LUTHERAN QUILTERS – Members of the Quilts for Comfort Group stand between pews draped with some of the 205 quilts they made, in the Sitka Lutheran Church Tuesday. The group made the quilts for five local non-profits and one in Anchorage. The remaining quilts are sent to Lutheran World Relief which  distributes them to places around the world in need, such as Ukraine, as part of Personal Care Kits. Pictured are, from left, Helen Cunningham, Kathleen Brandt,Vicki Swanson, Paulla Hardy, Kim Hunter, Linda Swanson and Sue Fleming.  (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

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Daily Sitka Sentinel

City Opens Grants to Businesses, Nonprofits

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer

The city’s CARES Act program opened Saturday to provide grants for businesses and nonprofit entities economically harmed by COVID-19.

The deadline is Aug. 31 for nonprofit and for-profit businesses to apply for grants of between $2,500 and $10,000. Applications are available on the city website.

Details are being developed for other programs approved by the Assembly for CARES Act funding.

The nonprofit and for-profit grant amounts are based on gross revenues from 2018 or 2019. Amounts are:

– $2,500 for businesses and nonprofits with gross revenues under $100,000.

– $5,000, for those with gross revenues of between $100,000 and $250,000.

– $7,500 for those between $250,000 and $500,000.

– $10,000 for those with gross revenues over $500,000.

Applicants also can check a different option:

“The gross revenue for my organization does not appropriately capture the scope of the services my business or nonprofit provides to the community, and I would like the Assembly to consider, in public session, awarding at one of the levels reserved for organizations with higher revenue.”

The goal of the quick deadline is to get out funds as soon as possible to those who need it, City Controller Melissa Haley said.

“We don’t know what Sitkans’ true need is going to be,” she said. “We wanted to keep the grant period short to collect information. If there’s money left from this or other programs, we would take a look at that.”

The city is receiving a number of questions already, but most have been able to answer them through the city’s FAQ sheet, Haley said.

A few Assembly members have expressed concern that the funds are insufficient to help the larger businesses and nonprofits.

“It’s not perfect, but it does get some money out,” said Thor Christianson. “I think we will likely have another round of this.” He noted the $1 million left from the funds allocated for utility and moorage relief as a possible source.

“There’s going to be some more money available as these programs wrap up and I suspect we’ll be doing more in the next month or two,” he said. “I would like to give enough to make everyone whole but we didn’t get enough (through the CARES Act). It’s a Band-Aid, not a blood transfusion.”

“We definitely wanted to get as much money as possible out into the economy,” fellow Assembly member Steven Eisenbeisz said. “It’s not going to fix anybody’s financial woes this year but it will help.”

Eisenbeisz said he’s looking forward to seeing how the other categories provide help, including through food assistance programs and the transitional employment programs.

As a business owner, Eisenbeisz said, he would use grant funds to continue to cover payroll, and keep people more fully employed.

Kevin Knox, one of two Assembly members on the CARES Act Working Group, said this has been a challenging program to put into place because the needs are far beyond the funds available.

“We do have a large amount of needs and we are only working with a limited amount of funds, and a short period of time,” he said. “Trying to get a little relief out quickly is the intent.”

Assembly members said during the discussions on the CARES funds that the money will fall far short of covering all the losses businesses and nonprofits will suffer from the effects of the pandemic.

“We would have to have 10 times the amount to make the entire community whole,” Knox said.

Haley said terms of the CARES program require the city to distribute all of the $14 million it has received by December 31.

So far the city has committed $4.5 million to utility and moorage subsidies and has promised $430,000 for the Sitka School District. In addition to the $5 million for the business and non-profit relief that is now open for applications, the Assembly approved $2.5 million for “new city-funded programs” to support childcare, food security, behavioral and mental health, housing,  and transitional employment. Some $1 million is dedicated to mitigation and $627,653 is for contingency.

Haley said the application process for the grants is simple, and there are no reporting requirements. There is one three-page application for both commercial and nonprofit organizations.

As with the moorage and utility grants, the businesses and nonprofits must attest that they have experienced economic hardship due to COVID.

Among the requirements: an eligible nonprofit must provide a direct service; have a permanent presence in Sitka; and have at least one employee who works in Sitka, or more than half of its board members living in Sitka.

Similarly, a business applicant must have a “permanent physical presence” in Sitka with at least one employee. Marijuana companies and businesses in bankruptcy proceedings are not eligible.

One of the questions asks both nonprofits and for-profits: “Do you intend to remain in business into 2021? Yes or No.”

Haley said applications are starting to come in, but they will not be reviewed until the arrival of the grant analyst that the city plans to hire. She said it shouldn’t be too long before that happens.

Applications may be filled out on paper or online, but the city is encouraging online filing, which will include a time stamp to document the application was turned in on time. Email applicants will receive an “autoreply” that the application was received. Haley said the time for distributing the funds has not yet been determined.

CARES Act funds are intended to help individuals and businesses, but Haley said helping businesses and nonprofits will help the city.

“If this keeps them from closing it will have an impact on the city,” Haley said, pointing to sales taxes businesses will collect once the economy picks up.

 

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20 YEARS AGO

March 2004

Advertisement: Tea-Licious Tea House & Bakery 315 Lincoln Street Grand Opening! Freshly Baked Scones, Cakes & Pastries Innovative Salads, Soups & Sandwiches Harney & Sons Tea. Lunch * Afternoon Tea * Supper.

50 YEARS AGO

March 1974

Photo caption: National Republican Chairman George Bush takes a drink of water offered by Jan Craddick, Sitka delegate, during the Republican convention held here. Mrs. Craddick explained to Bush that the water was from Indian River, which means, according to local legend, that he will return.

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