About Us

Founded in 1995, the Economic Development Services Division of MDC was created to provide entrepreneurial assistance and small business resources to low-income individuals in Pierce County, WA.  It was the vision of its founding Director to create a comprehensive resource so dynamic as to empower low-income residents to achieve economic self-sufficiency through self-employment; and to create access to resources for small business owners to sustain, grow and generate employment opportunities for others.  Successfully competing for funding by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Community Services, the Center was launched into a multi-faceted business assistance resource.

Currently the Business Assistance Center provides first-rate entrepreneurial training and business consulting for Tacoma, Pierce County, and the South Sound.  Through a structured classroom style curriculum, individualized technical assistance and topic specific workshops, interested participants move from Idea to Implementation and beyond. 

Since its inception MDC's Economic Development Services has housed several programs.  Through entrepreneurial development, micro-lending, access to markets and other support services, MDC has impacted the community in the following ways:

• Creation of more than 450 new business ventures

• Creation of more than 3,000 new jobs

• Distribution of more than $400,000 in micro-loans (average $7,000 - $10,000)

• Training and technical assistance provided to over 2,700 individuals

• Aided local businesses in obtaining over $80 Million in government contracts.