Denver–Three Colorado programs will receive Vision 2000 Models of Excellence Awards at Vision 2000: The States and Small Business Conference to be held on Dec. 1-2, in Washington, D.C. Winners of these national awards were selected from hundreds of nominations submitted to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy, which is sponsoring the awards program. Vision 2000 is designed to showcase outstanding initiatives that advance small business programs and policies.

"It is a honor to present a Vision 2000 Award to so many outstanding local small business initiatives," Chief Counsel for Advocacy Jere W. Glover said. "These award-winning small business programs and leaders are the surest guarantee for small business success in the new millennium. The Office of Advocacy will give these awards in December to celebrate the extraordinary accomplishments of entrepreneurship in the 20th Century."

A Vision 2000 Model of Excellence Award for Small Business Development will be given to the Denver Enterprise Center, a small business incubator that was established in 1987 to create employment in the Curtis Park/Five Points Neighborhoods. Since its opening, it has graduated 75 small businesses. The graduates employ more than 1,100 and their total annual revenues exceed $53 million. The incubator currently houses 23 companies in the high technology, light manufacturing, and service industries.

Another major project of the Denver Enterprise Center was the construction in 1996 of a $1.4 million state-of-the-art kitchen incubator licensed by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). Since opening its doors, the incubator has graduated nine small food producing companies. The largest has built its own food production kitchen at a cost of more than $5 million and provided jobs for 17 people from nearby neighborhoods. The Denver Enterprise Center has been a leader in the industry and visitors from Canada, Scotland, Japan, Denmark, Russia, Peru, Australia, and the United Kingdom have toured its kitchen incubator facility. The Executive Director of the Denver Enterprise Center is David M. Gonzales.

A Vision 2000 Model of Excellence Award for Distinguished Programs will be presented to the Bard Center for Entrepreneurship Development. The Bard Center has a novel approach to entrepreneurial education that integrates the business community with academia. It was conceived by a group of 13 entrepreneurs and business professionals, with subsequent participation by the University of Colorado at Denver’s Graduate School of Business. Today, the Bard Center, still a part of the university, is entirely self-supported, receiving no money from the university or state. It also offers one of the premier angel investor training programs in the country, providing a practical education for high-net-worth individuals desiring to invest in early-stage businesses.

Students at the Bard Center are assigned a mentor to work closely with in the development of business plans. The intent is to identify a "fit," with the expectation of creating long-term relationships between the student-entrepreneur and mentor. The center also operates a $600,000 venture fund, established for exclusive investment in student-owned businesses. Once feasibility is tested, a student venture can be nurtured on-site in the center’s incubator for a period of 12-18 months. Joseph R. Bell is the Executive Director of the Bard Center.

Receiving a Vision 2000 Model of Excellence Award for Access to Capital is the Denver Mayor’s Office of Economic Development. The mission of the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development is to create jobs and expand markets for goods and services in historically economically depressed Denver neighborhoods. Two major programs further this goal: the Neighborhood Business Revitalization Program (NBR) and the Revolving Loan Fund (RLF). These programs were established to help business owners secure the necessary capital to finance start-up ventures or expansion projects. Added benefits include the creation of new permanent jobs for low- and moderate-income Denver residents and the elimination of urban blight in older neighborhoods.

The NBR and RLF programs have provided access to capital that would not be available from the private market. The businesses participating in these programs have limited equity and little capital and would be considered higher risk ventures than commercial lenders are normally able to serve. The NBR and RLF programs provide the "gap" financing necessary to help financial institutions put together these higher risk loan packages. Through the NBR and RLF programs, the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development has helped more than 7,000 businesses by providing loans in excess of $80 million. These funds have been instrumental in leveraging more than $240 million in private capital. Much of this financing has gone to businesses owned by minority and disadvantaged individuals.

State policy-makers, state and local program directors, non-profit service providers, small business owners, and small business trade association executives will attend this years conference to honor winners in a number of categories including: Small Business Development; Access to Capital; Government Procurement Opportunities; Regulations that Work for Small Business; Programs that Support Small Technology Businesses; Women’s Business Development; Minority Business Development; Rural Business Development and; Vision 2000.

Supporters of the event include the American Franchisee Association, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Ceridian, ChamberBiz.com, Fortune Small Business Magazine, International Franchise Association, Microsoft, National Association of Women Business Owners, National Business Association, National Federation of Independent Business, National Small Business United, Onvia.com, Pacific Bell, Small Business Association of Michigan, Small Business Legislative Council, Small Business Technology Coalition, SMC Business Councils and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Vision 2000: The States and Small Business Conference will be held on Dec. 1-2, in Washington, D.C. at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber is located at 1615 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20062. For more information about the conference and award winners visit the Vision 2000 home page at http://www.sba.gov/ADVO/vision.html. Inquiries about program content and awards may be directed to Joan Coplan at (303) 844-0503 or David Voight at (202) 205-6888.

The SBA’s Office of Advocacy was created by an act of Congress in 1976 to protect, strengthen and effectively represent the nation’s small businesses within the federal government. As part of this mandate, the office conducts policy studies and economic research on issues of concern to small business and publishes data on small business characteristics and contributions. For instant access to small business resources, statistics, and research, visit the Office of Advocacy’s home page at http://www.sba.gov/ADVO/.

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