Qualla 2020: Diversifying the Qualla Economy

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Qualla 2020Diversifying the Qualla Economy

• Third Meeting
• April 23, 2014

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Agenda - Morning

• 900 Welcome and Introduction
• 915 Small Business and Entrepreneurial
  Development - Presentation
• 1030 Analysis of Small Business Environment
• 1200 Lunch

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Agenda - Afternoon

• 1230 Develop Options for Small Business and
  Entrepreneurial Development
• 130 Review Task Team Discussions
• - Enterprise Structure
• - Tourism - Real Estate
• - Knowledge Industries
• 230 Next Steps, Assignments
• 300 Adjourn

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Qualla 2020 Goals

• The purpose of the Qualla 2020 Project is to
  diversify the Cherokee economy and reduce its
  risks so that it can better ensure the well-being
  of the Cherokee population into the future. 
• In order to do this, the Qualla 2020 Project will
  seek to mitigate the dependence of the economy on
  gaming revenues, and to develop and expand
  businesses in ways that uphold the core values of
  the Cherokee people.

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Qualla 2020 Process

• Six Committee meetings
• Tuesday, February 25, 900 am 300 pm ?
• Friday, March 21, 900 am 300 pm ?
• Yellow Hill Activity Center (Old Hardware Store)
  
• Wednesday, April 23, 900 am 300 pm
• Wednesday, May 21, 900 am 300 pm
• Friday, June 27, 900 am 300 pm
• Tuesday, July 15, 900 am 300 pm
• Task teams will meet by phone between Committee
  meetings to develop detailed action plans for
  Committee review
• Committee will choose action plans to recommend
  to EBCI Administration, EBCI Tribal Council and
  Cherokee Preservation Foundation

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Action Plan Definition

• Action plan criteria
• Achievable with the resources controlled by
  institutions and individuals on the Qualla
  Boundary
• Create visible differences within a year or two
• Support traditional Cherokee values and culture
• Action plan elements
• Goal
• Participants
• Activities
• Organizational leadership
• Resources required
• Funding sources
• Timeline

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Agenda - Morning

• 900 Welcome and Introduction
• 915 Small Business and Entrepreneurial
  Development - Presentation
• 1030 Discuss Options for Small Business and
  Entrepreneurial Development
• 1200 Lunch

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Small Business and Entrepreneurial Development -
Presentation

• Presentation topics
• Overall approach to small business development
• Success factors for small business
• Existing programs targeting specific success
  factors
• Examples of additional programs that support
  small business development

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Qualla 2020 Approach to Small Business Development

• Establish a baseline description of a
  desirable/optimal small business environment
• Complete research necessary to map the small
  business environment in Cherokee
• Identify gaps/constraints between Cherokee
  environment and baseline
• Prioritize the challenges and attack the problem

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Success Factors for Small Business
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Programs to Support Small Business and
Entrepreneurship

• Market Demand
• Greater Cherokee Tourism Council
• Qualla Arts and Crafts
• Western Mountain Alliance
• Cherokee Chamber of Commerce
• Tribal Fishing Program
• Tribal Programs and Harrahs Purchasing
• Capital
• Sequoyah Fund
• Southwestern Commission Angel Investor Network
• Local banks and financial institutions
• Entrepreneurial Culture
• Business Plan Competition college age and youth
• Qualla Financial Freedom
• Others?

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Example First Peoples Fund Native Artists Program

• First Peoples Fund and partners provide a range
  of support to native artists seeking to expand
  their arts business
• Business knowledge training and practicums in
  selling your art and managing your business
• Access to capital - connecting artists to Native
  CDFIs
• Financial education training in managing money
  and credit
• Marketing and distribution development of
  marketing practices and approaches specific to
  the arts market
• Mentorship and social networks connecting
  artists to peers and mentors

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First Peoples Fund Stages of Development
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First Peoples Fund Program Results
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First Peoples Fund Program Results
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8(a) Contracting Examples

• REI Corporation is a U.S. based Electronics
  Manufacturing Services (EMS) contract
  manufacturer located on the Rosebud Sioux
  Reservation in Mission, South Dakota. Established
  in 2006, REI is a tribally-owned, for-profit
  business providing turn-key EMS solutions to
  defense and commercial OEMs. The company also
  does contracting work in the tribal gaming
  industry.
• Tigua, Inc. is owned by the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo
  in El Paso, Texas. They are 8(a) certified and
  have had contracts with several federal
  government agencies including GSA, Homeland
  Security, Justice, Interior and Defense. The
  Pueblo has no gaming.

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8(a) Contracting Examples

• Seneca Holdings is the investment arm of the
  Seneca Nation of Indians, and founded to
  diversify the Seneca Nation's revenue streams
  beyond the gaming and tobacco industries and to
  usher in a new era of nation and region building.
  Its subsidiaries include Seneca
  Telecommunications, LLC and SCMC, LLC.
• Seneca Telecommunications was formed in 2010 when
  Seneca Holdings acquired a controlling interest
  in CT-COMM to leverage management's expertise,
  past performance, and industry relationships to
  secure domestic and international prime and
  subcontract positions on current and future
  Federal contracts.
• SCMC, LLC is a Small Business Administration
  Disadvantaged Business, SBA 8(a) Program
  participant, and SBA HUBZone participant. SCMC's
  services include construction management, general
  contracting, remediation, and demolition for
  various government agencies.

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Agenda - Morning

• 900 Welcome and Introduction
• 915 Small Business and Entrepreneurial
  Development - Presentation
• 1030 Analysis of Small Business Environment
• 1200 Lunch

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How Will We Define Optimal Environment for Small
Business, Map Existing Environment and Analyze
Gaps?
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Agenda - Afternoon

• 1230 Develop Options for Small Business and
  Entrepreneurial Development
• 130 Review Task Team Discussions
• - Enterprise Structure
• - Tourism - Real Estate
• - Knowledge Industries
• 230 Next Steps, Assignments
• 300 Adjourn

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Develop Options for Small Business and
Entrepreneurial Development

• Note suggestions already made
• Previous meeting
• This mornings discussion
• Add, refine, combine into options
• Discuss option
• Objective
• Key activities
• Important participants

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Agenda - Afternoon

• 1230 Develop Options for Small Business and
  Entrepreneurial Development
• 130 Review Task Team Discussions
• - Enterprise Structure
• - Tourism - Real Estate
• - Knowledge Industries
• 230 Next Steps, Assignments
• 300 Adjourn

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Tourism Task Team

• Tourism Task Team plans on supporting the
  initiative of Skooter McCoy, Destination
  Marketing Director, introduced at the March
  Qualla 2020 meeting
• Vision on how Cherokee could be transformed from
  a day-trip to an multiple night destination,
  dramatically expanding visitation and revenue
  over the next decade.
• Incorporating the two greatest assets
• Cherokee culture
• Natural resources
• Change to clearly defined districts that offer
  Culture, Downtown Base Camp, Convention/Fairground
  s, Wildlife, Saunooke Village Update, Gaming
  Resort Center, Indoor Adventure Park, Special
  Events District, Outdoor Activities.
• Create a Tourism Development Authority
• Market and promote the vision
• Define a process through EBCI approval channels

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Real Estate Task Team

• Ability to attract businesses to the Boundary,
  and commercial development of real estate on the
  Boundary, are constrained by two key challenges
• Complex rules and procedures regarding land
  ownership, permitting and leasing
• Modest levels of retail demand in Cherokee
• Relatively small year-round population for retail
  shopping makes it difficult to attract major
  chains
• Inability to serve alcohol on most of Boundary
  limits revenue potential for restaurants
• Restaurants that do not serve alcohol, typically
  classified as 'family' rather than casual dining,
  are having the slowest growth within the
  industry--which leads to the business decision to
  not expand into unknown/unproven markets. 

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Real Estate Task Team

• Task Team is considering projects that would help
  streamline and simplify leasing process for
  individual possessory holdings
• Conduct research to determine process, costs and
  potential funding for Tribe to take over Real
  Estate function from BIA
• How much it would cost the Tribe to take over the
  function?
• What are the options for 638 contracts and
  compacts?
• How much money would the BIA pay the Tribe?
• What has been the experience of other tribes?
• Conduct research to determine the feasibility and
  cost of rewriting tribal statutes to simplify
  leasing process
• How much legal work would be required to create a
  new set of statutes and regulations? How big a
  project is this?
• Have other tribes with similar possessory
  holdings done something like this?
• May wish to consider HEARTH Act potential

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Real Estate Task Team

• To increase the attraction of businesses to the
  Boundary and the incentive for commercial
  development on the Boundary, need to address
  issue of limited demand. Potential approaches
• Encourage shopping by drive-through traffic
• Outlet mall strategy
• Tap the demand from gaming visitors
• Attract businesses that use the Internet as their
  primary way to reach customers
• High-quality bandwidth lets them connect to high
  levels of demand

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Knowledge Industry Task Team

• Task Team is reviewing topics for potential
  action plans
• Support for small business high-bandwidth
  connectivity
• Cost of installing high-bandwidth connectivity
  for business can be 7,000, which is barrier for
  small business.
• Concept a loan/grant program supported by the
  Foundation and/or the Tribe. Loan for
  connectivity would be forgiven 20 a year, so if
  business stayed in operation on the Boundary for
  five years, it would have the entire cost paid
  off.
• Tech office space
• Concept a tech building with connectivity built
  into all the units.
• All offices would have built-in fiber
  connectivity, VOIP phones, telepresence
  conference rooms, etc. There could also be
  co-working spaces for individuals who are not
  ready to rent an office.
• Call center
• Explore potential for development of a call
  center on the Boundary for Caesars
  Entertainment. This call center could support
  multiple properties.

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Next Steps

• Third meeting of task teams by phone
• Continue work on options
• Research
• Interviews
• Financial analysis
• Exploration of funding sources
• Development of recommendations
• BWB Solutions and Medicine Root will staff and
  facilitate tasks teams and conduct additional
  research as necessary

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Contact Information

• Ben Sherman
• sherman1491_at_gmail.com
• [phone]
• John Weiser
• johnw_at_bwbsolutions.com
• [phone]