By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
City council members have approved applying for federal grant funding to furnish the city’s small business incubator.
The council voted unanimously on March 26 to approve a resolution authoring Interim City Manager Manuel Chavez to submit the grant application to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Fiscal Year 2024 Rural Business Development Grant Program.
In an informational handout about the grant application provided to the council as part of its meeting packet, Michael Garcia, assistant to the city manager and city grant writer, noted, “This grant program will allow the city of Del Rio to receive $28,813 in funding to purchase equipment and supplies for the City of Del Rio Spark Lab Business Incubator.”
A 2021 press release on the city’s website notes the downtown business incubator was created to “support the development of start-up businesses by providing them with consultative and administrative support services.”
“This business incubator will assist with financial and management support for entrepreneurs looking to save on operating costs,” the release continues.
The business incubator office is located in the city’s transportation depot at 100 W. Ogden St. and is open from 8 a.m. to noon and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The USDA grant being applied for will fund the purchase of desktop computers, a wireless printer, four security cameras, stools, tables, a television set for presentations, promotional materials, workshop supplies and internet service, Garcia wrote in his description of the grant application request.
After the heading of the agenda item was read during the March 26 meeting, Mayor Al Arreola asked for a motion to approve the resolution. Mayor Pro-tem Steve Webb made the motion to approve the resolution, with Councilwoman Ernestina “Tina” Martinez giving the second.
Arreola asked if there were any questions about the resolution.
Councilwoman Alexandra Falcon Calderon said she did not have a question but a request.
“If we can get a report on the attendance (at the spark lab), how it’s been utilized because I know at the beginning it was advertised (to be open) Monday through Friday. Now it’s cut down to. . . less hours. It’s not advertised a lot, so I just want to see the productivity of it . . . so I want to see a report on that, because we’re bringing in some more equipment,” Calderon said.
“Yes, we’re asking for this additional funding for additional equipment, yes. We’ve been having a lot more visitors, and we’ll be applying for more staff, actually, to be full time at the incubator as well, but (that will be) on the next budget,” City Economic Development Director Jorge Ramon replied.
“But we definitely will be reporting to you the attendance, what meetings have been taking place there, and we’ll get back to you,” Ramon added.
Arreola asked if there were any more questions. When there were none, he called for a vote on the motion to approve the resolution, which passed unanimously.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com .
