Erie County Small Business Working Capital Grant Program Helps Small Businesses

Metro Creative Connection

Mon January 24, 2022 12:30 PM

Maximum assistance available to small business owners up to $10,000; financing available for businesses with five employees or less

The Erie County Department of Environment and Planning, in conjunction with the Erie County Business Task Force, continues to boost small businesses in Erie County with the Fund Grant Program Working Capital for Small Businesses, providing micro businesses with five or fewer employees up to $10,000 in grant funds to help businesses recover.

The Erie County Community Development Consortium, made up of 34 local municipalities of varying sizes, received $4,326,655 in Community Development Block Grant funds in 2020 from the federal CARES Act to be used in part to help small businesses through this program.

“The Small Business Working Capital Grant Program is another way we are working to help small businesses in Erie County, providing them with a small amount of block funding for community development that can be used for anything what the business needs, including working capital or equipment,” said Mark Poloncarz, Erie County Executive. “Small businesses have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and Erie County, ECIDA and the Business Task Force are partnering and offering assistance where possible.”

The Small Business Working Capital Grant Program offers a grant of up to $10,000 to small businesses that have experienced a loss of revenue due to the pandemic. Eligible businesses include those that employ five or fewer employees and have household incomes below HUD’s Section 8 income guidelines. $450,000 in community development block grants through the federal CARES Act are available to help small businesses through this grant fund.

Businesses in the towns of Lackawanna and Tonawanda; the cities of Alden, Aurora, Boston, Brant, Clarence, Colden, Collins, Concord, Eden, Elma, Evans, Grand Island, Holland, Lancaster, Marilla, Newstead, North Collins, Orchard Park, Sardinia, Wales; and West Seneca, and the villages of Akron, Angola, Depew, East Aurora, Farnham, Gowanda, Lancaster, North Collins, Orchard Park and Springville are eligible for this funding. These municipalities are located within the Erie County CDBG Consortium.

The Erie County Community Development Consortium is made up of municipalities that receive funding from HUD through CDBG, HOME, and ESG grants to assist low-income residents. Grant allocations are made to Erie County because the population of the 34 consortium members exceeds 200,000.

Funding for these Community Development Grants is distributed directly by HUD to Erie County municipalities with populations greater than 50,000. In Erie County, the cities of Amherst, Tonawanda, Cheektowaga, and Hamburg, as well as the City of Buffalo, receive these community development grants directly from HUD.

For more information on the Small Business Working Capital Grant Program, click here.