.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 12px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} tr.d0 td { background-color: #ccccff; color: black; }
The U.S. Small Business Administration has selected Des Moines as one of 11 cities nationwide to participate in Emerging 200, an intensive jobs and growth initiative aimed at inner-city businesses.

As part of the program, up to 20 Des Moines businesses will be chosen to participate in an intensive six-month curriculum designed to help them develop strategies to attract new capital and rapidly expand. A dozen state and local economic development organizations are partnering with the SBA in the program, which will be formally announced on April 3.

Des Moines will be the smallest of the cities to participate, joining Albuquerque, Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Memphis, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Oakland and Philadelphia. In all, 23 cities had applied for the program.

“I think one of the reasons Des Moines was selected is there is a history of taking economic challenges and finding solutions and moving forward in a very collaborative way,” said Joe Folsom, the SBA’s district director for Iowa. “And we’ve brought together a group of leaders that can work with this segment.”

The cornerstone of the Emerging 200 Initiative will be an in-depth educational program running approximately 60 to 80 hours, likely to be scheduled in two half-day sessions per month from June through November, at no cost to the companies. To be considered, a business must be at least 3 years old, have $400,000 or more in gross annual revenues and be located within the designated inner-city geographic area.

Interested business owners can get more details by attending a launch event to be held at 9 a.m. Thursday at the Greater Des Moines Partnership offices, 700 Locust St. To reserve a seat, call the SBA Des Moines office at 284-4522.