According to the City, this initiative is meant to encourage “City departments, contractors and other vendors doing business with the City to increase the amount of goods and services provided by local businesses owned by minorities, women, and other socially and economically disadvantaged groups.”
They will have the first certification event for minority and women-owned businesses on December 28th. Here are all the details from the press release:
To kick off the CDAP initiative, the City of Champaign is hosting its first certification event for minority and women-owned businesses on Friday, December 28, 2018. This event will be held at the Champaign City Building (102 N. Neil St. Champaign) between the hours of 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but in order to make the registration process quick and efficient, reservations are required. To make an appointment, please call the City’s Office of Equity, Community, and Human Rights at 217-403-8830. Additional certification events will be scheduled in 2019.
Businesses interested in certification should bring appropriate identification (i.e. driver’s license, state ID, etc.) and proof of business ownership (i.e. business registration, federal employer identification number, articles of incorporation, most recent business tax returns, etc.). Each business owner will be asked to identify the expertise and services provided by their company. This includes providing information about goods and services sold, professional services offered, type of construction work performed, and any other pertinent information which describes their business function.