|
File Number: 20-568
<br />up to $3,000,000 in additional funds to match contributions to the grant program made by individual
<br />cities. The $5,000,000 in base funds will be distributed to small businesses across incorporated cities
<br />in Alameda County. The funds provided by cities and matched by the County will be distributed directly
<br />to small businesses within that city. The program opened on November 17, 2020 and accepted
<br />applications from businesses until November 30, 2020 at 11:30 p.m.
<br />ANALYSIS
<br />On an annual basis, the City provides funding for business incentives, which are administered by the
<br />Economic Development Division of the Community Development Department. Such funds are
<br />administered through the Business Incentive Program
<br />(<https://www.sanleandro.org/depts/cd/econdev/incentives.asp>), which provides forgivable loans to
<br />businesses for eligible physical improvements, including façade upgrades and kitchen and brewery
<br />buildouts in keeping with the goals and guidelines of the program. The goal of the program is to
<br />stimulate investment and business attraction and improve the city’s commercial districts. In Fiscal
<br />Year 2020-2021, a total of $175,000 is budgeted for the business incentive program, which is the typical
<br />amount budgeted for the past several years.
<br />With the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic and the devastating business impacts it wrought,
<br />Economic Development staff have worked to focus business incentive funds where they are needed
<br />most. In May 2020, the City utilized $250,000 in FY2019-2020 available business incentive funds to
<br />provide $5,000 grants to small businesses through the San Leandro Small Business Continuity Grant
<br />Program. Staff recognizes that there continues to be significant need for business assistance at this
<br />time and recommends that $150,000 in available FY2020-2021 business incentive funds be allocated
<br />toward the Alameda County CARES Grant Program.
<br />The local match feature of the Alameda County CARES Grant Program represents an opportunity to
<br />leverage additional business assistance funds. If the City provides $150,000 in matching funds, the
<br />County will match this contribution dollar-for-dollar, resulting in a total of $300,000 in grant funds
<br />available to eligible San Leandro businesses. At a grant amount of $5,000, this could assist up to 60
<br />San Leandro businesses, in addition to any San Leandro businesses that are successful in the
<br />application for the $5,000,000 awarded through the county-wide process.
<br />To be eligible for the Alameda County CARES Grant Program, businesses must be physically located
<br />in Alameda County and have between 1 and 25 employees. Self-employed individuals and sole
<br />proprietorships are also eligible. The businesses must have been negatively impacted by COVID-19,
<br />either by a closure of any length due to COVID-19 or layoff of one or more employees due to COVID-19.
<br />Applicant businesses must agree to follow State and County COVID-19 safe workplace guidelines and
<br />maintain a business license for their physical location. Chain businesses not headquartered in Alameda
<br />County, financial institutions, banks, lenders, landlords of residential or commercial businesses, publicly
<br />traded companies, and non-profit entities are all ineligible for the Alameda County CARES Grant
<br />Program.
<br />Grants are for up to $5,000 and may be used for unreimbursed costs incurred from March
<br />17, 2020 to December 30, 2020 for rent, mortgage or utility payments, payroll costs, general operating
<br />expenses, personal protective equipment, health and sanitation equipment, and/or costs for business
<br />adaptation including interior and exterior physical changes or digital technology equipment.
<br />As noted above, applications were accepted from November 17, 2020 through November
<br />30, 2020 at 11:30 p.m. Applications were accepted by the East Bay Economic Development Alliance
<br />(East Bay EDA), the organization designated by the County to run the program, through an online portal
<br />at www.eastbayeda.org/grants. The program flyer (Attachment 1) was distributed by staff to San
<br />Leandro businesses via email, shared widely on social media, and distributed by local and regional
<br />Page 2 City of San Leandro Printed on 12/9/2020
<br />211
|