Change can cut both ways

Little changes can have big consequences. Just ask merchants along a number of Providence’s most important retail corridors.

When the city looked at installing parking meters along Wickenden Street, the merchants’ association there fought the move. As the owners of Adler’s Hardware pointed out, for a customer who wanted to duplicate a key, a service that costs $1.79, the minimum parking charge to a credit card was expected to be $2.50.

As a result, the city has agreed to more strictly enforce the two-hour time limit for free parking on Wickenden, an accommodation it is making along Hope Street as well. Other retail districts that have had meters installed also hope to have the city return to monitoring on-street parking.

Another story in this pull-out section reports on the increase in U.S. Small Business Administration loans, especially those for less than $150,000. The increase is a good sign for the growing health of the region’s businesses. But it is also proof that changes in public policy can make a real difference.

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Beginning on Oct. 1, 2013, the SBA waived all fees for lenders and borrowers on SBA-supported loans of $150,000 or less. The result, especially in the current fiscal year, has been more lending. In fiscal 2016, the number of loans made in the agency’s flagship 7(a) working capital loan program has increased 30.1 percent, while the dollar volume has grown 6 percent. Yes, the federal government has gained less revenue. But with increased economic activity, the trade-off is clearly worth it.

So as you read this year’s section, which also includes four Top Lists relating to access to capital for small businesses, keep in mind that the big (economic) picture is a mosaic of many small businesses.

Mark S. Murphy

Editor

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