OK GO!......

Staff at PCDA had a busy week. There were new products being manufactured (keep reading), new businesses looking at moving to Ponca City (nope, we can't talk about them), the announcement of new quality of life things and of course, the final trainings to get ready for the small business and non-profit grants which go live next Friday, April 1st.

No, this isn't an April Fools thing. Yes, small business and non-profit grants from the City of Ponca City are happening. Your business or non-profit has the entire month of April to apply for up to $10,000 in grant funds for your COVID based expenses. There are some guidelines and caveats, which you can read Here for small business and Here for non-profits. Bookmark these links as they will go live for the application on April 1st. For small businesses, you have to have a physical presence in Ponca City. For non-profits, if you are a United Way member, you are not eligible for this grant. More info on the flyers and application website. Or give us a call at the PCDA office and staff will answer ALL the questions, 580.765.7070.

AREN'T THEY THE CUTEST?

Ponca City has some great products which are manufactured here: Head Country BBQ, Lindsay Vacuums, Garaga garage doors and training cows. Yup, check out these little doggies created by rotational molding techniques right here in Ponca City by Century Products. Did you miss the video a couple of weeks ago? If so, check out this rotational molding machine in action here.

NEW BUSINESS NEEDS....

a media presence, workforce, steady supply chains, easy permitting, steady customers and access to funding and so much more. Here at PCDA, we assist small business to jump through the hoops and get to the good stuff: serve customers and sell products. Do you know someone wanting to relocate their business to a small business friendly community? Give them our number: 580.765.7070.

IT'S A QUALITY OF LIFE THING.....

Ponca City Main Street is getting an ice skating rink. It is synthetic and will happen next holiday season, but these things take lots of preparation, teamwork and fundraising. Read all about how this came to be in the press release and we will see you Friday, April 8th at noon for the presentation.

Brad Fredricks and Pat Dowell, inventors and owners of Bunk’r Trailer Accessories showcasing their wares at the great American truck show in Louisville Kentucky. There are over 1,000,000 ft.² of exhibits, over 1000 exhibitors, and 70,000+ attendees registered for the show.

Good luck men!

Friday, April 1 // Ponca City Grants Application Opens // Online

The official link will be available on April 1st.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate

to contact our office at 580.765.7070.

Saturday, April 2 // Seed Swap @ City Central // 10 am to 1 pm

Bring seeds, plants to swap or just come check out

what is available to take home for your garden.

Chat with other gardeners and let's grow some stuff.

Monday, April 4 // Central Cafe Grand Opening // City Central

Make plans to stop into the new Central Cafe at City Central.

Open Mon-Wed-Fri. 7 - 3 pm Catering available.

Wed, April 6th // Navigating Global Trade // Online Event

If your company is looking at international sales,

this workshop is for you!

Check out this link to register.

Tuesday, April 12 // Business on the Balcony is BACK! // City Central

7 to 8:30 am on the 2nd floor balcony, Suite #200

Mark your calendar for a little breakfast and a lot of networking.

Wed, April 20 // Financing Your Small Business // Online Event

Money is always needed for small business to grow and thrive.

Find out what resources are available and how to access.

Register here.

Tuesday, April 26 // SBA Lending - 7A and 504 Loans // Online

Why you should see SBA financing for what types of projects!

Find out more and register here.

Rental Property - Available Listings

SHOW ME THE MONEY, PART II......

Non-profits have had a tough couple of years. This includes local service and entertainment organizations. Think of all the non-profits we have just in Ponca City. PCDA is happy to partner with the City of Ponca CIty on a grant just for our Ponca City orgs. If you have a favorite non-profit, make sure to share this information with them. This funding is from the same pot of money staff referred to last week including ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds and SLERF which stands for Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds program which is a part of the ARPA. This is where some of the $350 billion dollars is being allocated to state, local and tribal funds. Staff will not bore you with all the ins and the outs, but if you would like to see all the allocations and chew the "Whys" and "hows" over with your group, check out this link to the Department of the Treasury for a great overview of these funds.

Non-profit organizations can apply for funding from $5,000 to $10,0000 if the org meets grant requirements. Keep scrolling to the bottom to see both business and non-profit grant requirements. The complete application form will be available April 1 through April 30th, so get all the receipts , tax forms, documentation, board approval, etc.... to apply ready. April is less than 15 days away, so On your mark. Get Set.......

TRADE SHOW BRIGADE

Strikes again. Five companies headed down to Arlington, Texas to the Design2Part show to showcase their contract manufacturing abilities and rub elbows with companies needing specific manufacturing like tool & die, plastic molding and HVAC builds. Read more about this award winning Business Retention & Expansion program sponsored by PCDA here.

SMALL BUSINESS SUPPORT.....

Last Friday was the SIxth Annual Business Plan Pitch-off where one small business Pitch-er receives over $5000 in incentives for starting or growing their business in Ponca City. PCDA is excited to announce that both companies are winners! Nena Tacos LLC pitched against Central Cafe and Nena Tacos received the high score. During the ceremonial check presentation, Abron & Kaitlin Farias, Nena Tacos owners, offered half of their cash prize of $2000 to Kal Cloonan, Central Cafe owner. And there was not a dry eye in the room. Everyone was a winner! Follow Nena Tacos LLC and Central Cafe on Facebook to find out all the latest news. Read the complete story here.

WHAT'S YOUR CAREER?

or more to the point, What kind of jobs does your company have? Was the most asked question at the Career Fair at Ponca City High School last week. 22 local companies were talking, dare we say, flirting with their next workforce recruits. Over 200 students went through and there was a very good engagement had by all. Next up, more internships and future workforce alignment.

PCDA has a new staff person in our front office: Aubrey Adams. If you were at the PoHi Career Fair last week, you may have seen her manning the Ponca Works booth. She is the Front Office Admin at PCDA, backup for Lisa at City Central and staff is proud to introduce her officially.

She is slowly learning all things PCDA. If you see her, give her a warm welcome. She isn't new to Ponca City, but she is fairly new to our office.

Welcome Aubrey!

Saturday, March 19th // City Wide Garage Sales // Ponca City All Day

Wed, March 23 // Personal Finance 101 // Country Club

Sponsored by PYE from 12-1 pm. $20 at the door includes lunch. Flyer below

Friday, April 1 // Ponca City Grants Application Opens // Online

The official link will be available on April 1st. If you have any questions,

please do not hesitate to contact our office at 580.765.7070.

Saturday, April 2 // Seed Swap @ City Central // 10 am to 1 pm

Bring seeds, plants to swap or just come check out what is available to take home

for your garden. Chat with other gardeners and let's grow some stuff.

Monday, April 4 // Central Cafe Grand Opening // City Central 7 to 3 pm

Make plans to stop into the new Central Cafe at City Central.

Open Mon-Wed-Fri. Catering available.

Tuesday, April 12 // Business on the Balcony is BACK! // City Central

7 to 8:30 am on the 2nd floor balcony, Suite #200

Mark your calendar for a little breakfast and a lot of networking.

Rental Property - Available Listings

SHOW ME THE MONEY......

Let's face it: the last two years have been tough. Tough on retail, service and small businesses. Tough on families; tough on teachers. It has been rough getting through what we have gotten through. But take heart. You may have heard people and large companies talking about ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds and now a new acronym has popped up, SLERF which stands for Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds program which is a part of the ARPA. This is where some of the $350 billion dollars is being allocated to state, local and tribal funds. Staff will not bore you with all the ins and the outs of where and how these funds were allocated. If you would like to see all the allocations and chew the "Whys" and "hows" over with your group, check out this link to the Department of the Treasury for a great overview of these funds.

PCDA mentions this map of where these types of funds come from due to a small business grant program which will be available to Ponca City businesses (with 20 or fewer employees) starting April 1st. PCDA is proud to be working with The City of Ponca City to administer this grant. Grant amounts range from $2500 to $10,000 dollars and are for COVID related expenditures from March 2021 to March 2022. There is a flyer below and more information will be announced soon to get your company/business ready to apply during the month of April, 2022. For a grant. A business grant. We don't get to say that often and we are looking forward to assisting your company through the process. More info every week this month. On your mark.....

FINDING WORKFORCE....

Has also been tough on companies and small businesses. Ponca Works has been trying to "grow our own" future workforce with internship programs and with the great certification programs available for students at Pioneer Technology Center.

A new to Ponca City program is the Bell Engineering program. This program offers remote college courses and on-the-job training through six month internships with companies. Right here in Ponca City! If your company needs engineers in its future, make sureto contact Liz Leaming, Ponca Works Manager for more information on this exciting and hands on engineering program.

MAIN STREET PONCA CITY....

One area which has weathered the pandemic and grown in shopping and small businesses is the Ponca City downtown corridor on Grand Ave. If you attended Ladies Night last week, maybe you saw the new businesses such as Farm House Kids or the new and improved Doodle Academy or Rock'n It Treasures and quite a few more. Main Street empowers communities to set their own destinies and Ponca City Main Street is doing just that.

If your business needs some marketing, customer identification or management training, make sure to give PCDA a call at 580.765.7070 or email Kat. She can get you aligned with your next steps for your small business success. And check out the Ponca City Main Street page for all the businesses and investors that make our Main Street great!

MONEY FOR BUSINESS

One microloan at a time.

REI Business Lending has microloans available up to $50,000 to help Oklahoma's small businesses that cannot obtain conventional financing. Contact REI Business Lending at 800.658.2823 today to see how they can help!

Now // 1st Fox Art Show Merchandise is available // Online

Visit www.poncacitymarketplace.com to get your

foxy totes, coffee mugs, tea towels and more.

Click here to check out all the thank yous and whose art is on what.

March 11-13 // Evans Academy 101 Dalmations // Poncan Theatre

Get your tickets now at the Poncantheatre.org. Come support the kids.

Wednesday, March 16 // Lotus Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine //

Ribbon Cutting

City Central, Suite 301S at 2 p.m.

Saturday, March 19th // City Wide Garage Sales // Ponca City All Day

Saturday, April 2 // Seed Swap @ City Central // 10 am to 1 pm

Bring seeds, plants to swap or just come check out what is available to take home

for your garden. Chat with other gardeners and let's grow some stuff.

Tuesday, April 12 // Business on the Balcony is BACK! // City Central

7 to 8:30 am on the 2nd floor balcony, Suite #200

Mark your calendar for a little breakfast and a lot of networking.

Rental Property - Available Listings

PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES…..

And we are proud to say Ponca City has all these (at least passing through) our fabulous city. There is a push on the trains (passenger and freight) so keep reading for more information and how you can assist. The airport received a runway extension last year and you may notice larger planes landing and leaving. The first Saturday Fly In Breakfast at the airport returns on April 2nd, so make sure to head out and show your support. And of course, automobiles. Autos make it possible for us living 90 minutes from everywhere to get, well, anywhere; and with auto electronic chips being somewhat scarce, you better be taking care of your existing vehicles.

You will notice the price of gas at the pumps going up, but that is a good thing for Oklahoma and Texas. As a consumer, we can waffle on how we feel on paying at the pump. But the price of crude oil going up with a refinery in our locale is still a positive. Maybe bikes should be added to this list of transportation. FreeWheel anyone?

TRAINS!

You are likely aware of the potential for train service to Ponca City via the “Heartland Flyer.” These things take a lot of time but, more importantly, they require your help. A former U.S. Senator once said of Washington DC, “Everything in Washington is politics. If it’s good government, well, that’s just a coincidence.” Politics is not all bad, however, despite what you’ve read online. At it’s core, politics means that more folks want it than don’t. So if Ponca City wants the Heartland Flyer, we need to let DC know. The “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law” is a mechanism the feds use to “identify rail corridors”  To make a long story short, the Feds are seeking comments on new rail service corridors…and they want them soon.

So here is how you can help:  Click on this link. It will take you to a page filled with lots of guvment talk. Simply click on the “Submit a Formal Comment,” the green box on the upper right side of the page. This will bring up a box in which you can make comments. You can also see what others have said if you want a little guidance on what to say. A simple “We need rail!” is probably not going to be that effective. Something with a little more substance is helpful. Here’s the catch: They need the comments by COB next Wednesday, March 9^th.  

PLANES!

Maybe you have noticed larger/different planes landing/taking off from our airport. This is a very good thing. Many pilots love our little airport: a little TexMex restaurant really draws them in once they know about it. We love you Enrique's. Like everyone else, Enriques has had a hard couple of years.If you find yourself around the airport, show Enrique's some love and have some puffy chips while you watch the planes utilizing the new runway.

AUTOMOBILES!

A caravan of autos heading to Texas from Ponca City happened on Tuesday. Why? Design 2 Part show in Arlington. A record five PC companies are participating in the show this year. Over 10,000 buyers and companies seeking contracts attend.Ponca City has been representing at this show for five years and it just keeps getting better!

The Ponca City footprint at the show this year is 500 square feet of manufacturing expertise in plastics, metals, molds, HVAC, battery storage, welding and more. Good luck to our companies and happy hunting for the next contracts.

MONEY FOR BUSINESS

One microloan at a time.

REI Business Lending has microloans available up to $50,000 to help Oklahoma's small businesses that cannot obtain conventional financing. Contact REI Business Lending at 800.658.2823 today to see how they can help!

Now // 1st Fox Art Show Merchandise is available // Online

Visit www.poncacitymarketplace.com to get your

foxy totes, coffee mugs, tea towels and more.

Click here to check out all the thank yous and whose art is on what.

Friday, March 4th // Ladies Night on Grand // 5-8 pm

Visit all the open shops on Grand and check out Grand Cafe for some snacks.

Sponsored by Ponca CIty Main Street and all the Main Street supporters.

Wed. March 9th // Internship & Career Fair // Ponca City High School

10:30 to 12:30 pm PoHi West Gym Call Liz if your company wants to have a booth.

March 11-13 // Evans Academy 101 Dalmations // Poncan Theatre

Get your tickets now at the Poncantheatre.org. Come support the kids.

Wednesday, March 16 // Lotus Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine // Ribbon Cutting

City Central, Suite 301S at 2 p.m.

Saturday, March 19th // City Wide Garage Sales // Ponca City All Day

Saturday, April 2 // Seed Swap @ City Central // 10 am to 1 pm

Bring seeds, plants to swap or just come check out what is available to take home

for your garden. Chat with other gardeners and let's grow some stuff.

Rental Property - Available Listings