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The best way to reach your town business advocates is to attend Town Business Liaison Committee (TBLC) meetings on the second Thursday of every month in Vienna Town Hall.
The second-best way? Visit our local businesses and find your TBLC members out “in the wild.”
Take Simply Social Coffee in Vienna’s Cedar Park Shopping Center, for example. Swing by and you may find TBLC member and Vice Chair, Tracy McCarty.
Tracy distinguishes herself not as an owner or employee, but as a service-minded resident and avid supporter of local and small businesses. She also happens to have a soft spot for Simply Social’s iced americano.
While the majority of TBLC members are, in fact, business owners, Tracy is one of two Town resident members, playing an important role in representing her neighbors in discussions related to Vienna’s economic development.
Tracy’s 11 years in Vienna set the stage for her eventual role as Vice Chair of the TBLC. She is also a mom of one, PTA President, and soccer manager, among other volunteer roles.
Looking back to 2020, the pandemic prompted a wave of support for local businesses, according to Tracy. She witnessed the Vienna community rally together to support its small and locally-owned businesses. Those businesses, in turn, gave back to the community, donating money, food, and products to those in need.
How can we continue this spirit of collaboration and support, in 2024 and beyond, according to Tracy?
To start, businesses should find opportunities to partner with schools (and vice versa), Tracy says. For example, if a high school administration wants to introduce a job fair, the local business community is a tremendous starting point. Students could have the unique opportunity to meet local business owners and apply for jobs in town.
Next, Tracy says there is an opportunity for Vienna’s Economic Development Department and its partners to promote minority-owned businesses, new businesses, and businesses that operate in commercial areas of Town with less traffic. Essentially, where are the hidden gems, and where are the businesses that aren’t getting as much attention? It’s the TBLC’s role to aid in that promotion, Tracy says.
Finally, local nonprofits and businesses should partner to share resources and support the community, similar to how they did during the pandemic. In this way, the groups are continuing the pandemic-era spirit of collaboration and support.
Did this give you ideas of your own? You can reach Tracy and the rest of the TBLC by emailing tblc@viennava.gov or attending the monthly meetings on the second Thursday of every month at Vienna Town Hall.
