Middletown has been chosen to house a branch of the U.S. Commerce Department’s blossoming CommerceConnect program for linking Connecticut businesses to federal economic support programs.
CommerceConnect will open in 16 regions nationwide this year, authorities said Friday. Michigan was the latest office to open last September.
No specifics were immediately availabe on when and where the Middletown office will open and how many it will employ.
CommerceConnect also announced business assistance in Charlotte, N.C., and Birmingham, Ala.
Launched in 2009, CommerceConnect is a one-stop-shop initiative in which commerce agency employees are specifically cross-trained to connect firms to the full menu of agency programs. Those programs, in turn, and can link business owners with other federal, state, local and nonprofit resources.
The effort is designed to cut through red tape and simplify access to services and resources that can help companies grow, create jobs and become more efficient, CommerceConnect Executive Director Dennis Alvord
Connecticut’s governor, Middletown’s mayor and other state congressional leaders hailed the selection as an important milestone for the state’s small-business and corporate communities.
“Streamlining the programs and initiatives available to help business owners access the information they need to establish, expand and grow their business just makes sense,” Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said in a statement. “It’s the same reason I proposed housing many of the state’s economic development functions together, as well.”
CommerceConnect began as a pilot program in Michigan in 2009. Since last October, the program has worked with over 440 new firms, referring them to more than 890 targeted business solutions, nine Commerce Department bureaus, and more than 50 federal, state and local partner organizations.
Businesses in the Connecticut area interested in working with CommerceConnect specialists can contact the CommerceConnect Call Center at 1-888-728-4190 or visit www.CommerceConnect.gov. Â
