Small businesses, especially those situated in and hiring people in Omaha’s poorest neighborhoods, will get an edge in landing city contracts under an ordinance approved Tuesday by the City Council.
The council unanimously approved the program, which Mayor Jim Suttle supports.
It is seen as a way to spur economic growth in areas of the city with high unemployment rates. It replaces a now-gutted ordinance that once steered city contracts to companies owned by minorities or women.
For nearly a decade, Omaha tilted its granting of contracts to small businesses, with priority given to those owned by women and minorities.
The program was declared unconstitutional after Nebraska voters approved a ban on affirmative action in 2008.
Since then, council members and others have struggled to find a replacement. In the waning days of his administration, Mayor Mike Fahey vetoed a proposal that critics said would have effectively ended the program.
Suttle appointed a task force to find a replacement program, a group that included Councilman Ben Gray, who represents north Omaha. Gray on Tuesday thanked fellow task force members for their work.
The new ordinance will give preference for certain city contracts — including some engineering deals, small building projects and others — to all small or emerging businesses in the city.
But special priority would be given to small businesses in areas where the city has a 30 percent or higher poverty level and those that would employ about 30 percent of their work force from those areas. That would include parts of north and south Omaha.
Contact the writer:
444-3100, maggie.obrien@owh.com
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