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Faye Burch established her consulting business in 1994 with the goal of helping small businesses, particularly those owned by minorities and women, thrive within the local construction market.

She has seen the market鈥檚 highs and lows over that period, and has witnessed its evolution in terms of growing more diverse and inclusive for smaller companies.

鈥淭here are certainly more opportunities opening up for us, and I think some of the public-sector programs that were put in place certainly extend the opportunities for minority- and women-owned firms to be able to participate,鈥� she said.

Burch credits the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program as a model with a high level of accountability built into it, and said transportation projects present especially robust opportunities for minority and women-owned firms.

While light-rail, streetcar, bridge and highway projects may be overwhelming to smaller companies because of their scope, they offer the chance to learn invaluable lessons while taking part in large, highly visible projects, she noted.

Burch served as a consultant on the Southwest Moody project, which elevated Moody Avenue by 14 feet and included the addition of traffic lanes, a bike lane, sidewalks and dual streetcar tracks. Construction of the new Portland-to-Milwaukie light-rail bridge also will be done in an area reputed for its confined staging space.

鈥淚t was a very different project with a different kind of feel and a different kind of work that a lot of firms hadn鈥檛 done before, so it taught them a lot,鈥� Burch said.

Project supervisors commended Burch for making regular contacts with DMWESB firms involved in the project to evaluate their efficiency and progress, mitigating problems quickly and helping the project meet workforce apprenticeship and training requirements.

She also was praised for organizing project-focused mentorships that expanded the firms鈥� capacities for both on-site performance and in-office administration.

鈥淚 find the project-related mentorships tend to be very successful. They give folks a chance to apply things directly to their work and they are things they can take on to future projects,鈥� Burch said.