Lack of access to working capital continues to hinder small businesses like those in Federal Hill, Main Street Executive Director Jane Seebold told listeners of WBAL radio's Shari Elliker call-in show this morning. With banks refusing to offer lines of credit or loans to mom-and-pop businesses, owners are forced to rely on high-interest-rate credit cards to purchase inventory and stock their shelves.With President Obama speaking in Baltimore, today's topic was his new plan for stimulating small business with recovered TARP funds from the bank bailout. One proposal calls for making loans available through community banks. According to Seebold, this would not offer much relief for those in city neighborhoods like Federal Hill, where the only banks are major ones.
Senator Ben Cardin's office is working on legislation to address this issue as well. We will continue to report on new developments here.
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