City details small-business supports, a proposed small-business loan fund and regulatory review

The Office of Economic Revitalization (O.E.R.) briefed the committee on March 9 about programs to support small businesses and local agriculture.

Executive Director Amy Asselbaye said O.E.R. moved several positions previously funded by pandemic relief into the general fund for FY27 to preserve the office’s grant-writing and program-delivery capacity. She described multiple external awards and pending grants: a $400,000 earmark secured from a U.S. senator to scale technical assistance to small businesses via the Oahu Business Connector network; $186,000 in state funding to help businesses apply for federal loans; and a $100,000 U.S. EDA award to support business-disaster resiliency.

O.E.R. outlined two near-term program priorities: launching a small-business loan fund to build pipeline access for firms that cannot secure commercial loans, and piloting farmers markets at rail stations (a $500,000 pilot over two years) to support local producers and food access. The office also described a regulatory-justice initiative that mapped licensing and permitting steps for retail and food establishments and identified opportunities to reduce administrative burden across jurisdictions.

Councilmembers asked about O.E.R.’s role in coordinating cross-departmental policy reforms (for example, permitting with DPP) and about using O.E.R.’s cabinet position to shepherd regulatory changes. Asselbaye said the office is building partnerships with state and county agencies, the SBA, and other entities, and will produce regulatory-review findings and recommendations as part of ongoing work.

No formal Council action occurred on March 9; members requested follow-up on grant details, the small-business loan fund design, and the regulatory-burden study.