Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin receives Small Business Award from mayor's conference

Aurora Mayor Richard C. Irvin has been named the national recipient of the United States Conference of Mayors 2019 Small Business Advocate Award.

Each year, the U.S. Conference of Mayors selects a recipient from among its 1,400 member-mayors who has publicly and consistently supported small businesses and serves as a model for other communities.

"Mayor Irvin has demonstrated his commitment and support of small business in Aurora by creating a business-friendly environment for businesses to grow and prosper," said Jeffrey Bean, Conference of Mayors spokesman. "His efforts have helped many new entrepreneurs fulfill their dreams and start a business."

Representatives from the U.S. Conference of Mayors will travel from Washington D.C. to Aurora next week to present Mayor Irvin with the award and to salute Aurora's business community for its consistent growth and development.

"As a small-business owner, I remember the red tape I had to cut through to open my business many years ago," said Mayor Irvin who opened his private law practice in downtown Aurora. "As mayor, I knew we needed to streamline the process for new businesses and strengthen the support for existing businesses. Our internal team and external partners are working in tandem to support business attraction, retention and growth in Aurora. This award is both a humbling honor and acknowledgment of the effectiveness of the city's new processes and procedures."

During the presentation, Mayor Irvin will recognize the efforts of Aurora's economic development sector by presenting awards to the City of Aurora's Economic Development Team, Invest Aurora, the Aurora Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Quad County African-American Chamber of Commerce, the Aurora Regional Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Aurora Downtown and other key developers.

The 2019 Small Business Advocate Award presentation will be held during a morning reception Monday, Sept. 9, in downtown Aurora.

Business owners, representatives and community members interested in attending can register online at www.aurora-il.org or by calling the Mayor's office at (630) 256-3010.

Past recipients of this award include Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, Austin Mayor Steve Adler, Elizabeth, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin among others.