From Norwalk to the White House

President Barack Obama has heard from Norwalk.

A roundtable discussion among more than a dozen local business leaders held Thursday morning at NEON has resulted in a letter being sent to Obama with suggestions on how to improve the economy.

The most pressing action, according to those who attended the meeting, is having banks free up money for loans. If development projects can get off the ground and small business owners can expand their businesses, it will create a domino effect that will benefit all industries, they said.

“The stimulus money to date does not have enough emphasis on small business. As small businesses expand, jobs are created,” said Herb Grant, owner of entertainment management company DMG and Associates. “The overriding thing we heard today was that banks have to play a major role and free up money to help our businesses expand. If we don’t get the loans, we have to lay off people.”

Obama in early December requested that small groups of business leaders from communities throughout the nation hold “Community Jobs Forums,” summarize the ideas and send the suggestions to the White House. The original deadline was Dec. 13, but it was expanded to Jan. 7. Grant and Joe Mann, president and CEO of NEON, organized Thursday’s meeting and had the letter sent out that afternoon.

“It now gives us, Norwalk, Connecticut, an opportunity to get on the map and get input into the president’s hands,” said Grant, who is also the chairman at NEON. “I felt it was imperative to get Norwalk involved in this.”

Added Mann: “People were excited to have an opportunity to express their views. We wanted to have Norwalk represented and some positive things came out of the discussion.”

Mann, Grant and NEON’s Chiquita Stephenson all expressed a desire to have the discussions continue on a regular basis, using Thursday’s participants as a core group.

The meeting also included Norwalk Mayor Richard Moccia, Mary Mann of NEON, Shante Hanks of Congressman Jim Himes’ office, Mike O’Malley of SCORE, Tony Aitoro of Aitoro’s Appliances, Norwalk Common Council member Carvin Hilliard, Norwalk Community College President David Levinson, and Chip Anderson of NEON.

“It was a nice cross-section of leaders and we got a nice array of opinions,” Mann said.

Grant and Mann said the meeting was positive and a palatable sense of camaraderie surfaced.

“How we dig ourselves out of a bad situation is by working together to come up with constructive ideas,” Mann said. “In the midst of troubling times, there’s always positives. It’s rallied Norwalk together. We had Republicans and Democrats in here, but none of it mattered. It was: ‘What can we do together to get ourselves out of this?’”

Money would help get many people out of these economic doldrums, Mann and Grant said. Paraphrasing comments from a small business owner who attended the meeting, Grant said nothing can done until “the hole is dug.”

Using the redevelopment projects and proposed hotels in Norwalk as an example, Grant said the commerce and employment that comes with development can’t happen if the projects do not get off the ground. Once the hotels are completed, jobs will be available for desk clerks, cleaning staff, chefs, wait staff and other hospitality positions.

“If there’s no money, the hole can’t get dug,” Grant said. “Once the hole is dug, things can start to happen. That’s the domino effect.”

Mann said he felt as if the meeting and resulting letter will produce tangible results for Norwalk.

“The things we talked about today are the things communities are talking about all across the country. Our small businesses are not different than the businesses in Minnesota, or wherever,” he said. “I think the discussion will matter. What we send will reinforce what other communities are saying.”

By CHRIS BOSAK
Hour Staff Writer