
in
roxbury
and
now
newly
in
cannabis.
So
a
lot
of
a
lot
of
experience
around
the
hurdles
of
working
with
the
city
and
in
immigrant
communities.
I
had
a
lot
of
folks
that
asked
me:
I
want
to
start
a
business.
I
want
to
do
this
or
I'm
in
this
jam.
J
How
can
I
get
through
this
hurdle,
and
I
think
I
missed
the
first
session,
so
I
don't
want
to
be
redundant,
but
I
think
when
I
walked
in
when
you
were
talking
about
in
terms
of
barriers,
this
city
has
so
many
opportunities
right
and
it's
offering
to
help
in
so
many
different
directions.
But
I
don't
know
if
it's
all
streamlined
like
if
you
did
want
to
open
a
barbershop.
J
Where
do
you
make
your
first
phone
call
and
is
that
you
know
to
an
attorney
that
you
can
trust
it's
not
going
to
take
you
for
a
ride.
If
this
is
your
first
rodeo
and
you
know
what
kind
of
entity
you
want
to
set
up
so
when
I
think
about
you
know
opening
a
small
business
in
boston,
I
don't
just
think
about.
J
But
if
you
don't
know
you
just
don't
know,
and
I
don't
know
that
all
the
departments
talk
to
one
another,
you
know
do
you
need
to
go
to
zoning
if
it's
already
sold
for
what
you
want
to
use
that
property
for
or
do
you
even
know
what
the
zoning
is?
What
does
only
mean
right
and
who
do
I
ask
and
and
that's
even
a
question
that
seasoned
business
people,
you
know
you
know,
ask
themselves
hey,
let
me
find
out
who's
zoned,
for
if
they
have
an
attorney,
that's
good
at
it.
J
H
I
I
I'm
the
city
policy
associate
at
the
institute
for
justice,
the
institute
or
ij
is
a
national
nonprofit
that
works
with
entrepreneurs
and
policymakers
in
cities
across
the
country
to
enact
meaningful
regulatory
reform.
Our
goal
is
to
streamline
rules
for
getting
a
business
off
the
ground
to
create
a
more
accessible
path
to
entrepreneurship,
starting
a
small
business
in
boston.
It
can
be
a
daunting
experience,
especially
for
the
city's
most
vulnerable
residents,
many
of
whom
we've
spoken
to
to
do
the
research
for
this
report.
I
The
process
is
bogged
down
by
steep
fees,
protracted
delays,
bureaucratic
complexity.
Entrepreneurs
tell
us
that
they
often
receive
little
guidance
on
how
and
in
what
order,
to
complete
the
steps
to
get
to
opening
day.
It
doesn't
have
to
be
this
way,
though
you
shouldn't
need
a
law
degree
to
start
the
small
business
of
your
dreams
and
city
officials
from
council
to
the
agencies
have
an
opportunity
and
the
obligation
to
make
a
difference
to
enact
reforms
that
make
it
cheaper,
faster
and
simpler
to
open
up
shop.
I
I
Night
agencies
involved
in
procedures
for
starting
a
food
truck
compared
to
an
average
seven,
and
let's
be
clear
about
the
effect
of
this
regulatory
regime.
Barriers
to
business
fall
hardest
on
underserved
communities
such
as
immigrants,
those
who
have
big
dreams,
but
little
capital
and
connections
who
don't
have
the
funds
to
hire
lawyers
and
expediters.
I
So,
besides,
complex
red
tape
bears
to
business,
finds
that
boston
city
websites
do
a
poor
job
of
guiding
entrepreneurs
through
the
regulatory
process.
Out
of
five
one-stop
shop
criteria,
for
example,
boston's
website
only
satisfies
a
single
one,
minneapolis
and
philadelphia's
site
satisfy
three
san
francisco's
satisfies
four.
I
I
So
the
good
news,
the
good
news,
is
that
boston
officials
are
not
alone
in
thinking
through
ways
to
alleviate
regulatory
barriers
to
business.
Throughout
the
covet
era,
cities
have
sought
regulatory
relief
and
flexibility
for
their
small
business
communities
as
a
way
to
encourage
essential
economic
development
and
job
creation
in
dc,
for
example,
the
main
licensing
agency
recently
streamlined
business
license
rules.
They
identified
licenses
with
similar
submission
and
documentation
requirements,
and
they
collapsed
them.
Officials
in
detroit
are
rethinking
zoning
to
allow
more
uses
by
write.
I
Minneapolis
has
an
entire
web
page
dedicated
to
sharing
resources
with
entrepreneurs
and
helping
applicants
understand
the
rules
just
as
carlos
was
talking
about
before
a
web
page
where
this
is
how
you
get
started
in
the
city
of
minneapolis.
This
is
where
you
start,
and
this
is
how
you
go
through
the
process.
I
I
In
one
navigable
online
portal,
so
by
learning
from
these
best
practices,
boston
officials
really
have
the
opportunity
to
make
a
difference,
and
the
institute
for
justice
recommends
that
to
truly
make
it
cheaper,
faster
and
simpler
to
be
an
entrepreneur
in
boston
and
to
start
a
business.
We
recommend
that
council
and
the
agencies
reduce
fees
for
permits
and
licenses,
passing
targeted
fee
reduction
to
really
focus
on
lowering
burdensome
costs,
especially
for
building
permits
and
food
licenses.
K
K
United,
I'm
here
today,
because
I've
spent
the
last
year
interviewing
dozens
of
restaurant
operators
regarding
the
process
of
opening
their
businesses,
I'll
defer
to
the
honorable
representatives
from
the
city
government
that
we
heard
from
before
and
to
my
co-panelists
from
the
institute
of
justice
for
their
respective
expertise
on
the
systems
that
we
have
in
place
here
in
the
city
of
boston
and
for
suggestions
on
improving
those
systems.
So
I'll
focus
specifically
on
restaurants
in
boston,
as
in
so
many
cities.
K
But
the
delays,
complexities
and
costs
of
opening
discussed
in
the
report
are
all
exacerbated
by
institutionalized
racism
and
structures
of
privilege,
resulting
in
even
more
barriers
to
business
for
immigrant
and
minority-owned
businesses.
Let
us
not
forget
that
among
the
20
cities
that
the
report
evaluates
boston
has
the
most
number
of
steps
for
an
aspiring
restaurant
owner
92.
K
K
It
feels
like
you're
in
a
casino
and
the
city
is
the
house,
you
can't
figure
out
the
game
and
they
won't
tell
you.
The
rules,
an
operator
in
the
south
end
told
us,
I'm
very
fortunate,
I'm
a
well-to-do
upper
middle
class
guy.
I
went
to
a
good
college,
I'm
white
passing
and
it
became
very
evident
to
me
no
matter
what
reputation
or
career
in
restaurants
I
have
had
as
a
young
entrepreneur.
K
If
I
wanted
to
open
my
own
restaurant
in
boston,
it
would
be
basically
impossible
to
do
so
alone
without
partnering
with
people
who
have
navigated
this
before
an
operator
in
downtown
told
us
quote,
it
almost
seems
that
boston
does
not
want
you
to
open
a
business
here.
I'm
trying
to
open
a
business
to
employ
people,
feed
people,
pay
taxes
and
create
something
interesting
in
the
city
instead
of
a
chain
restaurant.
Why
is
it
so
hard
another
operator
in
roxbury
told
us
quote?
K
I
wish
that
the
city
had
a
dedicated
person
that
I
could
talk
to
about
this
process.
I
ended
up
finding
this
one
person
at
the
city,
my
go-to
person,
but
this
wasn't
their
job
and
sometimes
it
took
a
while.
They
were
busy,
and
I
understood
that
in
summation,
the
process
of
opening
a
restaurant
in
boston
is
cumbersome,
confusing
capital
intensive,
relying
on
english
language
proficiency
and
often
hinges
on
some
combination
of
luck
and
put
political
acumen.
K
K
I
believe
small
business
is
the
engine
of
economic
development
and
that
we
should
prioritize
supporting
diverse
aspiring
small
business
owners
to
open
their
dream
businesses
here
in
boston
by
mitigating
the
barriers
to
business.
I'm
encouraged
that
the
chair
and
the
council
are
taking
up
this
issue.
Thank
you
for
including
me
in
the
process
and
please
let
me
know
how
else
I
can
be
helpful
in
this
important
work
and
to
counseling
here's
point.
If
chief
edu
is
looking
for
external
collaborators,
call
me
up.
L
L
L
L
L
L
Also,
lgbtq
people
are
over
twice
as
likely
to
be
arrested.
One
in
six
trans
people
have
been
incarcerated
at
some
point
in
times
in
their
life
and
47
of
black
trans
people
have
been
incarcerated.
The
over-criminalization
of
marginalized
and
low-income
people
leaves
them
more
frequently
with
legal
fines,
fees
and
debts.
After
their
experiences
with
the
criminal
justice
system,
small
businesses
are
critical.
A
Minutes
just
all
right,
we'll
not,
we
won't
set
the
timer.
So
my
question
is
to
the
panel
just
wanna.
You
know
if
we're
gonna
be
doing
this
work
and
making
policy
changes.
What
are
some
like
good
indicators?
You
know
metrics
data.
We
should
be
collecting
as
a
city
to
making
sure
that
you
know
we're
addressing
these
burdens
and
making
sure
that
the
public
has
this
information
so
yep
to
anyone.
J
I
mean,
I
guess
the
biggest
metric
would
be
the
percentage
of
vacancies
that
you
have
in
your
city
for
storefronts
and
retail
locations.
I
mean
if
you
can
go
into
any
neighborhood.
I
mean
look
at
what's
happening
in
downtown
cross
and
look
at
what's
happening
in
newton
square.
You
know
where
we're
already
fighting.
C
I
Time
that
it
takes
to
go
through
the
regulatory
process,
so
we
wanted
to
study
that
for
our
barriers
to
business
report,
but
too
much
of
the
timetables
that
the
city
holds
itself
to
are
either
not
available
for
the
public
to
just
be
able
to
hold
the
city
account
to
or
they
are
the
city.
Oftentimes
just
doesn't
make
those
timetables
and
they
don't
factor
in
things
like
the
entrepreneur,
not
not
understanding
the
process
correctly,
because
the
process
was
poorly
explained
or
the
entrepreneur
not
having
the
correct
supporting
documentation
for
a
permit
or
license.
I
So
it's
really
difficult
to
have
comprehensive
data
on
how
long
the
process
actually
takes.
Some
entrepreneurs
have
told
us
that
it
can
take
many
months
or
even
years
to
get
started
in
cities,
and
so
we'd
like
to
see
the
city
kind
of
you
know,
hold
itself
to
account
and
have
better
data
to
answer
that
question
and
then
the
second
thing
that
I
would
point
to
is
really
better
understanding
how
all
of
these
kinds
of
regulatory
barriers
affect
communities
of
color,
because
we
just
don't
have
that
data.
An
example
of
that
is,
you
know.
I
I
A
And
I
was
a
young
entrepreneur
starting
off
one
day
and
I
just
remember
just
asking
questions.
I
wasn't
really
directed
to
any
specific
site.
It
was
google
that
was
my
my
best
friend
at
the
time
to
start
a
business,
it
was
trial
and
error.
You
know
that
was
my
best
friend
a
starting,
a
business,
but
I
love
to
hear
from
you,
mr
castillo,
like
you
know,
as
a
young
entrepreneur,
you
know,
how
did
you
navigate
the
process
or
how
did
you
come
across?
A
J
Actually
got
lucky
in
that
department,
so
luck
has
a
little
bit
to
do
with
it.
So
I
grew
up.
I
was
born
a
rock
star.
I
grew
up
in
dorchester.
You
guys
know
where
I'm
from,
but
a
lot
of
folks
that
work
at
like
10,
10
or
in
the
city
are
also
from
this
neighborhood.
So
when
I
graduated
from
college
and
I
started
working
in
construction
manager,
I
spent
a
lot
of
time
at
isd
at
10
10..
J
So
I
actually
got
to
know
a
lot
of
folks
there
just
doing
permitting
for
the
construction
projects
that
I
was
working
on
and
that's
when
I
realized
you
know
I
would
spend
at
first
when
right
out
of
college,
and
you
don't
know
anything
because
we
think
we
know
stuff,
we
really
don't
at
22..
I
would
spend
some
time
six
or
seven
hours
at
1010
massa.
J
J
For
me
that
was
an
advantage
learning
how
to
pull
permits,
and
that's
why
I
can
tell
you
that
it
for
the
average
person
it's
so
cumbersome,
because
you
don't
know
what
you
need
and
then
every
time
you
turn
around,
you
need
an
additional
permit.
So
you
you
set
up
your
llc
right.
You
have
your
business
insurance,
your
lawyer,
that's
all
you
need
you
get
your
license
from
the
city.
Oh
wait!
Now
you
want
to
open
up
a
bank
account,
and
now
you
need
a
business
certificate
from
the
city.
J
Well,
what's
that
you
know
you
need
this
so
before
you
before,
you
could
run
your
business
with
three
or
five
permits.
Now
you
need
like
eight
or
nine
that
are
all
annual
fees
to
what
you
were
talking
about
earlier.
So
I
think
I
got
lucky
by
knowing
that
other
folks
that
can
find
a
great
attorney
that
have
already
gone
through
that
that'll
help
them,
but
for
the
most
part
is
where
do
you
find
an
attorney
right?
You
know.
Who
is
that
person?
J
You
know
if
you,
google,
you
get
100
people
has
the
city
vetted
certain
attorneys,
or
even
you
know,
bookkeepers
and
all
that
to
say
hey.
You
know
these
guys
are.
You
know,
gonna
work
with
you.
They
know
the
city
process,
I
would
start
there
or
they
can
refer
you
to
somebody
so
that
at
least
you
know,
if
you
come
to
the
city,
they
can
refer
you
to
an
attorney.
They
can
refer
you
to
bookkeepers
accountants
and
they
can
kind
of
guide
you
in
that
direction.
J
At
least
that's
that
could
be
a
starting
point
for
most
people
versus
google.
I
mean
we
are,
you
know
in
the
google
generation,
so
we
can
look
that
up,
but
google
can
send
you
to
somebody
in
framingham.
You
know
to
come
and
do
something
in
boston
and
if
you
don't
know-
and
it's
a
familiar
name
and
you're,
let's
say
you're,
you
know
spanish
or
bilingual
or
portuguese,
and
you
find
a
name
that
you
think
they
speak.
You
know
your
native
tongue,
then
you're
probably
going
to
call
and
drive.
K
The
point
here
that
mr
castillo
is
making-
and
that
we're
also
talking
about
is
that
the
institute
of
justice
report
does
a
great
job
of
delineating
the
steps
delineating
the
costs,
but
there's
so
many
additional
steps
so
much
additional
time
and
so
many
sort
of
phantom
costs.
You
talk
about
an
attorney,
an
expediter,
so
there's
all
these
additional
costs
on
top
of
just
the
amount
of
money
that
is
going
straight
to
the
city,
not
to
mention
the
time
spent
going
to
10
10
mass
ave
and
spending
hours
there.
So
there's.
A
L
I
I've
worked
on
these
kinds
of
issues
in
cities
across
the
country
and,
I'm
frankly,
tired
of
hearing
executive
agency
staff
talk
about
technical
assistance
when
there
are
92
steps
to
start
helping.
Somebody
understand.
92
steps
is
one
way
to
approach
it
or
cutting
the
92
steps
is
another
way.
It
should
be
an
all
over
all
above
a
board
approach.
You
know
it's
not
enough
to
do
walk-throughs
through
communities
when
you're
not
helping
those
entrepreneurs
actually
affect
the
policy.
The
regulatory
policy
that
the
city
is
pursuing
walkthroughs
are
so
important.
I
Because
that's
what
entrepreneurs
have
told
us
is
what
really
makes
it
difficult
to
deal
with
the
city
in
many
cases-
and
you
know
they
were
telling
entrepreneurs
that
we've
talked
to
have
have
brought
up
consistently.
Those
three
themes
of
you
know
it's
the
delays
that
are
caused
by
not
understanding
how
the
process
process
works,
because
the
process
isn't
clear,
it's
the
cost
that
you
have
to
pay.
I
mean
in
many
cases
we're
talking
about
micro
businesses
having
to
invest
thousands
of
dollars
before
they
even
know.
I
If
the
business
model
will
work
and
then
the
complexity
is
you
know
what
carlos
is
talking
about,
what
nick
is
talking
about?
Just
the
sheer
number
of
steps
and
forms?
So
I
think
the
really
re
the
reason
we
really
wanted
to
focus
on
cost
delays
and
complexity
is
because
we
really
wanted
to
want
to
bring
this
to
council's
attention
that
it's
not
just
a
matter
of
technical
assistance.
I
Every
single
city
in
the
country
is
trying
to
figure
out
how
to
do
technical
assistance
better,
but
what
really
can
make
a
difference
is
not
just
helping
people
navigate
the
system
that
exists.
It's
about
making
the
system
better
itself.
It's
about
enacting
the
policies
that
will
make
the
system
better
itself
and
then
also
doing
the
technical
assistance,
because
that
is
a
key
part.
J
J
If
you
don't
know
how
long
it's
going
to
take,
how
can
you
plan
and
budget
for
that?
If
you
can
say
hey
if
you're
going
to
open
up
a
barbershop,
it
should
take
you
10
weeks,
then
you
calculate
into
your
budget
10
weeks,
but
if
it
takes
20
weeks
you
calculated
10
and
other
things
happen
during
construction
or
in
other
delays.
Now
how
do
you
account
for
that?
J
And
so
by
really
having
a
system
that
looks
at
you
know,
we
should
be
able
to
ask
the
city
and
say
if
I
want
to
open
up
a
barbershop,
a
restaurant,
you
know
a
nail
salon
or
you
know,
let's
say
a
pickup
and
drop
off.
You
know
dry
cleaners
or
any
of
these
services
that
make
neighborhoods
essentials
a
grocery
store
that
you
should
be
able
stationary
would
say
it
should
take
from
the
city
side
permit
wise.
J
You
know
six
weeks
or
eight
weeks,
whatever
the
time
is
so
that
it's
known
ahead
of
time
and
if
it
takes
longer
than
that,
obviously
with
contingencies,
depending
on
construction,
but
from
our
perspective
once
you've
done
abc
you'll
be
able
to
open
in
10
weeks
now,
if
there
are
delays
beyond
that.
On
your
end,
you
own
that
as
an
entrepreneur,
but
if
you're
being
delayed
on
the
city
side
because
of
policy
procedures
and
disconnects,
then
you
know
that's
where
we're
set
up
for
failure.
B
Yes-
and
I
turned
off
my
mic
earlier,
so
thank
you
for
bringing
me
back
online,
so
wow
right
just
I
want
to
start
off
with
something
you
just
said
in
terms
of
like
a
a
time
frame
and
a
timeline
right
if
we
can
start
off
with
like
okay,
it's
going
to
take
us
10
weeks
for
you
to
do
x,
y
and
z.
At
some
point
right,
there
needs
to
be
some
accountability
on
the
city
end.
B
B
But
if
there
is
some
sort
of
mechanism
where
we're
holding
the
city
accountable
and
ourselves
accountable
to
helping
to
support
these
small
businesses,
then
you
might
be
able
to
expedite
the
process
a
lot
quicker,
but
there's
no
checks
and
balances
here,
because
all
of
the
impact
is
left
on
the
shoulders
of
the
small
businesses.
And
this
is
why
we're
having
this
hearing
here
so
that
we
can
identify
what
what's
going
to
give
and
take
to
make
sure
that
the
burden
doesn't
always
fall
on
the
on
the
small
business.
The
entrepreneur
which
is
to
me.
B
I
think
where
the
opportunity
lies,
and
I
want
to
talk
a
little
bit
about
the
cannabis
industry,
which
is.
I
know
this
is
not
the
hearing
for
cannabis
in
particular.
But
what
I
have
known
in
my
two
and
a
half
years
here
in
office
is
that
that
is
one
of
the
major
roadblocks
for
a
lot
of
businesses
who
are
looking
to
open
up
shop.
Is
that
they're
going
through
zoning
they're
holding
up
their
commercial
space?
J
I
think
from
when
cannabis
started
several
years
ago
at
this
point
right,
it's
funny
to
say
that
several
years
ago,
yet
there
are
only
five
or
six
open
in
the
city
of
boston,
so
I
think
we've
come
a
long
way.
If
we
go
back,
you
know
there
were
a
million
vendors
right.
The
city
was
trying
to
figure
out
how
to
handle
this
cannabis
industry.
I
mean
there
wasn't
even
a
cannabis
board.
J
So
now
there
is
one
now
the
process
seems
a
little
bit
clearer,
but
there's
still
so
many
hurdles
right,
because
even
if
you
go
to
the
cannabis
board,
you
do
have
zoning
requirements
and
you
may
not
get
the
zoning
and
you
know
it's
a
checks
and
balance
you
may
get
through
cannabis,
but
you
may
not
get
through.
Zoning
and
different
departments
are
paying
attention
to
different
things.
Just
because
you
got
through
one
doesn't
mean
you're
going
to
get
through
the
other
and
that
kind
of
protects
neighborhoods.
J
So
I
understand
that
process,
but
I
think
the
timeline
of
it.
It's
really
important,
especially
in
cannabis,
because
you
mentioned
the
word
cannabis
and
your
rent
is
three
times
market
rent.
Your
hvac
equipment
is
three
times
market
rate.
Your
electrician
is
charging
three
times.
So
it's
almost
like
you,
because
people
assume
that
you're
going
to
make
money
when
you
get
into
cannabis,
they're
trying
to
get
as
much
as
they
can
and
at
one
point
I
said,
everybody's
making
money
in
cannabis,
except
for
us
that
are
trying
to
open
the
cannabis
place.
J
All
you
know
all
the
ancillary
parts
of
getting
you
there
all
the
consultants,
all
the
all,
the
all
the
people
that
you
hire
to
get
through
the
process,
they're
all
cashing
in
along
the
way,
but
you're
not
open,
and
so
I
think,
if,
if
we
merge
the
cannabis
board
and
zoning
and
the
city
councilors
offices
and
then
and
the
neighborhood
groups-
and
we
really
can
kind
of
streamline
that
process,
I
think
we're
headed
in
that
direction.
But
you
guys
haven't
come
as
one
yet
and
I
think
that's
the
real
hurdle.
Yeah.
B
B
You
know
field,
and
so
I'm
curious,
as
you
start
thinking
about
ways
that
we
can
better
address
the
close
that
gap.
What
would
you
say?
Should
the
city
put
out
a
list
of
vendors
and
say
here
the
the
folks,
because
then
those
people
are
going
to
be
making
money
right,
like?
Should
the
city
subsidize
some
of
that
technical
assistance
like
what
would
be
the
best
way
to
kind
of
help,
these
folks,
who
are
navigating
through
city
services,
to
really
get
them
from
a
to
c
or
z
in
a
timely
fashion?
K
Yeah,
so
I
think
you
know
I
defer
to
the
first
panel
and
their
technical
assistant
expertise,
but
I
think
to
echo
mr
montgomery's
point.
Part
of
the
issue
is
that
the
system
is
so
complicated
that
you
need
these
gatekeepers.
You
need
these
professional
services
to
help
you
navigate
it
and
so
pretty
much.
When
I
spoke
to
restaurant
operators,
everyone
said
that
either
they
paid
someone
to
help
them
figure
it
out
or
they
lucked
into
having
some
sort
of
angel
help
them,
like
you
said
who
knows
their
way
through
it.
J
J
Maybe
you
can
co-sign
on
this
there's
practically
one
attorney
that
did
liquor
licenses
right
now.
There
may
be
three.
I
think
one's
retired
and
passed
on
this
practice
is
somebody
else.
There
might
be
four
total
that
in
the
whole
city,
if
you
want
to
get
a
liquor
license,
you
go
to
these
four.
I
think
principal
just
opened
up
a
branch
right,
that's
going
to
be
doing
licensing,
but
before
that
you
know
it
was
so
that's
less
than
a
handful
for
the
entire
city.
I
Yeah
I
I
just
I
wanted
to
echo
that,
because
you
know
it
is
so
essential
for
boston
to
have
a
one-stop
shop
to
start
up
and
when
boston
has
a
one-stop
shop.
Imagine
that
you're
a
first-time
entrepreneur-
and
you
know
you're
going
through
the
requirements
that
you
have
no
option
but
to
go
through
things
like
zoning
and
permitting
and
then
on
the
side
of
the
website.
You
see.
Oh
look
at
these
lists
of
programs
that
are
available.
I
You
know
to
help
me
with
some
funding,
for
an
expansion
that
I
was
planning
to
do,
or
you
know
can,
can
provide
some
more
capital
for
x,
y
or
z.
You
know
that
kind
of
combining
those
kinds
of
services
in
one
location
can
actually
help
first-time
entrepreneurs
who
didn't
know
that
those
services
existed,
but
without
a
one-stop
shop.
I
It's
it's
not
likely
that
that
information
is
going
to
be
shared
very
well,
because
you
know
entrepreneurs
are
going
to
be
focused
on
their
zoning
and
permitting-
and
you
know
they're
going
to
have
to
hear
through
the
grapevine
that
there's
some
other
you
know
program
available,
and
so
one
way
to
really
approach.
That
is.
Is
to
create
a
one-stop
shop
and-
and
I
think
that
boston
should
look
to
some
of
the
examples
in
other
cities
that
that
the
barriers
to
business
report
points
out.
I
Minneapolis
has
a
really
good
website
that
combines
technical
assistance,
information
with
information
on
the
process,
and
then
miami
just
created
a
new
program
that
it
calls
e-start
and
basically,
it
allows
you
to
file
for
both
your
zoning
and
your
business
licensing
paperwork
in
one
easy
process,
and
then
they've
got
all
kinds
of
information
on
technical
assistance
and
proverb
preferred
vendors
working
with
the
city
as
well.
So
boston
should
look
to
those
examples.
Thank.
B
You
for
that,
I'm
going
to
say
one
more
thing
and
then
I'm
going
to
finish
up.
Okay,
one
is
that
I
would
love
also
the
city
of
boston,
to
create
a
a
page,
that's
dedicated
to
folks
like
who
have
successfully
managed
to
crack
the
da
vinci
code
successfully
right
and
you
could
tell
their
stories
because
sometimes
those
who
are
really
like
always
talk
about
living.
The
realities
know
how
to
best
overcome
the
hurdles.
So
I
think
hearing
from
experts
and
and
providing
the
one-stop
shop.
B
Here's
what
it
looks
like
here's,
what
I've
gone
through.
Those
personal
testimonies
are
really
empowering
and
inspiring
to
other
entrepreneurs.
So
I
think
there
should
be
some
sort
of
like
mechanism
too
in
on
that
website
that
we're
going
to
create
that
doesn't
exist
yet
that
we're
going
to
copy
minneapolis
from.
I
think
there
should
be
some
real
life
examples
of
successful
entrepreneurs.
B
I
remember
reaching
out
to
carlos.
There
was
a
woman
who
had
reached
out
to
me
who
is
going
to
be
getting
some
support
and
some
funding
to
have
a
black-owned
mental
wellness,
spa
in
the
city
of
boston,
and
I
was
like
wow.
That's
such
a
brilliant
idea-
and
I
was
just
gonna-
try
to
help
her
identify
how
she
can
find
a
location,
so
I
called
carlos
and
then
he
started
asking
her
101
questions
that
I
didn't
know
answers
to
either.
B
Like
all
of
that,
I
didn't
take
into
account
right
because
I
haven't
navigated
that
process,
but
just
having
that
one
conversation
with
you,
every
other
conversation
she
had
with
potential
landlords
opened
up
her
eyes.
So
then
she
knew
what
kind
of
questions
to
ask,
and
that
was
simple,
and
I
think
that
we
make
this
so
much
more
complicated
than
what
it
needs
to
be
oftentimes,
because
just
that,
like
20-minute
conversation
that
she
had
with
you,
carlos
like
provided
her
a
really
good
grounding
of
like
her
journey.
So
can
you
just
talk
to
us
about?
B
J
It's
not
the
city's
job.
To
make
your
dream
come
true.
It's
only
the
city's
job
to
facilitate
it
right
and
I
think
she's
an
example
of
somebody
who
just
hadn't
gone
through
the
process
herself.
So
she
didn't
know
where
to
start
or
what
questions
to
have
and
then
it
also
matters
like
which
landlord
she
gets
right.
So
it's
a
landlord
who's
going
to
say,
sign
the
lease
pay,
the
rent
figure
out
what
you?
J
What
you
want-
or
you
know,
here's
the
space,
here's
a
discount
until
you
get
your
certificate
of
occupancy
and
then
you're
going
to
your
full
ones
right.
You
know
so
there's
so
many
ways
that
a
person
needs
to
get
coach
and
talk
to
about
opening
a
business
that,
maybe
you
know
having
a
business
coach
is
something
that
you
guys
might
want
to
add
to
that
reference
list.
So
they
know
who
to
talk
to
somebody
in
each
respective
industry.
J
You
know
at
some
point
has
come
to
the
city
for
a
permit
for
help
for
assistance,
and
so
they
should
care
enough
to
pay
it
forward
and,
if
called
upon,
to
share
their
experience
yeah.
So
maybe
adding
that
as
hey
you
know,
this
person
has
been
in
the
same
business
that
you
want
to
get
into.
Maybe
they
can
share
some.
You
know,
advice
or
guidance.
B
People
who
are
doing
the
work,
because
the
city
doesn't
have
to
be
the
end
all
and
be
all
to
everyone
right.
They
can
liaison
with
other
folks
who
who
have
done
it
before
and
create
opportunities
for
those
folks
to
be
able
to
coach
others.
So
I
I
think
a
peer-to-peer
like
a
buddy
system
would
be
great.
K
And
I
don't
want
to
speak
for
mr
castillo,
but
I
assume,
like
you
know,
I
don't
think
that
any
of
my
success
so
far
as
a
small
business
owner
is
my
is,
is
me
alone
it's
because
of
all
the
people.
Who've
been
really
generous
with
answering
my
questions
and
supporting
me,
and
so
I
just
I
want
to
turn
around
and
help.
I
want
to
answer
those
questions
of
the
next
small
business
owners
who
are
coming
up
so
there's
this
like
element
of
mentorship
that
is
already
built
into
the
system.
K
C
K
B
B
Can
you
all
help
me
out
with
this
that
or
the
other?
Yes
and
I
come
from
the
nonprofit
world?
That's
just
the
way
we
do
things,
but
it
is
important
for
us
to
provide
some
sort
of
stipends
and
and
support
to
those
folks
who
who
have
the
expertise
and
have
been
there,
because
there
are
trusted
partners
in
that
process
and
then
the
city.
B
J
Even
just
encouraging
entrepreneurs
or
aspiring
entrepreneurs
to
go
and
talk
to
business
owners,
I
mean
he's
right.
I
mean
I'm,
not
where
I
am
alone.
I
have
a
ton
of
mentors,
you
know
and
I've
had
them.
I
realized.
Mentoring
was
important
from
early
age
because
I
was
you
know
I
was
forced
to
have
mentors
when
I
was
younger,
but
I
didn't
know
why,
and
so
I'm
a
product
of
many
mentors
that
I
am
still
engaged
with.
So
I
could
not
be
where
I
am
in
each
industry.
J
The
one
where
I
have
the
least
amount
of
mentors
which
is
the
most
challenging
is
in
cannabis,
and
I
you
know,
I
consider
the
master
cedar
mentor.
I'm
always
counting
him
he's
been
a
mentor
to
a
lot
of
us,
but
in
any
business
that
you're
going
to
get
into
you
need
a
network,
you
need
resources
and
you
need
mentoring,
otherwise,
you're
not
going
to
know
what
you
don't
know.
K
And
I
think,
if
I
can
build
on
that,
one
more
point
is
that,
as
mr
montgomery
said,
like
the
good
news
about
the
barriers
to
business
and
just
the
steps
and
the
one-stop
shop
need,
is
that
basically,
what's
happening
in
the
city
is
happening
in
19
other
cities
right
there.
There
are
great
examples.
We
don't
need
to
forge
a
new
path.
K
We
can
learn
best
practices
from
some
other
folks,
so,
similarly,
in
the
same
way
that
an
entrepreneur
shouldn't
have
to
navigate
the
system
by
themselves,
the
city
of
boston
also
doesn't
have
to
reinvent
the
wheel.
We
can
look
to
our
peer
cities.
Who've
developed
some
better
systems
in
order
to
develop
a
better
system
here.
B
A
It
all
right
yeah,
I
just
have
a
couple
more
questions.
One
of
the
you
know
things
that
we
talked
about.
A
lot
was
the
peer-to-peer
and
how
important
that
is,
because
you
know
filling
out
paperwork.
Sometimes,
when
you
fill
out
those
permits,
if
you
fill
it
out
incorrectly,
it
could
be
a
barrier
down
the
road
on
something
you're
trying
to
do
or
want
to
do
in
your
space.
So,
like
all
those.
So
when
you,
when
you're
talking
about
the
92
steps,
mr
montgomery,
can
you
describe?
A
I
You
know
difficult
and
owners
to
do
in
some
cases,
and
then
there
are
other
steps
like
inspections
and
scheduling
those
it's
funny,
because
you
would
think
that
you
know
why
would
scheduling
us
an
inspection
be
its
own
step?
Well,
it's
because
you
know
in
many
cases
scheduling
an
inspection
is
actually
difficult
to
do,
because
you
know
it's
not
as
simple
as
just
you
know,
an
automated
process
that
you
know
gets
that
happens
as
soon
as
you
file
something
sometimes
you
actually
have
to
call
an
inspector
and
the
inspector
has
a
very
limited.
I
You
know
schedule
and
all
that
kind
of
stuff.
So
it's
scheduling
inspections
passing
in
step
inspections
getting
forms
notarized.
I
mean
imagine,
imagine
if
there's
not
a
notary
near
where
you
live
in
your
neighborhood
and
then
you
have
to
pick
up
and
go
all
the
way
down
downtown.
Just
to
you
know,
have
somebody
watch,
you
sign
a
piece
of
paperwork.
So
it's
it's.
It's
all
those
kinds
of
stubs
sub
steps,
as
you
said,
but
it's
also
the
primary
steps
of
the
forms
and
registrations.
K
Yeah
digging
into
the
report
a
little
bit
just
for
food
business,
because
you
open
the
door
to
food
businesses,
so
restaurants
have
22
forms
that
need
to
get
filled
out
and
almost
all
those
forms,
and
I
can
speak
from
experience.
Many
of
those
forums
have
accompanying
instructions
and
those
instructions
are
sometimes
really
difficult
to
navigate
even
for
a
college.
Educated,
english
language,
proficient
person
and
so
essentially
like
the
the
forms,
are
complicated.
K
The
instructions
for
the
forms
and
the
sub
steps
for
the
forms,
also
all
kind
of
like
ladder
up
onto
each
other
and
all
further
amplify
the
differences
between
folks,
the
haves
and
the
have
nots
and
and
folks
who
have
english
language
skills.
I
mean
it
really
just
exacerbates
a
lot
of
the
issues
that
the
first
panel
was
discussing.
A
L
A
L
Yeah,
so
housing
insecurity
can
make
it
really
difficult
for
individuals
to
maintain
a
consistent
mailing
address
for
important
communications,
and
so
it
can
make
it
really
a
lot
more
difficult
for
them
to
receive
important
notices
about
their
legal
proceedings
or
their
financial
accounts.
And
so
because
you
know
many
marginalized
groups
do
struggle
more
frequently
with
housing
and
security
and
housing
discrimination
and
and
are
more
frequently
likely
to
relocate.
L
It
can
really
affect
their
ability
to
receive
those
communications,
and
so
they
might
be
more
likely
to
miss
those
important
notices
in
order
to
manage
the
situation,
and
so
I
think
just
you
know
to
highlight
you
know
how
the
compounding
effects
of
intersecting
discrimination
can
affect.
Folks
in
2020,
eight
percent
of
transgender
people
reported
that
they
had
been
homeless
in
the
prior
year
and
you
know
over
a
third
of
sorry.
A
And
then
you
know,
we've
heard
so
much
about
cost,
or
you
know
your
financial
financial
health,
you
know
being
a
big
part
of
starting
a
business.
So
given
the
cost
and
complexity
of
starting
a
business
in
boston,
many
entrepreneurs,
you
know,
have
to
seek
out.
You
know
whether
it's
attorneys
surveyors.
A
L
We
found
that
lgbtq
businesses
who
were
working
with
large
banks
were
also
much
more
likely
to
report
difficulties
in
even
just
working.
You
know
on
basic
applications
and
services
with
their
bank
98
said
they
had
at
least
one
or
more
challenge
in
working
with
their
banks,
such
as
an
unaffordable
loan
that
they
were
offered
difficulty
accessing
applications
or
navigating
processes,
and
this
was
compared
to
only
68
of
non-lgbtq
firms
and
also,
you
know,
as
I
was
pointing
to
you,
know,
lgbtq
and
minority-owned
firms.
L
46
of
lgbtq
owned
businesses
said
that
they
had
received
none
of
the
financing
that
they
had
applied
for
in
the
prior
year,
compared
to
only
34
of
non-lgbtq
businesses,
so
more
likely
to
apply
for
ppp
loans
but
less
likely
to
receive
ppp
loans
or
to
have
those
loans
forgiven,
and
so
I
think
that
really
just
indicates
you
know
strongly
the
difficulties
that
exist.
You
know
certainly
for
the
lgbtq,
but
these
you
know
also
are
barriers
that
exist
for
minority
owned
and
women
owned
and
immigrant
owned
firms.
A
A
You
know
my
question
is
like
more
so
far
like
entrepreneurs
like.
Is
there
a
city?
I
know
you
talked
about
guidelines
and
and
websites
when
it
when
it
comes
to
entrepreneurs,
but
do
any
cities
have
like
departments
just
kind
of
an
outreach
just
more
gauge
to
entrepreneurs
that
we
should
take
examples
of.
I
I
It
works
for
people
who
might
not
understand
how
to
to
facilitate
online
processes,
but
those
processes
should
still
be
online,
because
that
makes
it
easier
for
other
kinds
of
of
entrepreneurs.
So
I
think
I
think
the
most
successful
thing
would
be
to
just
look
at
this,
as
as
an
all
above
approach
where
you're,
you're,
mixing
and
matching
different
kinds
of
strategies
and
we'd
be
happy
to
to
follow
up
with
more
information
on
cities
that
have
ombudsman
or
in-person
one-stop
shops.
A
Yeah
no
yeah
great
great
answer,
because
I
feel
that
you
know
sometimes
the
main
streets
are
just
they're
focused
on
the
businesses
that
are
there
on
the
main
streets
and
it's
you
know
those
entrepreneurs
that
are
starting
with
the
idea
in
their
room.
You
know
like
they
need
the
assistance,
sometimes
in
order
to
navigate
and
the
technical
assistance-
and
I
know
we've
talked
about
you-
know,
website
peer-to-peer
cut
down
the
steps
up.
Yep,
mr
castillo,
you
know.
J
You
should
use
the
main
streets
for
this.
You
should
use
the
main
streets
as
the
starting
point.
I
mean
they
basically
are
like
sub
agencies
of
the
city
and
and
but
that's
20
main
streets.
I
think,
and
they
touch
like
20
different
neighborhoods.
They
cover
the
whole
city.
So
it's
almost
like
we're.
Not.
We
almost
have
like
all
the
tools
here,
we're
just
activating
them
or
or
restructuring
them
or
giving
you
know,
repurposing
them
right.
We
have
everything
in
place.
It's
just
a
matter
of
you
know,
put
it
on
the
main
streets.
J
You
know
to
be
the
starting
point
in
whatever
neighborhood
that
person
wants
to
open
up
a
business.
As
you
know
the
center
of
getting
information
right
right
and
then
you
know,
I
love
the
idea
like
if
there
was
an
office
at
10
10,
because
so
much
of
the
permanent
is
at
10
10
that
that
could
be.
You
know
the
one
building
where
all
that
stuff
is
at
so
using
main
street
1010
massage
and
then
ultimately,
here,
city
hall
and
mission
accomplished.
A
I
agree,
and
I
think
you
know
we
should
equip
our
main
streets
to
do
a
lot
more,
whether
it's
you
know
applying
you
know
for
for
funding.
You
know
starting
the
process
on
maybe
even
permanent
or
but
also
love.
The
idea,
because
you
know
most
of
this
work
is
going
to
be
done
at
10,
10
mass
ave
that
a
lot
of
this
assistance
like
when
you
sign
your
permit.
You
know
the
the
person
at
the
counter
should
be
able
to
say.
A
I
Well,
I
would
just
I
would
just
say
that
you
know
council,
you
know
owning
what
council
can
own
and
then
the
executive
agencies
owning
what
they
can
own,
and
I
think
this
hearing
is
is
a
great
step
in
that,
because
you
know
you
had
people
who
actually
have
ownership
of
these
processes
that
we're
coming
and
talking-
and
you
know
ultimately,
council
can
do
a
lot.
But
you
know
the
agencies
are
the
ones
that
know.
Why
does
step
57
and
step
68?
Why
do
those
steps
exist?
I
And
so
you
know
from
the
standpoint
of
what
council
can
do
council
can
look
at
you
know:
fee
reduction
and
and
funding.
You
know
efforts
to
to
exempt
micro
businesses
from
some
of
these
thousand
dollar
price
tags
that
we're
seeing
on
permits
and
licenses.
You
know,
council
can
take
the
lead
on
issues
like
that
council
can
can
call
for
a
one-stop
shop
and
and
even
appropriate,
appropriate
funding
to
do
that.
I
Council
can
focus
on
some
of
those
notable
roadblocks
and
barriers
in
the
code
that
we've
seen
like
the
clean
hands
requirement,
and
I
understand
we're
still
waiting
for
a
lot
of
information
about
what
how
the
clean
hands
requirement
actually
works.
But
you
know
once
we
have
that
information.
You
know,
council
can
take
the
lead
on
on
those
kinds
of
roadblocks
and
then
council
just
continuing
to
put
pressure
on.
I
I
You
know
streamlined
and
online,
of
course,
with
the
technical
assistance
still
helping
people
who
are
the
victims
of
the
digital
gap,
but
ultimately
having
the
base
of
the
process
existing
online,
so
focusing
on
in-person
activities
and
then
focusing
on
the
building
and
construction
permits
which
oftentimes
have
you
know
dozens
of
steps
to
get
each
one
and
are
really
difficult
to
understand.
So
those
are
kind
of
the
two
areas
that
we
would
encourage
council
to
put
pressure
on
the
agencies
to
really
think
through
how
to
streamline
those.
J
He
couldn't
have
said
it
better,
I
mean
to
add
to
it
it's
just
accountability
and
transparency,
so
those
agencies
are
on
the
mindset.
I
really
don't
want
to
hear
from
the
counselor
about
why
this
was
delayed,
you
know
or
that
we
dropped
the
ball
on,
that.
I
think
that
would
move
things
along
and
they
keep
moving
forward.
The
way
we
are
I
mean
this
is
a
sign
of
a
better
boston
to
come.
A
Thank
you
to
the
panel
now
we'll
open
it
up
to
public
testimony,
and
if
you
signed
up
to
testify
in
public,
you
could
testify
right
here.
On
my
left
hand,
side
at
the
microphone-
and
I
believe
I
have
seems
like
stephanie
lewis,
small
business
owner
and
thank
you
to
the
panel
again
and
thank
you
for
all
your
hard
work
and
advocating
for
small
businesses.
H
H
H
H
H
A
list
of
things
available
for
me.
I
really
just
need
to
get
my
business
off
the
ground.
I
really
just
need
to
be
able
to
really
put
the
word
out
that
my
business
is
out
there.
You
know,
so
I
need
money.
You
know,
that's
the
truth,
that's
what
I
need.
So
when
I
go
to
these
programs-
and
they
tell
me
they
have
all
these
great
things
available,
which
is
awesome.
H
H
So
there's
no
like
status
about
that.
I
also
called
in
I
came
in
several
times,
but
I
wasn't
able
to
like
really
see
anyone.
So
this
whole
time
is
just
me
just.
I
feel
like
I'm
just
making
circles,
because
the
things
that
I
need
specifically
are
not
being
addressed,
but
it's
not
just
it's
not
just
that.
H
I
think
that
it's
more
so
with
what
was
said
early
about
learning
styles
like
they
have
some
of
these
programs,
where
they
they
will
help
you
do
certain
things
such
as
like
financing
or
accounting,
but
which
is
great,
but
I'm
more
of
a
kinesthetic
learner.
You
know,
I
can't
just
hear
something
and
learn
it.
I
actually
have
to
be
doing
it.
H
That's
the
way
that
I
learn
and
thrive
the
best,
so
I
just
wanted
to
come,
and
basically
I
probably
didn't
go
over
everything
that
I
wanted
to
go
over,
but
I'm
just
gonna
continue
fighting
for
my
family
and
making
sure
that,
like
this
making
sure
that
the
that
the
the
constant
the
constant
like
I
just
feel
like
it's
just
it-
I
just
feel
like
it
just
keeps
happening
over
and
over
again,
where
we're
just
working
our
lives
and
then
dying
with
nothing.
You
know
I
just
I
know
that
probably
sounds
crazy.
H
H
I
want
to
do
a
business
and
brunch
event
for
other
entrepreneurs
and
small
businesses
to
kind
of
get
together
and
talk
about
these
issues
and
talk
about
what
they
need
individually
and
just
kind
of
like
grow
from
there,
because
I
believe
that
I
believe
that
so
many
other
businesses,
whether
they're
in
my
field
or
a
different
field.
I
believe
that
we
can
learn
from
each
other
and
that
can
help
us
to
grow.
A
Thank
you,
miss
lewis,
and
my
condolences
and
prayers
to
your
family.
I
mean
thank
you
for
your
strength,
your
courage
to
show
up
and
lending
your
voice
to
moving.
You
know
the
council
and
the
administration
to
create
the
policy
and
the
opportunities
that's
needed.
You
know
here
in
the
city
of
boston,
so
thank
you
we'll
stay
in
contact
and
council
mejia,
and
I
and
all
our
colleagues
we're
gonna
continue
to
fight.
A
M
Oh
thank
you
counselors
for
providing
the
opportunity
I'll
make
a
couple
quick
remarks,
and
I
was
watching
intensely
with
the
discussion
about
the
different
ways
to
provide
services
to
our
small
business
community.
I
believe
one
of
the
things
that's
missing
right
now
is
some
type
of
crm
system
in
terms
of
the
city
collect.