Deputy County Manager Steve Lynne
KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
With the pandemic, quarantines and changing public health orders, it isn’t any surprise that businesses need help.
Los Alamos County was able to assist local businesses as well as individuals through grants totaling more than $1.7 million.
“We’re just grateful that funds were provided and that we have a mechanism to do this,” County Deputy Manager Steve Lynne said. “And we expect it will definitely help the small businesses that have been impacted.”
In September, the state awarded the County $656,250 under a COVID-19 Emergency Grant to Local Governments and $1,065,000 under the Small Business Grants in Partnership with Local Governments, according to a County press release.
It was further reported in the press release that grants given to individuals would be for childcare assistance, temporary emergency rental, utilities and mortgage assistance. Local businesses could apply for grants for continuity of operations and business redesign.
Letters informing businesses that they will or will not be awarded a grant are being distributed this week. Individuals who received grants were notified last week, Lynne said.
During an interview Tuesday with the Los Alamos Daily Post, Lynne said for the business grants, 67 applications were received. Of those 17 are still being processed, one was withdrawn, 33 applicants were awarded grants and 16 were deemed ineligible.
Lynne said caps were set at four different tiers depending on business size ranging from $22,500 to $75,000. He added the entire $1,065,000 will be distributed through the grants. Recipients will receive an initial award and the remining amount will be given in a secondary award. As for the grants to individuals, Lynne said 57 applications were received for housing assistance and seven applications were submitted for childcare assistance. Thirty-six applications were approved for housing assistance and one application was approved for childcare.
The entire endeavor, from evaluating the applications to sending out the letters announcing the grant recipients, was a three-part process, he said.
It included the initial intake, scoring the applications and conducting an audit.
During the initial intake phase, Lynne said a committee was tasked with evaluating the applications to determine whether applicants fell under the basic eligibility criteria. He explained the state and federal government defined what was basic eligibility.
In the scoring phase, the committee screened applications for completeness and developed scoring criteria. The criteria for businesses included employment, revenue loss and other financial awards, he said.
County staff then did an internal screening to make sure the applications were complete. Staff also did the final phase, the audit, to ensure there was adequate documentation to support the request and award. Lynne praised staff and the grant application process.
“Considering that this was a brand-new program that didn’t exist before, I think it got organized pretty well,” he said. “Staff was very diligent. Our big focus was trying to get through it as quickly as possible … but being thorough because we know businesses need help … that was our goal. I think it has been successful and I think it has been a reasonable and thoughtful process that we have been through.”
Los Alamos Chamber of Commerce Director Ryn Herrmann, who also served on the committee, said it was a great opportunity for businesses.
“It was an amazing opportunity for the businesses to access these funds that they don’t have to pay back,” she said. “We tried really hard to get the word out to everyone. This money, this CARES Act funding, will really be helpful to the businesses that received it. And I hope they will be able to make it through with this help.”
Village Arts Owner Ken Nebel, who was one of the grant recipients, said the grant is a “lifesaver.”
“For myself it is going to be a lifesaver in a lot of ways … this is going to mean that we will be able to keep going and keep paying our staff … this is going to be extremely helpful to us,” Nebel said. “It came at a very good time as the PPE is over …”
While the grant recipients have been decided, Herrmann encourages any business that needs help to reach out.
“I appreciated the County Council’s guidance to quickly get this federal funding into the hands of the local businesses that are impacted by COVID-19,” she said. “The County staff worked hard to quickly and fairly distribute the funds. The Chamber continues to seek out other funding, opportunities and information to help our local businesses. If we can help in any way, please let us know.”
One way to support local businesses is participating in Small Business Saturday, Nov. 28. Businesses interested in participating in Small Business Saturday should contact Herrmann at ryn@losalamos.org. It is up to the federal and state government to decide if more assistance through grants will be approved but Lynne said the County would happily oblige if more funding becomes available.
“I think the state would be very willing and certainly so would we,” he said. “We would be happy to have that opportunity and provide even more help.”
The County’s assistance to local businesses is very much appreciated, Nebel said.
“I am so impressed with the turnaround with the County … I can’t imagine any other grant being able to do that … we had support to help make sure we had everything that we needed,” he said. “I can’t tell you how pleased we are to receive it. I’m seeing the County shine in a way I haven’t seen it shine before.”