The city of Hartford, with support from area nonprofit organizations, has launched a $1-million grant program to provide small businesses financial relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mayor Luke Bronin on Tuesday afternoon announced the city, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, HEDCO Inc., and Capital for Change are partnering to provide at least 100 small Hartford businesses with grants up to $10,000 for lease, mortgage, salary, vendor or tax payments, among other eligible expenses.
Bronin said the program is especially geared toward women- and minority-owned businesses located in low-income neighborhoods in Hartford and others that may have trouble accessing federal or state stimulus funding.
The program, administered by Wallingford-based Capital for Change, will begin accepting applications online May 4. Grants between $5,000 to $10,000 will be awarded before May 22, officials said.
Applications and additional information on the program can be found here.
On April 27, prospective applicants can start gaining technical assistance on submitting applications from organizations including the Blue Hills Civic Association, Upper Albany Merchants Association, Spanish American Merchants Association, HEDCO, Entrepreneurial Center at the University of Hartford, Minority Construction Council and Hartford Chamber of Commerce.
Eligible businesses must be located in the city, provide at least one federal tax return and have positive revenues not exceeding $500,000 for the submitted tax years. Principal owners of multiple businesses will only be eligible for one grant, officials say.
In the months ahead, the city will launch a second grant program aimed at providing approximately $300,000 to help small businesses in Hartford reopen when the state eases restrictions on business activity.
“This pandemic has devastated small businesses, and we want to do everything we can to help our small businesses here in Hartford survive, reopen, re-hire, and start growing again,” Bronin said in a statement. “All too often, small businesses in communities like Hartford don’t have the banking relationships, the connections, or the ability to access federal grants or loans, and this partnership is aimed at helping those small businesses that are most likely to be left out.”
The city on Tuesday also announced that it’s awarding about $120,000 to 17 small businesses under an existing grant program in partnership with CTNext’s Innovation Places program. The funding, previously secured by Launc[H]artford, is meant to aid small businesses in the area between Hartford Hospital and Trinity College.
