Feature Stories: The Business & Community Development Division's work behind the scenes
Feature Stories highlight the work of municipal departments and their employees across the city. These posts are written in the third person and will not be authored by the City Manager.
Last spring the production crew of “Walking Dead: Dead City” transformed parts of Downtown into a post-apocalyptic New York City. Every Wednesday in September, food trucks, live music, and games filled 167 Pleasant St. as part of the Pleasant Street Vendor and Food Truck Series.
While the two occurrences may seem unrelated on the surface, they are connected by something behind the scenes – the Executive Office of Economic Development’s Business & Community Development Division.
The four-person division was involved in bringing both the “Walking Dead: Dead City” to Worcester and planning the Vendor and Food Truck Series.
The division works with businesses of all sizes, helping them at every stage of their life from selecting a location to getting permitting to opening to expanding.
Division member Edgar Luna helps production companies scout locations for everything from Hollywood Blockbusters to a commercial over the summer featuring Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum.
“These productions bring financial benefits to the local economy by utilizing local transportation, restaurants, hotels, and short-term leasing locations, and hiring local staff,” Luna shared. “These movies and commercials are viewed internationally; thereby showcasing the beauty and uniqueness of the city.”
The division is also involved in the creation of Transformative Development Initiative (TDI) districts through a partnership with MassDevelopment. TDIs focus intensive resources to a district for a defined time period.
Worcester had a TDI in Main South from 2018 to 2022. During that time the Business & Community Development Division worked to establish the Main South Business Association – a group of local business owners in the Main South commercial corridor with the intent of creating strong relationships between businesses, community members, and organizations.
The division also took steps to beautify the corridor, including adding banners and planters along Main Street.
The Main South Business Association recognized all those efforts by awarding the division’s Assistant Chief Vaske Gjino its 2024 Standout for Small Businesses Recognition.
“It was an honor to receive 2024 Standout for Small Business award from the Main South Business Association and a testament to the public-private partnership that is needed within our commercial corridors,” Gjino said.
Similar efforts are being made now on Pleasant Street, which became a TDI district in 2022 and will be sunsetting its three-year district designation in Sept. 2025.
The Pleasant Street TDI Partnership has applied for and been awarded more than $450,000 from MassDevelopment, which has allowed it to award 16 microgrants to Pleasant Street businesses.
The funds have also been used for seven storefront improvement projects, supported renovations to the Pleasant Street Neighborhood Network Center, and supported the installation of a public art sculpture at Peace Park, among other efforts.
“The Pleasant TDI Partnership has brought together a group of business owners, nonprofits, and community partners while unlocking crucial grant funding to support improvements in the Pleasant Street corridor with the support of MassDevelopment’s Pleasant Street TDI Fellow Ivette Olmeda,” Gjino said. “The group has been successfully able to tackle projects that wouldn’t have been able to move forward without TDI support.”
In addition to hosting the vendor and food truck series to highlight local businesses on Pleasant Street, the division is in the process of establishing a business association for Pleasant Street and taking beautification steps including helping businesses refresh their facades.
The division oversees a city-wide Façade Program and is part of the Massachusetts Vacant Storefront Program, which provides additional incentives to small businesses owners who locate their businesses in a formerly vacant first-floor storefront.
Since the beginning of 2024, the division has administered more than $1.1 million in financial assistance to 20 small businesses and façade projects in the municipality. Thirteen (or 65%) of the small businesses are women, minority, or immigrant-owned and the businesses have created more than 20 full-time and 32 part-time jobs.
Awardees included Pho Sure Worcester with their relocation efforts to the city, Crown Meat Market’s expansion of their butchery and market, and Coney Island’s restoration of their iconic neon sign landmark.
“Pho Sure's expansion would not have been possible without the support of the City of Worcester, especially the Business & Community Development Division,” Pho Sure Manager Nikki Vo said. “Navigating the permitting and licensing maze can be daunting, but Edgar Luna, with incredible patience, worked closely with us every step of the way, from the initial building permit application to securing our liquor license.”
The process was longer and more expensive than expected, with the business running into significant financial hurdles, according to Vo.
“Vaske Gjino and his team at the Business & Community Development Division were amazing: they helped us secure the Small Business Grant, which gave us the boost we needed to keep going.” Vo said. “The grant came just in time to help us cross the finish line. We are very grateful for the City of Worcester's support and for believing in us.”
George’s Coney Island’s sign is a Worcester landmark. The Worcester institution took advantage of the municipality’s Façade Program to keep the neon sign lighting up.
“Thanks to the City's support, we were able to restore our historic neon sign: a landmark that's meant so much to generations of customers and Worcesterites alike,” Solon Kelleher, Chief Operating Officer and fourth generation of the family behind George’s Coney Island, said. “The project has sparked renewed attention, with several media outlets covering the restoration and countless customers commenting that they saw the sign getting some much-needed TLC. We're deeply grateful to the City of Worcester for helping preserve this piece of local history.”
The municipality also played a role in the expansion of Crown Meat Market, which the owner Graciene Macedo said reinforced her confidence in investing further in the community.
“The City played a vital role in supporting Crown Meat Market’s expansion efforts by streamlining the permitting process, offering guidance on zoning compliance, and connecting us with local development resources,” Macedo said. “Their support helped us navigate regulatory requirements efficiently, saving time and reducing costs…The City’s commitment to local businesses like ours is a powerful sign that Crown Meat Market is part of a growing, business-friendly environment.”
One of the largest efforts the Business & Community Development Division has undertaken in the past year is using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars to help businesses become certified as diverse business enterprises with the State’s Supplier Diversity Office.
Getting those certifications allows businesses to qualify for state contracts as Minority; Women; Service-Disabled Veteran; Veteran; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender; and Disability-Owned Business Enterprises.
So far, the division’s Diverse Business Certification Grant Program has helped 185 businesses through the grant process. That has more than doubled the number of businesses that have successfully completed certification in Worcester to 160. Before the program launched in April 2024, 65 businesses in the city were certified.
“Improving and encouraging greater certification of diverse businesses in the city is an important step in creating opportunities for Worcester-based certified businesses to increase their participation in government contracting,” Gjino said.
These are just a few examples of the many different efforts the Business & Community Development Division is undertaking to support the city’s small businesses and foster a sense of community. If you’re thinking of opening a business, the division is your go to source of support in the city. You can find out more about the resources it offers on the municipality’s website.