CHICAGO, October 7, 2026 – Operating a corner bodega or a boutique bakery on the South Side has always been anything but easy. From dealing with municipal permitting issues to accessing affordable credit lines and even maintaining a constant flow of customers, entrepreneurs in the area have their work cut out for them.
In order to ease this process, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, along with the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP), has announced an extensive structural transformation of its small business assistance program. Three formal Requests for Proposals (RFPs) have been issued to create the new Neighborhood Business Network (NBN).
This program seeks to transform the well-established system of Neighborhood Business Development Centers in Chicago. Rather than using the one-size-fits-all approach, City Hall will be allocating grants to three distinct operational tracks: place-based business assistance, city-wide capital access, and peer-to-peer technical assistance training.
And this shift matters because small, neighborhood-level non-profits often know their corridors far better than downtown bureaucrats ever could.
In the revised system, some delegate agencies will be provided with municipal funding to offer hyper-local support. Place-Based Business Specialists will be concerned with practical problem-solving at the grassroots level—such as helping small business owners deal with licensing issues, applying for local grants, and undertaking neighborhood marketing campaigns. In contrast, City-Wide Capital Specialists will assist those entrepreneurs who are having trouble getting commercial financing.
The application guidelines published on the city’s official procurement website suggest that interested community organizations have until 12:00 PM CT on Friday, November 6, to submit applications under RFPs #77331, #77332, and #77333.
“Our goal is to make sure businesses feel supported”, emphasized BACP Acting Commissioner Ivan Capifali during the program rollout.
“A strong local economy relies on a strong small business ecosystem. The Neighborhood Business Network Program delivers highly specialized business services that help entrepreneurs start, business owners grow or sustain their small businesses”, Mayor Johnson added during recent press briefings regarding neighborhood economic development.
Nonetheless, there are some detractors to the process. Some veteran members of the community have voiced their concerns about whether the new process of the RFP application will give preference to large non-profit organizations rather than small neighborhood chambers.
“This has happened before,” said one anonymous manager of a South Side commercial corridor. “The intentions are good, but the proof is always in how quickly the money gets trickled down to the businesses on 79th Street.”
Nevertheless, the city government is convinced that the new peer-to-peer training program will equalize the playing field, as it will enable grantee organizations to train smaller non-profits through step-by-step licensing processes.
As the deadlines for the proposals approach next month, the commercial corridor managers of Chicago’s 77 community areas are working hard on filling out the application forms. The hope of the neighborhood businessmen is clear – less bureaucracy and more capital reaching the storefronts of Chicago.
