YOUNGSTOWN Action helps minority contractor

There is progress in bringing minority contractors to the project, officials say.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- A $350 check from the city meant $1 million to small businessman Andre Underwood.
The city grant paid for a $1 million liability insurance policy that Underwood desperately needed. Having the policy means he can fulfill a $70,000 contract with industry giant Johnson Controls.
Underwood, who operates Underwood & amp; Associates, is a subcontractor who will handle wiring for the heating and cooling systems in two new city schools.
The job means Underwood will hire several workers. The contract also will qualify his company to do other such jobs for Johnson Controls on school projects around the state.
Underwood, who is black, was in danger of losing the contract if the city didn't approve the $350 on Thursday to secure the insurance. Underwood didn't have the cash flow to immediately come up with the $350, said William M. Carter. He is executive director of the Youngstown Area Development Corp. The agency is part of the city's minority business program.
Underwood is the first minority contractor signed to do work on the $182 million school construction and renovation project.
The city's quick action shows progress is being made to bring minority contractors into the project, Carter said.
Critics have said that neither the city nor the schools are doing enough to bring minority workers to the project.
Praise for support
It's good to see city hall showing its support, said Al Curry, equal employment opportunity compliance officer for the schools project.
"This is a good sign, a good signal," he said.
Getting minorities into unions so contractors can hire them remains a struggle, however, Curry said. He will be ready with qualified minority candidates when unions soon open spots for apprenticeships, he said.
The Underwood example underscores why the city needs to do more for minority businesses, Carter said.
The city put up $70,000 for the performance bond that Underwood needed to get the wiring contract.
That is all the money the city has available for minority performance bonds, however.
Carter has been pushing city officials for months to dedicate $300,000 or so more to the fund. The city can't provide any minority performance bonds unless more money is set aside or Underwood finishes the project and the bond money is returned.
That won't happen soon. The heating and cooling system must be tested before the Underwood bond is released, which will take months, Carter said.
rgsmith@vindy.com