Utica MHA to host Tuesday evening workshop on starting a small business

UTICA, N.Y. —The Utica Municipal Housing Authority (UMHA) announced it will sponsor a free workshop on starting a business on Tuesday evening.

“The Building Blocks for Starting a Business” workshop will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Utica Public Library at 303 Genesee St., on the second floor. The workshop is free and open to the public and a light dinner will be served, the UMHA said in a news release. Parking is in the rear of the building off Park Avenue.

The speakers will be Dr. Pat Laino, executive director of the Business Training Institute Inc. and Donna Rebisz, director of the Women’s Business Center of New York State.

Laino has trained hundreds of entrepreneurs, and more than 83 percent of her students started and continue to operate businesses that are highly successful, the UMHA said. She will cover the basic startup steps that include: how to begin your initial planning, identifying what you want to sell, how to find customers, and other essential points to ensure your business will be a success.

Rebisz will speak about how to become a certified woman or minority owned business, and the advantages.

Housing Authority staff and AmeriCorps members will be on site to provide information on the HUD Section 3 Business Certification Program, and to provide information on other service referrals available. Resources on local business assistance programs will be presented.

For more information, call (315) 735-5246, ext. 25 or 34, or email cnyhirc@gmail.com, or visit: www.facebook.com/UticaMHA.

Contact the Business Journal News Network at news@cnybj.com