Reports - Mississippi Renewal

92 | SMALL BUSINESSsissippi Economic Council website, andall chamber websites. The survey alsowas mailed and hand-delivered to asmany Coast businesses as possible.It was estimated that better than halfof all South Mississippi small businessessuffered damage from Hurricane Katrina.By late November at least 20 percentremained nonoperational. 5Identifying the ChallengesBesides the obvious—the destructionof their facilities—what obstacles facesmall businesses recovering and resuminghealthy growth?The challenges are divided into sevencategories:Confusion About Access to HelpThe Federal Emergency ManagementAgency (FEMA), Mississippi EmergencyManagement Agency (MEMA),Small Business Administration (SBA),Mississippi Development Authority(MDA), Mississippi Department of EmploymentSecurity (MDES), MississippiInsurance Department, area Chambersof Commerce and other federal, stateand local agencies provide a variety ofassistance to small businesses under normalcircumstances, and that assistancehas increased dramatically in responseto Hurricane Katrina. Almost everyneed of small business can be met oraddressed by one or more governmentagencies or community organizationsprepared to help them recover. A majorproblem, however, is that too manysmall business owners are not aware ofavailable assistance or how to access it.A misperception also exists that assistanceis either unavailable or the bureaucracyinvolved in receiving supportfrom this myriad of agencies is so complicatedthat it simply is not worth theSmallbusinessesplay crucialroles inMississippi’seconomyIn 2002, the last yearcomplete fi gures areavailable, fi rms with lessthan 20 employeesaccounted for 82% of allbusinesses in Mississippi.These small businessesprovided:■ 173,500 jobs■ $3.9 billion in payrollsSource:2002 Business Censustrouble. This misperception is commonand accounts for less than one-thirdof the FEMA support applications requestedby businesses being returned toFEMA. 6The Housing ShortageTo restart operations, businesses needemployees, and employees need placesto live. Small businesses tend to be evenmore dependent upon their few employeesthan larger firms because theyhave so little “bench strength.” The lackof housing is a principal reason for thedifficulty facing companies in attractingenough employees to open their business– or to open at full strength. Throughoutthe Mississippi Coast “Now Hiring”signs are prevalent; most restaurantsand other service establishments thatare open have “limited menus,” “limitedservice,” or “limited hours” becausethey do not have an adequate numberof employees to operate at full strength.The problem is particularly acute in thehardest hit, coastal counties.The Transportation SqueezeMany small businesses see no advantageto opening quickly because transportationproblems deny them customersor employees. As of early December,parts of Highway 90 remained closed.The Biloxi-Ocean Springs and BaySt. Louis bridges are not in operation,and the Popps Ferry Bridge opened onChristmas weekend. Traffic along PassRoad, the only fully navigable east-westalternative to I-10 in Harrison Countyfor several months after the hurricane,made traveling short distances a dailychallenge. Most affected are restaurantsand retail outlets, which rely on walkintraffic. Customers must brave limitedroad access and increased traffic to shop,and these transportation challenges may