Dunbar Revival

"Everything I bought that I have in that building is paid for by working two jobs and praying," he says. What's more, he opened while the boulevard was under construction. "A lot of people were telling me I wasn't going to make it there."

A year and a half later, people drive from as far as Fort Myers Beach or Burnt Store Road for his sweet potato/cream cheese pie, he says. He's overjoyed to have Fort Myers police and fire departments as clients, and he hopes a big order from a Lee County School district function will lead to a regular gig. He's adding three more people for a total staff of five, and starting to advertise.

"There were times it got really, really tough, but I wouldn't give up," he says. During those times, he remembered a friend's words of wisdom: "The road to success is always under construction."

White is the sort of small-businessperson who needs more help through creative and innovative financing options and "substantially more risk capital," says Kennix. He'd like to see more innovative types of funding, such as revolving-loan programs and assistance in accessing such federal programs as the New Markets Tax Credit. And instead of debt financing-with which small businesses can fail at the first sign of trouble-more equity-financing programs should be available, he says.

It's in the public interest, so governments must step forward, he insists. "We need economic development to create jobs. That's the answer to the crime problem," he says. "These things require a steady hand of commitment with a social bottom line. Profit may also be made, but that's not the goal."

Because of federal funding cuts, LEEDCO has been facing its own financing challenges and has been encouraging more collaboration with corporations and government agencies. Small businesses can provide specific services and act as subcontractors to general contractors, says Frankie Jennings, a LEEDCO board member, business owner and former city councilwoman.

For example, LEEDCO has partnered with the South Florida Water Management District, which is involved with the multibillion-dollar Everglades Restoration Project. One LEEDCO client did the landscaping on a project near Clewiston; another did the printing for a district project. Other partnerships have involved clients subcontracting for private construction companies, and Kennix hopes to extend those kinds of collaborations with developers working downtown.

"A lot of opportunities are emerging that require collaborative projects," says Kennix. "We don't have a lot of businesses in this area-minority or nonminority-that can act as prime contractors. But through the cultivation of relationships, we do have businesses that can act as subcontractors."

Dunbar hasn't yet benefited from the spike of activity downtown, but Jennings and Kennix are among those who anticipate a spillover effect, especially with an influx of housing priced to be affordable for people in the work force. The community has seen attrition, but more residents create more business opportunities, and more opportunities encourage people to stay. "There is hope that developers will start to support affordable housing, and if affordable housing takes place in the Dunbar area, it will bring about new growth, new jobs and new business," says Jennings. "But it needs a lot of help."