EVOLVE Business and Professional Magazine August 2020 | Page 19

municipal governments and other economic stakeholders
is helping local businesses with a wide variety of assistance
measures. While the most well-known financial aid for businesses
is the Paycheck Protection Program, local governments such as
Volusia County have stepped up to provide financial help.
“The County Council recently approved using CARES Act
dollars to provide Small and Home-Based Business Reopening
grants,” van Eckert said. The county has already disbursed more
than $5 million directly to local businesses.
The program offers Relaunch Volusia grants of $3,000 for
business with 25 employees or less and $5,000 for businesses with
between 26 and 50 employees, according to van Eckert.
The Home-Based Business grant program offers qualifying
Businesses looking for help can learn about the latest
assistance programs at VolusiaBusinessResources.com.
While much focus has rightly been on the human cost of the
pandemic, Page said the situation provides a real-world lesson on
the necessity of proper business planning.
“I have talked to many business owners and they have all
said they were surprised by the pandemic and its devastating
impact,” he said. “I think many lessons can be learned, including
the importance of having contingency plans for all types of
emergencies, including unexpected health events.”
“I think businesses should take the steps to ensure they have
sufficient capital and liquidity to sustain their operations for any
unexpected external threat they may face.”
businesses a one-time grant of $1,500, she said.
“The businesses must have the equivalent of 50 or fewer fulltime
employees and show a minimum of $6,000 in gross income
or receipts on their recent tax return,” van Eckert said. “The
businesses must certify that they have suffered at least $1,500 in
financial impacts due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Aaron London is a reporter and columnist who has
covered business and economics for 27 years. He has
worked for newspapers in Ohio and Florida and is
also an adjunct professor of journalism at Daytona
State College.