With help from Washington, Davenport hopes to save small businesses hurt by the pandemic by awarding more than $500,000 in forgivable loans to 28 local businesses.
The money can be used to pay mortgages or rent, utilities, wages, and other operating expenses. The city’s Economic Development Manager, Susanne Knutsen, says the funding comes from the federal CARES Act.
“If the single person owner was low to moderate-income themselves, and they were the only employee, they could qualify that way,” Knutsen says, “Otherwise 51 percent of their employees needed to be part of a low to moderate-income household.”
The businesses receiving the help include restaurants, bars, salons, a hotel, a bowling alley, a yoga studio, and an auto repair shop. Knutsen says applications for the second round of loans will probably be available late next month or in early March.
(By Herb Trix, WVIK, Rock Island)