Grants available to organizations impacted by COVID-19
Nonprofits in two Central Coast counties will be able to get COVID-19 assistance.
In Ventura County, nonprofits can apply for a small business mini grant through the county. The grants are $5,000, and county CEO Mike Powers said the grants are designed to help business and organization leaders, especially those in more disadvantaged areas or those who are part of harder-hit sectors of the economy, like food and tourism.
Powers also said the program will prioritize businesses and organizations run by women and minorities.
Those businesses will be able to use the funds for several uses, including payroll support, rent and lease payments, costs for personal protective equipment, purchases related to business operations and extraordinary business expenses related to reopening.
There will be two $5 million rounds of funding, and each round will help 1,000 businesses. There’s only one application period for the rounds, and the application period goes from June 24 to July 8.
“We know it’s not going to be enough, but we know businesses are hurting and we want to get some relief to them,” Powers said.
Business won’t need to reopen to get the grant, but they will need to register at vcreopens.com.
At the northern end of the region, United Way of San Luis Obispo is offering grants of up to $2,000 to local nonprofits.
The grants will support funding for food and food supplies, rental assistance, utility payments and other assistance not covered by the other categories, as determined by the Community Impact Committee.
The mini grants will be funded through the Community Impact Fund. People can apply by going to the United Way of SLO website at unitedwayslo.org. Grants will be awarded on a rolling basis, depending on the availability of funds, and the funding decision may take up to two weeks.
