The Clearwater Planning and Development Department and other city departments are staffed and operating, but the public may not go beyond the lobbies of those buildings. But myclearwater.com — the website where residents can pay fines, apply for and pay for various licenses and permits including business tax receipt, tree removal licenses, and view city records,…
Local officials say they’re already preparing for small business recovery after shutdowns to slow the coronavirus outbreak. Economic development and elected officials shared plans to help repair the local economy during a news conference Thursday morning. In addition to other efforts, Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinson announced the city would be dedicating an economic development staff…
City officials expect to release an aid package next week that could include direct payments to small Jacksonville businesses struggling from the impact of COVID-19. Mayor Lenny Curry said March 26 in a virtual news conference that there’s “a very high possibility” the plan will include direct financial assistance. Curry did not provide details or the…
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for Pinellas businesses impacted by COVID-19 https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/paycheck-protection-program-ppp The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) from the federally funded U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) helps businesses keep their workforce employed during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a loan designed to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll. You can…
The Community Caring Center of Palm Beach County merged April 1 with a larger nonprofit geared to feeding hungry people from Boynton Beach. The CCC was about to start a fundraising program last September to build a 5,000-square-foot commercial kitchen in east Boynton Beach. That’s when City Commissioner Ty Penserga contacted one of the center’s…
Part of the Delray Beach Community Redevelopment Agency’s mission is historic preservation. Soon, the agency will have staff working out of a 1930s home they helped save from the wrecking ball. Last year, the agency with help from the city and other entities, relocated the Wellbrock House to its property. Last month, the agency invited…
Delray Beach will be increasing its portfolio of workforce housing thanks to the Corey Isle project. Ten single-family workforce homes will soon be built in the Southwest Neighborhood at the Northwest corner of Southwest Seventh Avenue and Southwest Fourth Street. The homes will be either three or four bedrooms with two bathrooms and rear-loaded garages…
COVID-19 Resources for Business We have compiled and are regularly updating a web page of information about COVID-19 for Pinellas County businesses. Please visit www.PCED.org/covid19to see the eligibility requirements for available loans, “Safer at Home” guidance and links to resources. Pinellas County’s “Safer at Home” Order is in effect as of 12:00 p.m. March 25, 2020. Full details for…
There’s no shortage of folks in Lake Worth Beach who are struggling to put food on the table after losing their jobs as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The Lake Worth Beach Community Redevelopment Agency and Lake Worth Arts are easing that burden by sponsoring a drive-thru food distribution center on Tuesday between 9-11 a.m. Read the full…
While state and local government officials have argued they need billions from Congress to help stay afloat while spending to fight the spread of the coronavirus, the Senate’s $1.8 trillion economic stimulus package would pit them against businesses instead of providing dedicated funding. The latest version of the bill would provide $500 billion in economic…
Gov. Ron DeSantis sent a letter to President Donald Trump Monday formally requesting that Trump declare a Major Disaster as the state responds to the coronavirus outbreak. In his letter, DeSantis asked for the inclusion of several individual assistance programs in the declaration, including: Disaster Unemployment Assistance; Crisis Counseling; Community Disaster Loans. Disaster Supplemental Nutrition…
Grover Robinson, the mayor of Pensacola, Fla., will donate his annual salary of $100,000 toward paying for energy and trash collection for his residents amid the coronavirus outbreak. According to the Pensacola News Journal, the mayor announced he would donating his salary to Pensacola Energy as well as the town’s sanitation service, saying: “I’m not…
Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis activated the Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program to support small businesses impacted by COVID-19. The bridge loan program, managed by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), will provide short-term, interest-free loans to small businesses that experienced economic injury from COVID-19. The application period opens tomorrow, March…
April 2, 2020 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM EDST USING BUSINESS ASSISTANCE GRANTS AS AN IMPORTANT BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC RECOVERY TOOL What your business community needs right now is cash. They need direct, timely assistance. While local governments are set up to meet the need of residents, many struggle with how to best meet the…
The Department of Revenue is giving Floridians more than two extra weeks to pay their property taxes as the state deals with the effects of the COVID-19 virus. According to an order from Executive Director Jim Zingale, “The date for citizens and businesses to pay property taxes in all Florida Counties is extended from March…
In city halls across the country, mayors and their staff are scrambling to find creative solutions to confront the overwhelming crisis brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. … Cities are rapidly crowdsourcing pandemic response ideas from experts, community leaders and other local governments across the country. This sharing and cross-pollinating of policy ideas through Twitter,…
FHLBank Atlanta is actively monitoring reports and briefings regarding the coronavirus (COVID-19). In consideration of operational challenges and agency shutdowns AHP applicants are facing related to the COVID-19 pandemic, FHLBank Atlanta has decided to extend the 2020 AHP application deadline until June 1, 2020, at 11:59 p.m. EDT. With this extended application deadline, we anticipate that application approvals will…
The city is going to take a $5.65 million hit to give residents and business owners a financial break, and to nudge along development as so much in the economy is freezing up amid the coronavirus pandemic. At a special meeting Tuesday night, city commissioners approved waiving a significant portion of residents’ utility bills for…
Staring down the possibility of economic ruin from the coronavirus crisis, Leon County and Tallahassee city commissioners signed off on a $1 million relief package for local businesses. The decision by the Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency, made up of all 12 city and county commissioners, happened Wednesday during what was one of the most unusual and…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to go ahead with more than a half-billion dollars in tax refunds for the state’s largest corporations — even as the state economy crashes amid the spreading coronavirus pandemic. The Republican-controlled Florida Legislature committed to the corporate tax refunds — which will total $543 million — two years ago, long…
Special Edition- Coronavirus (COVID-19) As a partner of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), we care about the success of your business as well as the health and well-being of your employees and all Floridians. Given the current environment, we want to ensure you and your business community has all the up-to-date information to…