The City of Arcadia recently held a lottery to award grants to 49 small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program, under the new Arcadia Works! Program, is dispersing $245,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. Grants of $5,000 each, primarily provided under the federally funded CARES Act to assist with COVID-19 relief, are being directly awarded to small businesses in Arcadia.
Hundreds of businesses applied for the grant program and the need is deep throughout the community. Recipients included the full range of business types, from small retailers, to restaurants, to spas and salons, to offices that have been in Arcadia for decades. Mayor Roger Chandler participated in the lottery with Development Services Department staff. “The City received an overwhelming response to the COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program,” said Chandler. “It is important that we do everything we can to support small businesses during these challenging times.”
The response from the Arcadia community has been overwhelming and several grant recipients have shared their feedback. “I am looking forward to sharing the great news with our employees,” said Mariza Gatdula from Arcadia Dentistry, who will be using the grant towards helping retain employees.
“We have been a small women-owned business for over 20 years in Arcadia,” said Cheryl Marino of Cake Sisters. “It is so nice to see the support the City has given small businesses during this pandemic. This grant will help alleviate some of the stress caused by the mandatory closures,” she added.
“We are appreciative of the local business community’s interest in the grant program, and we sincerely hope this funding is helpful in keeping these businesses active and vibrant,” said Jason Kruckeberg, assistant city manager/development services director. “The COVID-19 Small Business Grants represent a concerted effort by the City of Arcadia to provide direct relief to as many local businesses as possible and is just one of the steps the City is taking to support our small business community.” In addition to the grants, the City is providing other local resources and initiatives, including business license renewal payment extensions, extension of development deadlines, business assistance ombudsman services, allowances for additional outdoor seating areas for dining, and a partnership with the Arcadia Chamber of Commerce for business outreach and marketing.
The City is hopeful that more CDBG funding will become available to be used for additional grants in the near future, and is exploring other funding opportunities as well. “We plan to keep all applications on file should future funding become available,” said Kruckeberg. “I believe that this direct financial assistance is the best way to help. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix to the economic impacts of COVID-19 but we are here to support our business community in any way we can,” he added.
Visit ArcadiaCA.gov/LocalBusiness for more information, and stay tuned for additional announcements in the coming weeks. For any questions or assistance, contact the Development Services Department by phone at (626) 574-5409 or by email at DSD@ArcadiaCA.gov.
