Let’s Help Our Small Businesses

As a consumer and entrepreneur for over 60 years I feel qualified to forward my opinion of how small business can thrive in U.S. cities.

Of course, our city is on fire as we experience growth, adding quite a few new dwellers who contribute a lot to our communities. But there are a number of reasons small businesses cannot survive here.

The idea that as one small business closes another is there to fill it, but look at the landscape and see what has actually replaced the recently closed businesses. Often they are not small businesses.

One reason is the rents are exorbitant with no sign of being reduced.

Another is the policy of extending the time that parking meters operate in response to commuters parking on the street. This policy seems short-sited because Arlington and Bethesda are taking our business into their neighborhoods. This becomes a lost city for small business to thrive.

As the Feds increasingly telecommute this creates an opportunity for the city to grow much stronger in the coming years. We have an opportunity to reduce the exodus of small businesses in our city.

The point is, if the meters end at 6:30 p.m. we will have a living, walking city. Surely small businesses will benefit and the city will offset the loss from meters, and gain business taxes and more jobs.

Louis Everard, owner of Everard’s Clothing Georgetown