Downtown Monterey may be one of the easiest, fastest places to open a business! When you're ready to start your business downtown, the OMBA wants to help you. We're adding new information to this site all the time, so please check back with us for more helpful tips. Here are a few first steps:

Getting Started

Please check the "Available Space Listings" on this Web site for a list of commercial properties for lease in downtown Monterey: www.oldmonterey.org For information about getting a business license, please go to the City of Monterey Web site: www.monterey.org/finance/business_license Monterey County has a helpful Web site with information about starting a business in Monterey County. To view this useful site, please go to: www.co.monterey.ca.us/oed/doing_business_in_monterey_county.htm When you're ready to file your Fictitious Business Name Statement, call Coast Weekly newspaper, (831) 394-5656 (or visit the offices at 668 Williams Avenue in Seaside), and ask for the Legal Notices Department. The Monterey County Herald also publishes Fictitious Business Name Statements. Call the Legal Notices Department, (831) 646-4387 (or stop by their offices, 8 Upper Ragsdale in Monterey). Both newspapers will send a "proof of publication" to you and to the Monterey County Clerk's office.

The Small Business Administration (www.sba.gov) and SCORE (the Service Corps of Retired Executives, www.score.org) administer Web sites with valuable tips and online classes about how to start your own business. The Central Coast Small Business Development Center, funded by the SBA, the California Trade and Commerce Agency and Cabrillo College, hosts free or low-cost seminars and workshops, and offers counseling and business resources. For further information about the SBDC, call the Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, (831) 648-5360.