Foster City Offers COVID-19 Relief Funds to Small Businesses and Seniors
For Immediate Release: April 8, 2020
Contact: Dante Hall, Assistant City Manager, (650) 286-3214, dhall@fostercity.org
The City of Foster City announced today a COVID-19 Relief Program to support small retail and commercial businesses, restaurants, and senior programs that have been severely impacted by the pandemic and emergency orders to shelter in place. "While we realize that these programs are just a bridge to help our small businesses and residents weather the storm over the next couple of weeks, it's a step in the right direction", said Foster City Mayor Catherine Mahanpour.
“These are unprecedented times which require leadership at all levels of city government,” said Foster City Vice-Mayor Sanjay Gehani. “The COVID-19 Relief Program is a solid, multi-faceted stop-gap solution until federal and state funds are made available. We are also investigating medium-term and longer-term solutions to help our community fully recover from this crisis,” said Gehani.
The most extensive element of relief program is the Small Business Resiliency Grant Program to support business operations and help avert layoffs during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Grants are open to local commercial and retail businesses in Foster City with 25 or fewer employees and restaurants of any employee-size that are independently owned.
Funding allows for up to 50 grants of $10,000 each and will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis to those meeting eligibility requirements. Application details and materials are available at www.fostercity.org/citymanager/page/small-business-resiliency-grant-program. Submit application materials and questions by email to dhall@fostercity.org.
To further support local restaurants and their customers, the City will be offering vouchers through its popular Support Local Stamp Me app, allowing customers to get take-out during the shelter in place order. These vouchers will be available soon to any new or current customer who has downloaded the Stamp Me App. Download the Stamp Me App at the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
The City will also allocate $5,000 towards the Foster City Village to help provide protective supply purchases, grocery bag deliveries, food distributions, and gasoline cards for volunteer drivers. These measures will help with additional expenses incurred by the Village as they continue operations while protecting our seniors during the pandemic.
“I'm proud of the entire team of staff and City Council in making these programs available for some of the most vulnerable segments of our community. Our message is clear, ‘We Are Here For You’ and will assist you in any possible way we can,” said Foster City Councilmember Sam Hindi.
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