If Sabine Juskowiak thought Hurricane Matthew was bad, nothing could have prepared her for the economic shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hurricane disrupted Macaron’s business, requiring repairs to infrastructure and water damage, and the French pastry shop in Cathedral Place was forced to close for weeks.
But unlike a hurricane, where things are gradually returning to normal, the public health crisis has wreaked even greater havoc on small business owners like Juskowiak who don’t know when the end is in sight.
“If this situation lasts too long,” Juskowiak said, “yes, we will be in real danger.”
Even though Governor DeSantis called on Wednesday for a partial reopening to Florida businesses, Le Macaron lost significant income and laid off 10 employees. Its storefront in downtown Saint-Augustin has not reopened.
The loans offered by the US Small Business Administration give Juskowiak some hope, but not enough to rely on.
Juskowiak applied on April 3 – the first day he became available – for the federal paycheck protection program and only received receipt of his application this week. But there was still no confirmation of the funds she could claim.
Unfortunately, Juskowiak’s experience is not uncommon.
“Many companies we spoke to expressed a lot of frustration with the application process,” said Melissa Glasgow, Director of Economic Development for St. Johns County.
While there are several loan products available through the SBA, PPP seems to be the one that bothers traders the most.
The program is designed to help companies retain their employees by keeping them on the payroll.
If you keep 75% of your workforce, the entire loan is absorbed by the government.
But, as with unemployment claims, state agencies have not been prepared to cope with the volume of requests they have received.
More than 93% of small businesses have applied for the PPP nationwide, according to a Harvard Business School survey. The initiative ran out of funding just two weeks after its launch.
Bill Arenburg, who opened the Crescent Beach Bar & Grill in November 2019, said he had received information about several loan applications he had submitted saying, “We don’t encourage anyone to think they’re getting anything.”
Another federal business stimulus plan was released on Monday, but local business experts say they’re not sure more money will be allocated.
“I see an immediate need for some level of financial assistance to cover rent, utilities and payroll due to the economic impacts suffered as a result of COVID-19,” Glasgow said.
But Glasgow said those who have already applied cannot be sure those funds will arrive.
“The point is, if we can’t achieve at least 50% occupancy and don’t get a loan within a month, we may not be able to reopen,” Arenburg said.
The future of Drake’s Bistro, the second Tammy Drake location has opened of its popular Drake’s Deli on San Marco Avenue, is also in danger.
Drake said she started the loan process, but was told she needed to establish a line of credit with the bank first before taking the application.
“And they couldn’t tell me how much, if any, I could get,” Drake said.
The Glasgow office has set up a county business support hotline, providing information and advice to those who are struggling at the moment.
Glasgow said this included explaining other loan options available through the SBA, including an emergency economic disaster loan advance. The program offers up to $ 10,000 in economic assistance to businesses, but must be repaid at an interest rate of 3.75%.
Another is the Express Bridge Loan Pilot Program, which provides loans of $ 25,000 or more to businesses, typically within three to five days of receiving an application.
Local authorities are involved in this review process, and these loans are typically used in response to a hurricane or other weather events.
But even those funds have been depleted by this point, according to Glasgow.
As of April 23, the county’s business support hotline had received inquiries from local businesses, 90% of which said they had requested some type of financial assistance.
Of those callers, 45% had applied for the P3, 58% had applied for the Emergency Economic Disaster Loan, 35% had applied for the SBA Bridge program, and 39% had applied for unemployment.
Local authorities are also mobilizing to try to provide sources of relief funding.
At a special meeting Monday, the county’s Industrial Development Authority voted unanimously to provide a grant of up to $ 250,000 to St. Johns County to support a small-scale aid fundraising program. local businesses that will contribute to the economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.
This amount represents 92% of IDA’s current available assets.
In addition, county commissioners are exploring options for using CDBG funds to help affected local businesses. Final plans are expected to be proposed at a meeting on Tuesday.
How are local businesses doing?
Of 144 St. Johns County businesses responding to the Florida Disaster Damage Assessment Survey as of April 23:
• 45 are closed for business (31%)
• 71 had to lay off employees (49%)
• 103 employees in total were permanently dismissed
• 644 employees in total were temporarily laid off
• $ 13,042,517 estimated cost of damage (all companies combined)
Source: FloridaDisaster.Biz website operated by the Florida Division of Emergency Management in partnership with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity