PROVIDENCE – In the 25 years that Wole Akinbi has lived in Smith Hill, the neighborhood has lacked a resource available to small businesses elsewhere in the city – a merchant association.
“From the jump, the Smith Hill neighborhood didn’t have a business association of any kind,” Akinbi said. “There aren’t a ton of resources [compared to] when you look at the South Side, the East Side, parts of the West End,” where groups such as the West Broadway, Hope Street and Federal Hill merchant associations have facilitated business connections and economic growth.
But last fall, that changed for Smith Hill and its neighbors with the launch of the 02908 Merchant Association, which covers communities in the city's North End: Smith Hill, Wanscuck, Mount Pleasant and Elmhurst.
The business coalition was formed through a joint effort by Half Full LLC consulting agency, where Akinbi works as a community liaison; Bodega on Smith; and Central Providence Opportunities: A Health Equity Zone.
Since its official launch in October, more than 35 businesses have registered with the new merchant association, and organizers have been laying the groundwork for programming that will connect area business owners with each other and other economic resources. Additionally, the association seeks to organize events that will highlight and uplift the neighborhoods' small business community.
The group currently meets once per month at a different business location, with a goal of
“empowering [businesses] by bringing other existing programs that they might not have access to to the monthly meeting," Akinbi said, in addition to fostering connections between business owners.
Kenneth Zorabedian, a co-founder and owner of North End businesses Bodega on Smith, United Parking and Providence Vending, said that he has already felt the impact of these meetings.
"I thought I was in touch with the neighborhood and the businesses here, but I haven’t known half the people who have been showing up to the meetings, and that they have a business in the 02908," Zorabedian said in a statement, "so it’s been eye-opening for me.”
Officially launched in October, the association's roots date back to 2018, when Smith Hill selected as one of just 30 communities in the U.S. to receive funding from the Thriving Communities Program, a Biden administration program administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
But with implementation slated for 2020, that effort was derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Akinbi said. As organizers reassessed the effort and funding opportunities, they pivoted to include the broader North End business community.
Having overcome the COVID pause, the association faces new financial uncertainty under the Trump administration's slashes to federal funding.
"With the federal funding iffy and uncertain, there are concerns about our sustainability, so right now we’re figuring that out," Akinbi said. "We’re looking into some other non-local buckets of funding we can apply for to sustain what we have in our bank account, and to provide the resources that our members are going to need."
Organizers will intensify that effort as the group reaches the end of its first year in operation, Akinbi said, but is presently focused on growing its membership. By the end of that year, the group's goal is to have at least 50 active and engaged members; a better idea of individual neighborhoods' needs; identifying individuals for board seats; and solidifying a dues system. For the first year, membership is free.
The association will also take part in the Smith Hill Block Party in August, and lead The Taste of 02908 event in September. The group meets on the last Tuesday of each month, with its next meeting slated for April 29, and the location to be announced on
the02908.com.
"It’s going to take some years for us to get our financial footing, to get consistent members who are active and engaged," Akinbi said, while the association looks "to form an identity and understand what we need and want to invest in, and what we want to put back into the community."
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
