ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — While small businesses await additional relief from the federal government, local leaders are stepping in with a small business grant program.
“It’s a small, I wouldn’t say gesture right now, but it’s something,” said Albany County Legislature’s Chairman Andrew Joyce.
Qualified applicants can receive a maximum amount of $5,000. Joyce said county lawmakers were forced to come up with a plan to try to save the local economy.
“We have not gotten the help that we need from the federal government. The federal government has abandoned us,” Joyce said.
The money comes from the county’s contingent account. More than 100 businesses have applied for the aid like McGeary’s owner Tess Collins.
“I feel like I got 20 messages within 15 minutes on it [being announced],” Collins said.
Riding on the high of the Buffalo Bills heading to the AFC Championship, Collins’s Bills’ bar would have generated much needed money during a normally quiet month.
“This would have been the busiest year in 35 years in Albany,” Collins said.
Nearby businesses have closed, some of the businesses are hoping to weather the storm and reopen in the spring time. Joyce said the county and its partners hope to get checks out to businesses soon.
“Local government has been on our own to come up with a plan to help our constituents and the people who elect us, but also small businesses,” Joyce said.
Due to the number of applicants, applications will be ranked by priority and scored to determine recipients.
The deadline is Tuesday, January 19, at 5 p.m. To apply for the grant, click here.
