City of Tulsa - Tulsa Authority for Economic Opportunity

PROJECT PURPOSE

In East Tulsa, the number of residents who are Hispanic and Asian, the two races/ethnicities most represented, continues to grow rapidly compared to other demographics and not coincidentally is the fastest growing part of the city. From 2010-2020, both Hispanic and Asian Tulsans had a 25 percent increase, while the white population decreased about 5 percent. Immigrants play a critical role in the social and economic fabric of the Tulsa Metro Area. There are 6,300 immigrant entrepreneurs that pay $537M in taxes and have a spending power of $1.5B. The support of immigrant entrepreneurs has significant implications for the growth and success of Northeast Oklahoma. An investment of $6,000,000 from the State of Oklahoma will seed the capital improvements to launch the 21st Street Market, the first immigrant focused small business and entrepreneur incubator in the heart of East Tulsa. 21st Street Market will include a business center and incubator space, as well as an international market themed retail space for immigrant entrepreneurs. Further, the 21st Street Market will have a multi-use outdoor community space to host food truck events and farmer?s markets. These unique features will be accessible to residents throughout Northeast Oklahoma.

EVIDENCE

We engaged with business owners in East Tulsa to gather feedback on small business needs. 18 businesses were surveyed and over 90 percent stated that they would like to see a training center for their business. Over 80 percent expressed a need for an outdoor space where food trucks could park and sell food. About two-thirds would like to see an outdoor market like a farmer?s market. There is also overwhelming support for small business support classes that are available in Spanish, as indicated by enrollment in the new Kitchen 66 class in Spanish (Cocina 66) launched in fall 2021.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

Immigrants are job creators, serving in essential industries disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. While all small businesses have struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic, immigrant entrepreneurs are especially vulnerable, as they make up a large percentage of small business owners in sectors that were especially hard hit. In Tulsa, 19.0% (4,287 individuals) of ?general service? entrepreneurs were immigrants. General service businesses include businesses like laundry services, barber shops, and repair and maintenance. Additionally, data shows that immigrant entrepreneurs were less likely to receive federal COVID-19 relief funding, making it even more difficult for them to survive and/or grow during the pandemic and subsequent recovery period. This project will help jumpstart the entrepreneur ecosystem that is needed to continue to see growth in Oklahoma?s immigrant communities.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

In partnership with existing efforts, this initiative will result in: 30% of participants from underrepresented and immigrant communities 75% of graduates launch and/or scale businesses successfully Generate wealth as measured by foreign born Tulsan County business owners with positive net wealth Improve financial stability among immigrant entrepreneurs as measured by employment rate and housing burden Create new jobs for Northeastern Oklahoma residents as measured by additional jobs created by the business owners using the incubator This data will be collected through surveys completed by program participants. Data for program participants will be analyzed and compared to Tulsa County-wide data.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma