On November 3, 2023, Jeff Tart, Senior Loan Officer of the South Florida Regional Planning Council’s Revolving Loan Fund Program (RLF) was invited to meet the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA).  Mr. Tart was asked to join a roundtable and listening session with Secretary Raimondo and Ms. Marie Gill, Founder & CEO of M. Gill & Associates and operator of the MBDA Miami Business Center, Export Center and Capital Readiness Program which partners and collaborates with the SFRPC’s RLF programs.

Roundtable guests discussed their collaborations, partnerships, and shared how their businesses and programs have benefitted from service delivery offered by the Miami MBDA programs.  As operator of the MBDA Business Center in South Florida for 23 years, M. Gill & Associates has served over 20,000 MBEs, generated over 19,000 jobs, won multiple awards from MBDA for being the top performer, facilitated over $6 billion in contracts and financing on behalf of MBEs.  Marie Gill also serves as a board member to the SFRPC’s Revolving Loan Fund Program.

The SFRPC Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Program was established to assist businesses following the devastation of Hurricane Andrew which on August 24, 1992 ravaged South Florida, particularly southern Miami-Dade County. Today, the SFRPC continues to serve small- and medium-size businesses who seek financial capital to grow their businesses but are unable to obtain conventional financing. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) partnered with the Council to capitalize a new $5.38 million CARES Act Revolving Loan Fund for businesses adversely impacted by COVID-19. These funds were utilized to help alleviate sudden and severe economic dislocation caused by Covid-19 in Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties. To date, this program has provided 34 businesses with the tools and resources they need to continue their recovery from the pandemic and keep Floridians working.

To learn more, please contact:
Senior Loan Officer, Jeffrey Tart at 954.924.3653 or jtart@sfrpc.com.