White Bear Lake , meantime , created a Shop Local campaign designed to encourage customers to support their local businesses . The work done in the Northeast Metro very closely mirrors efforts made in some of the Twin Cities ’ larger metro communities .
The University of Minnesota ’ s Extension Center for Community recently released the results of a study on how local communities reacted to COVID-19 . A webinar held in March 2021 showcased how the government agencies involved in the study — the cities of St . Paul , Brooklyn Center , Crookston , Greater Fergus Falls — engaged in basically the same six strategies to help their communities .
1 ) Put information clearinghouse / exchanges on government websites .
2 ) Created small business relief programs .
3 ) Offered technical assistance .
4 ) Reduced fees , regulations and helped businesses .
5 ) Launched shop local campaigns .
6 ) Offered the use of public space for outdoor dining .
According to Andy Hestness , Principal Project Manager , Planning and Economic Development for the City of St . Paul , as soon as they realized the dramatic impact the pandemic was going to have on business , the city ’ s small business team jumped into action . “ At the direction of our department leadership and the Mayor , we began to really think through opportunities to offer direct support ,” he said .
Their first area of concern , the immediate expenses that were going to impact the restaurants and retail businesses that had to be closed due to the pandemic . Expenses such as rent , employee wages , insurance and supplies .
“ We realized this was not something we could target as a loan . It really needed to be grant funding ,” said Hestness . For what became known as the St . Paul Bridge Fund , the team redirected $ 3.25 million in city funds from existing community development programs , and began disbursing the funds right away .
A total of 380 St . Paul businesses that were considered vulnerable — those with pre-pandemic annual gross revenues below $ 2 million — received a one-time $ 7,500 grant .
In addition to the small business program , a parallel Bridge Fund for Families awarded 1,265 grants of $ 1,000 each . Eligible families had a child at home , earned a pre-pandemic income of 40 percent or less of the metropolitan medium income , and had experienced a loss of income due to COVID-19 .
To make it fair for everyone who applied , businesses and individuals that received the money were selected via a lottery . Money was disbursed in April 2020 .
“ We initially funded the program with flexible funding from our Housing and Redevelopment Authority . Later when the CARES Act was passed , we went through an analysis and discovered we ’ d be able to offer a second round of grants for an additional 175 businesses with CARES Act funding ,” said Hestness .
An additional $ 1.3 million in business funding was disbursed in October 2020 . A third round of business funding was disbursed as well . All told , the City of St . Paul offered 633 businesses a total of $ 4.74 million in relief .
As 2021 got underway , the City ’ s focus shifted more so to offering some technical assistance to businesses , particularly when it comes to technology . For example , helping restaurants increase their online presence and online ordering capability .
“ We are also launching a marketing campaign really encouraging folks to visit our small businesses . Also , as there continue to be county tools , federal tools , state tools , we are making sure all that information gets out to the community , so those resources can be tapped ,” said Hestness .
St . Paul puts all the information it gathers into a city newsletter to get the word out . Sending out a newsletter is also one of the tactics used by Greater Fergus Falls to disseminate information about COVID relief . The organization , which contracts with the city of Fergus Falls to provide economic development services , also gets the word out using its website and social media .
“ The first thing we did after a pandemic was officially declared was begin working with the Director of Supply Chain Management at Lake Region Healthcare to help them secure the supplies they needed . We partnered with local manufacturers who normally didn ’ t make PPE products , like face shields , masks and gowns , to make them ,” said Annie Deckert , CEO , Greater Fergus Falls , a private , nonprofit economic development corporation that since 2018 has been providing no-cost assistance to businesses in Fergus Falls and the surrounding area to help them grow .
Shoretex Products , which usually makes canvas boat covers , and Excel Plastics , which usually makes retail displays , shifted to making personal protective equipment ( PPE ). “ That was crucial ! They likely would not have been considered essential businesses , and this partnership allowed them to remain open , avoiding the potential of employee layoffs . This was a huge win ,” said Deckert .
Greater Fergus Falls also came to the rescue of businesses forced to close due to the pandemic through Project 2-Fold . In partnership with the Fergus Falls Downtown Riverfront Council , $ 4,000 was donated to the project , and local donors who gave $ 17,000 in just 24 hours . The organization was then able to purchase gift packages for families in need that included a haircut , movie tickets and bowling passes .
14 Northeast Metro Business