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President Barack Obama chose a Prince George's County business as the backdrop for a new policy announcement today, his second surprise appearance in the Maryland suburbs this week.

The president gave a speech to a small crowd at the warehouses of Metropolitan Archives in Cheverly, where he announced plans to boost lending by smaller community banks and increase the amount entrepreneurs can borrow from the Small Business Administration.

"These small businesses are the engine of job growth in America," the president told the crowd of about 130 invitees. "They fuel our prosperity."

The expansions will require congressional approval.

Metropolitan Archives, which stores files and records for major law firms and accounting groups in Washington, D.C., purchased its new $7 million headquarters in February using a $2 million loan from the SBA.

White House officials called the company Friday looking to set up the event, said Douglas J.J. Peters, co-owner of the business and state senator (D-Dist. 23) from Bowie, who started the business years ago with a school friend, Joseph Incarnato.

"We're just kind of in shock that this is really happening," Peters said a few hours before Obama arrived, as Secret Service agents sent dogs searching the halls.

On Monday, the president toured Viers Mill Elementary School in Silver Spring.

Invites were kept secret for the event this week, with most people only learning about the appearance the day before. Throngs of police cars and Secret Service surrounded the building, located in an industrial zone off the Capital Beltway, where dogs and agents searched every car before parking.

The crowd was composed of a mix of representatives from national business and banking groups, local small business owners and elected officials, who waited in the closed room for around two hours for the chance to see Obama during his 10-minute appearance.

"You set out your week, and then something like this happens, and you drop everything," said County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D), who attended the news conference. "It's always great to have the president in town."

Other local politicians included Sen. C. Anthony Muse (D-Dist. 26) of Fort Washington, a co-investor in the business, and Sen. Nathaniel Exum, Del. Justin Ross and 2010 county executive candidate Rushern L. Baker — all of whom endorsed the president early in 2007 and were delegates at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.