{"id":223726,"date":"2023-06-10T09:55:31","date_gmt":"2023-06-10T09:55:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/?post_type=news&#038;p=223726"},"modified":"2023-06-10T09:55:32","modified_gmt":"2023-06-10T09:55:32","slug":"reading-city-council-considers-2-million-small-business-grant-program","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/business\/reading-city-council-considers-2-million-small-business-grant-program","title":{"rendered":"Reading City Council Considers $2 Million Small Business Grant Program"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img width=\"1400\" height=\"630\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Reading-City-Council-Considers-2-Million-Small-Business-Grant-Program-1.jpg\" alt=\"Reading City Council Considers $2 Million Small Business Grant Program (1)\" class=\"wp-image-223733\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>A proposal to allocate $2 million in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to support <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/guides\/what-is-an-llc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">small businesses<\/a> is being considered by Reading City\u00a0 Council. The proposal would provide grants to businesses that have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.readingeagle.com\/2023\/06\/09\/reading-city-council-closer-to-finalizing-plan-for-arpa-grants-to-small-businesses\/amp\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">was discussed<\/a> at a recent meeting of Reading City\u00a0 Council&#8217;s strategic planning committee. The committee reviewed recommendations from the Reading City &#8216;s legal team, Mayor Eddie Moran, and his administration regarding grant eligibility and other requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s evident that there is a pressing need for this type of assistance,&#8221; said Mayor Moran. &#8220;The discussion surrounding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/reviews\/best-llc-service\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">small-business<\/a> grant opportunities has been a significant focus for many individuals. Finally, after months of deliberation, we are seeing progress in the dialogue.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under the proposal, businesses would be eligible for grants if they meet the following criteria:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"col-list\"><li>They are located within the Reading City limits.<\/li><li>They have not received pandemic-related assistance from other sources.<\/li><li>They can demonstrate a drop in revenue attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/li><li>They had 25 or fewer employees prior to 2020.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The amount of the grant would be based on the size of the business and the severity of its financial impact. The maximum grant <a href=\"https:\/\/autos.yahoo.com\/reading-city-council-closer-finalizing-162300702.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">would be $50,000 for businesses located on Penn Street, and $25,000 for businesses located off Penn Street.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposal also includes a requirement that grant recipients use the funds for specific purposes, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"col-list\"><li>Making capital improvements to the business.<\/li><li>Hiring new employees.<\/li><li>Expanding the business&#8217;s operations.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;We want to make sure that these funds are used to help businesses grow and thrive,&#8221; said Mayor Moran. &#8220;We don&#8217;t want to simply replace lost revenue. We want to help businesses invest in their future.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposal is still in the early stages, and no final decisions have been made. Reading City council will continue to discuss the proposal in the coming weeks. If the proposal is approved, the application process is expected to begin in early 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>How The Grants Would Be Used<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposal does not specify how the grants would be used. However, Mayor Moran has said that he wants to see the funds used to help businesses grow and thrive. He has also said that he does not want to simply replace lost revenue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some possible uses for the grants include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"col-list\"><li>Making capital improvements to the business, such as upgrading equipment or renovating the space.<\/li><li>Hiring new employees.<\/li><li>Expanding the business&#8217;s operations.<\/li><li>Developing new products or services.&nbsp;<\/li><li>Marketing and advertising the business.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2>What Businesses Can Do To Prepare<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Businesses that are interested in applying for a grant should start preparing now. They should gather documentation that shows how the grant would be used and how it would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/small-business\/benefits-of-an-llc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">benefit<\/a> the business. They should also make sure that they meet all of the eligibility requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>The Next Steps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposal is still in the early stages, and no final decisions have been made. Reading City Council will continue to discuss the proposal in the coming weeks. If the proposal is approved, the application process is expected to begin in early 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Businesses that are interested in applying for a grant should stay tuned for more information. They can also contact the Reading City&#8217;s economic development office for more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":223728,"template":"","categories":[2],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v17.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Reading City Council considers $2 million small business grant program to help businesses recover from COVID-19 pandemic\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/business\/reading-city-council-considers-2-million-small-business-grant-program\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reading City Council Considers $2 Million Small Business Grant Program\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Reading City Council considers $2 million small business grant program to help businesses recover from COVID-19 pandemic\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/business\/reading-city-council-considers-2-million-small-business-grant-program\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Biz Report\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-06-10T09:55:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Reading-City-Council-Considers-2-Million-Small-Business-Grant-Program.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"420\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.bizreport.com\/\",\"name\":\"Biz Report\",\"description\":\"News &amp; 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