63 Shiawassee County Businesses Awarded Almost $840,000 from the Michigan Small Business Restart Program October 1, 2020 The Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) has announced that 63 small businesses and nonprofits in Shiawassee County were awarded grants totaling almost $840,000 through the Michigan Small Business Restart Program. The grantees were among more than 11,300 organizations statewide that received funding.63 Shiawassee County companies will be getting a total of $838,293.30. The recipients represent many sectors and are geographically spread across the county including Bancroft, Byron, Corunna, Durand, Laingsburg, Morrice, New Lothrop, Owosso, Perry, and Vernon mailing addresses. The industries represented include: Food ServiceManufacturingRetailFitness & RecreationProfessional ServicesNonprofitLogisticsConstructionAccommodationsTechnology A total of 43% of the funding was awarded to minority-, veteran-, or women-owned firms.“Our small businesses have shown incredible resilience over these past several months, and we are hopeful the money received by these 63 will help to accelerate their comeback,” said SEDP President/CEO Justin Horvath. “The Michigan Small Business Restart Program is providing a significant opportunity to address immediate needs of small businesses and nonprofits as they work to recover from the impacts of COVID-19,” said MEDC CEO Mark A. Burton. “We are proud to work with our economic development partners to deliver these vital financial resources and create a path toward economic recovery for small businesses throughout Michigan.” The MEDC-funded initiative was launched to provide relief for small businesses and nonprofits that have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds may be used as working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses or other similar expenses. Grants were awarded on a competitive basis. To be considered, organizations must first have met the following conditions: A business with 50 or fewer total employees that can demonstrate it had been affected by the COVID-19 emergencyNeeded working capital to support eligible expensesDemonstrated an income loss as result of the COVID-19 emergency Approved in July, the Michigan Small Business Restart Program allocated $100 million of federal CARES Act funding to provide support to Michigan’s small businesses and nonprofits that are reopening and have experienced a loss of income as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. The funding was distributed across 15 local or nonprofit economic development organizations covering all 83 counties in the state for grants up to $20,000 to support certain small businesses and nonprofits that have realized a significant financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To see the full list of businesses that were awarded Restart grants as of September 10, 2020, visit here.
