Each year, the City spends upwards of $80 million dollars on everything needed to run its operations: items as large as fire engines and small as staples; contracts to provide coffee to individual offices and those to roof buildings and pave parking lots.

Money spent with local companies (like Edison Electric, who has the current contract to maintain the City's LED streetlights) stays in the local economy, where it supports local businesses and jobs, including those of small and minority-owned businesses. 

In recognition of the important role of small and minority-owned businesses in the health and diversity of our local economy, the Purchasing Department includes a Small Business & Diversity Outreach Office. Staff members Pamela Cotham and Luis Garcia provide assistance to Diversity Business Enterprises (DBEs) that helps level the playing field for businesses that are traditionally underrepresented among the bidders and vendors for large-budget entities like cities, universities and corporations. 


Their efforts are paying off: 

• In Fiscal Year 2019/2020, the City spent nearly $4.3 million with minority-owned businesses. That’s 5.71 percent of all dollars spent and an increased percentage from last fiscal year. 

• Spending with Black-owned businesses was $1.3 million.

• Spending with woman-owned businesses was $7.4 million.

Activities like the annual Diversity Business Expo and the DBE Awards connect and bring awareness to diversity businesses in our community. And resources like the Diversity Business Directory help individual City departments find a variety of providers for small purchases.  

More info about doing business with the City of Knoxville is posted at KnoxvilleTN.gov/bids.