St. Louis County Launching Small Business Relief program

5/13 Update: St. Louis County has updated their eligibility guidelines for the Small Business Relief Fund to clarify that businesses that have received federal assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) can still qualify.

St. Louis County has launched a Small Business Relief Program that will provide financial assistance to small business closed due to the county's Stay at Home Order.

The grant can be used to pay for the costs of business interruption as a result of the business closing and to cover costs associated with reopening safely. Business interruption costs could include fixed operating costs during closure.  Reopening costs could include acquiring personal protective equipment for employees or customers or installing plastic shields to reduce the risks of transmission between customers and employees.

In addition to being closed during the Stay at Home order, eligible businesses must have their principal place of business in St. Louis County and have 50 or fewer full-time employees as of March 1, 2020. At this time, the program will award a one-time grant of $15,000 or less to a qualifying business for a maximum total of $2.5 million in grants per County Council district.  Additional funding may be provided in the future.

More details, including an application form and eligibility guidelines, are available at https://stlcorona.com/resources/small-business-relief-program.