Doing Business in Takoma Park
- Businesses are required to Recycle
- Takoma Park bans the use of Polystyrene Packaging.
- Takoma Park bans Plastic Bags at the point of sale.
- Most exterior renovations (e.g. a new sign) require Review and Approval.
- Displaying your shops’s wares on public sidewalks or outdoor dining on public sidewalks requires a Permit.
- Mobile vendors (food trucks) need a License to operate.
- The Safe Grow Act places restrictions on the Use of Cosmetic Pesticides for lawn care on public and private property.
- The City of Takoma Park is committed to creating a sustainable community and has integrated sustainability efforts into a variety of innovative programs – every department in Takoma Park participates. Takoma Park is a national leader in sustainability, energy efficiency, and is moving towards being a zero waste city.
State of Maryland
MD Business License Information System to search for the permits and licenses your business may need.
MD Department of Assessment and Taxation has all of the forms in PDF for different legal entities (LLCs, LLPs, PCs, etc)
Establish tax accounts – obtain a Federal Employer Identification Number and register your business’ tax accounts with the state.
Guide to Legal Aspects of Doing Business in Maryland authored by the Maryland Attorney General and Department of Business and Economic Development.
Business Resources: Laws and Compliance MD Department of Commerce.
Required Occupational and Professional Licenses Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
Environmental Licenses required by the Maryland Department of Environment for air, water, radiation, health, oil, solid waste, hazardous waste, solid waste, etc.
Montgomery County
Montgomery County Maryland Business Portal Everything that you need to get started.
Retail, Wholesale or Chains Trader’s License issued by the County Clerk’s Office to Retail Stores, Wholesale Car Dealers, and Chain Stores, Construction (New Homes and Commercial Buildings), Garages, Junk Dealers, Laundry/Dry Cleaners, Plumbers and Gas Fitters, Storage Warehouses, Trade Shows (3 or more), Vending Machines, Video, Pinball Games, and Music Boxes, Cigarettes, Other Tobacco Products,Tobacconist, and Coin Operated Billiard Tables.
Liquor Sales license for on- and off-sales from the Department of Liquor Control.
Health Department license for restaurants, mobile food vendors, video games, private school, health care.
Consumer Goods and Services license for motor vehicle repair, secondhand goods, appliance sales and service, new home builders, from the Office of Consumer Protection.
Use and Occupancy, Construction, Electrician, Plumber, Sign Installer, Construction-related license from the Department of Permitting Services.
Vendor’s License to sell goods and services from a specific location, from the Department of Permitting Services. Food sales require a Health Department license as well. Selling from the public right-of-way requires that a business be a Certified Agriculture Producer.
Food Truck License for Takoma Park Here for Montgomery County Here
Prince George’s County
Trader’s License for wholesale, retail and opening a chain store, from the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court.
Health Department issues permits for Food Service facilities including restaurants, fast food, farmer’s markets, special events, and warehouses. The type of license is determined by the type of food served or sold in the facility and how the food is handled before, during, and after the day it is served.
Residential Construction and Trade licenses and permits for structural, mechanical, electrical, fire, and life safety-related are issued by the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court.
Other business license information can be found at choosemaryland.gov, the Business License Information System website of the Maryland Department of Commerce.
Financing
State of Maryland
Neighborhood Business Works for low-interest, gap financing to new or expanding businesses or nonprofits.
Minority Linked Deposit Program reduces interest rates for Minority Business Enterprises on bank loans.
Small Business & Technology Development Center offers a variety of loans, technical assistance and training.
Montgomery County
– Minority, Female and Disabled Owned Businesses has a revolving loan fund for expansion or development.
– Financial and Tax Incentives
– Latino Economic Development Fund Microlending for Entrepreneurs for loans between $5,000-$50,000.
– Enterprise Development Group loans up to $50,000 to start, sustain, or expand a business.
Other
US Small Business Administration loans.
Enterprise Development Group is part of the Ethiopian Community Development Corporation. EDG makes small business micro-loans of up to $50,000 in the Washington, DC metro area, and offers training to develop business skills.
FSC loans to minority and small businesses in Prince George’s County.
How to Write A Successful Business Plan.
Small Business Loan Calculator.
Revitalization Grant & Credits
Long Branch/Takoma Park Enterprise Zone Tax Credits
Property owners: 80% credit on taxes due for any expansion/renovation of a commercial property. The credit lasts for 5 years at 80% and then decreases 10% annually for another 5 years.
Businesses: $1000 employment tax credit per new full-time employee and up to $6,000 over a three-year period on an economically disadvantaged new fulltime employee.
Contact the Enterprise Zone Administrator for more information, peter.mcginnity@montgomerycountymd.gov.
Business Networking Opportunities
Takoma/Langley Crossroads Development Authority Programs.
Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce
Maryland Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce
Greater Washington Board of Trade
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Montgomery County
Website Assistance
If you don’t have a website for your business, you can make one of your own using websitesetup.org. Their guide has helped thousands of people set up their own websites and blogs.
Graphic Design Assistance
Need help with branding, web design, logos and fonts, Facebook covers, case studies, mission statements, and design-related issues? Explore 99designs.com for great ideas and solutions.