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Chamber gives midyear update on Business Assistance Partnership
Summary
The Upper Tampa Bay Chamber presented a midyear update on the Business Assistance Partnership: business visits, ribbon cuttings, training grants linked to Penny for Pinellas funding, and outreach efforts to retain and attract businesses to Oldsmar.
Jason Sanders of the Upper Tampa Bay Chamber on April 21 presented a midyear update on the Business Assistance Partnership (BAP), which the chamber runs in cooperation with the city to support local economic development.
Sanders summarized activities to date: regular business visits with city staff and elected officials to identify needs; ribbon cuttings and welcome outreach for new businesses; partnership with Pinellas County Economic Development and North County municipal efforts; a training program funded in part by the Penny for Pinellas employment sites program to upskill local workers; and a running dataset tracking Oldsmar business and residential trends to spot opportunities and risks.
Sanders also described lunch‑and‑learn programming, a windshield‑tour approach to scouting underutilized commercial property, and outreach to support recruitment and retention. He said the chamber is working with several prospective relocations to Oldsmar and encouraged continued collaboration with city staff and local organizations.
Why it matters: The update shows active small‑business retention and recruitment efforts that city staff and the chamber say support local employment and market the city to prospective employers.
Next steps: The chamber will continue business visits and training initiatives and coordinate with the city on outreach and recruitment work.
