City Creates New Grant Program for Restaurants and Gyms Impacted by Covid-19 Restrictions

Online applications will be opened at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, January 28^th, and will continue to be accepted until 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, February 9^th.

All filed applications will be reviewed after February 9^th, based upon eligibility, not first-come, first-serve.

Eligible businesses are limited to restaurants with indoor dining, gyms, and businesses whose primary activity is indoor exercise.  Grant awards are estimated to be up to $15,000 per business.

To be eligible, a business must also:

• Be an independently-owned and operated for-profit business or franchise.
• Occupy a storefront, retail, or commercial space physically located in Philadelphia.
• Be operating at the time of application or have operated in the last 90 days and intends to be operating again within 90 days.
• Earn less than $2 million in annual revenue, pre-COVID-19.
• Report at least a 25% decline in revenue from the 4^th quarter of 2020 compared to the 4^th quarter of 2019.
• Be in compliance with all local, state, and federal taxes, or be on an approved payment plan or can prove they are in the process of getting on a payment plan.
• Have required federal, state, and local licenses and permits to legally operate.

Although not a requirement to apply, due to limited funding, this governmental program will prioritize businesses that meet any of the following criteria:

• Are located in high poverty areas or on neighborhood commercial corridors.
• Are minority-, woman-, or disabled-owned.
• Provide jobs to Philadelphians.
• Suffered damage in 2020 due to civil unrest.

The online application can be completed on a mobile device or computer and is estimated to take approximately 15 minutes to complete.

Business owners should gather the following information before applying:

• Basic information, such as:
• • Type and structure of business.
  • Employer Identification Number (EIN), social security number of business owner, or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) of business owner.
  • Business Income and Receipts Tax (BIRT) account number from the City of Philadelphia.
  • Annual and quarterly revenue from 2019 and 2020.
  • Number of full-time and part-time employees, pre-COVID and currently.

• Photo(s) of your business, exterior and interior.
• If applicable, details about any damage incurred during civil unrest in 2020, including photos of all damage reported and/or a report from the Philadelphia Police Department.
• A completed and signed W-9 in PDF format.

If you have any question about this newly instituted governmental program, please feel free to contact us at info@nochumson.com and an attorney at Nochumson P.C. will immediately reach out to you to schedule a free consultation.