File photo
File photo
EL PASO – The El Paso City Council made changes to the city budget to adjust for the effects of the coronavirus on the economy and to give small businesses a lift.
They moved $6 million out of street and road repair into a new budget stabilization plan, KFOX14 said. The city will suspend construction projects not considered essential or in compliance with public health guidelines. The police academy joins the list of suspended programs, and part-time positions like water park staff have been removed from the budget.
City Manager Tommy Gonzalez said projections for the economic impact of COVID-19 are that it will be twice as bad as the 2008 recession, KFOX14 reported. Nearly half of the businesses that contacted the city’s economic development department said their revenue has dropped by 80%.
To help some of those businesses, City Council approved a small business emergency relief fund. They'll offer loans in partnership with the nonprofit organization LiftFund.
The City Council’s budget stabilization plan puts $1 million toward helping local businesses. El Paso County added another $1 million to start the fund, KFOX14 said.
The fund for small business loans with 0% interest will receive $600,000 from the city. A total of $250,000 in business grants of $5,000 has already been allocated, and the LiftFund grant will get $150,000 to cover the zero-interest loans.
Any business with 10 employees or fewer can apply for a loan. Those with five or fewer employees are eligible to apply for a grant. To qualify, small businesses must have been in operation since August 2019 and have good credit, KFOX14 said. The business must show a loss of at least 20% of revenue because of the coronavirus emergency and develop a six-month recovery and working capital plan to show the award will help them get through the COVID-19 emergency.
The small businesses must be located in El Paso and reopen in the same location. Their gross annual revenue must be $1 million or less.
LiftFund said the distribution of $1.7 million in funds will have a $23.8 million impact on the local economy, KFOX14 reported.
The nonprofit began taking applications on April 1 for loans up to $25,000 and grants up to $5,000. Business owners can apply at LiftFund’s website. They can also email at info@liftund.com or call 888-215-2373.
The owner of Lustre Beauty Lounge told KFOX14 this program could benefit her greatly. A licensed aesthetician, Ruth Salazar said she shut down her business on March 19 when her clients began making cancellations.
“Hopefully I do get approved because being such a new business a lot of people or a lot of banks don’t like to take their chances on businesses like myself,” Salazar told KFOX14.
A grant suits her best since she has no employees, she said.
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