Representatives from City of Hendersonville, Henderson County, Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, and business support organizations met today with Isabel Guzman, administrator of the Small Business Administration. Local representatives advocated for the financial needs for our small businesses in Henderson County and learned more about the programs the SBA is currently providing. Key items to note for businesses in Henderson County:

1. You may have heard that the Small Business Administration is experiencing a lag in funding. This is correct, however Administrator Guzman informed that there is full confidence it will be funded when congress goes into session later this month. There has never been a period where the Small Business Administration did not receive the funding they need. SBA Representatives are processing loans up until disbursement, which will be disbursed when funds are released, and loan processing typically takes at least 30 days.
2. SUBMIT YOUR LOAN APPLICATION! We have heard loud and clear from businesses that they are hesitant to take on debt. The Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) are 0% interest for 12 months, and 4% interest after, and up to $50,000 can be borrowed unsecured by collateral. It's recommended you apply and will have those funds accessible should you need it for cash flow necessities in the near future and pay back after 12 months or at a 4% interest after 12 months, which is significantly lower than market rate.
3. Grant funds are LIMITED and not through the SBA. Currently, the only grant funds for businesses are through local and regional initiatives. Henderson County has just launched the LoveHendo Fund (http://lovehendo.com/) - Applications due November 8 and the Western North Carolina Small Business Initiative was just announced (https://appalachiancommunitycapitalcdfi.org/wnscb-grant/) with applications due November 27. More may be opening up over the next several weeks. Because the funding for grants is limited, it is recommended to apply for these below-market rate loans if you are unable to receive a grant. Please apply for these funds. Even if you do not receive funding, your information will be tremendously helpful for advocating for more business resources.
4. DO apply for funds even if you did not experience physical losses of property or inventory. We know many of you see yourself as lucky or grateful to not have experienced some of the losses of others, however your application does not prevent another business from getting their needs met. 
5. Help is available! The Henderson County Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) includes representatives from the SBA to assist with loan applications. The DRC is in the Blue Ridge Commons complex at 2111 Asheville Highway, Hendersonville NC 28791 and is open from 8am to 7pm daily. FREE business advisory services are also available at the Small Business Center at Blue Ridge Community College (https://www.blueridge.edu/programs-courses/business/small-business-center/) SCORE (https://www.score.org/westernnc) and the SBTDC (https://sbtdc.org/) in addition to many other resources in the region.

If you would like to support Henderson County businesses, there are many ways you can do that! First and foremost, spend your dollars locally with your favorite businesses. Buy a gift card and tip well! You can also support business recovery in Henderson County by donating to the LoveHendo recovery fund at lovehendo.com

LoveHendo Business Recovery Grant

• First round of applications due November 8. See more and apply at lovehendo.com.

WNC Strong: Rebuilding Together Grant Fund - Coming soon!

• Organizations across the WNC region are coming together to provide grant funding for businesses impacted physically and financially by the storm. Learn more on the website and join the interest list to get updates as soon as grants become available.

Grants & loans

• US Chamber Foundation Grants

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Disaster Assistance Fund

• U.S. Small Business Administration’s Disaster Relief Program Loans

• Door Dash & Hello Alice – Restaurant Disaster Relief Fund

• NC Disaster Relief Resources for Artists & Arts Organizations

• IRS Tax Relief

• FEMA Assistance

 Grants for Farmers

• ASAP is providing emergency relief grants of $500 for Appalachian Grown Certified farms.

• WNC Communities is providing Immediate Disaster Needs Grants for farm businesses.

 Grants for Artists and Craftspeople

• Arts AVL is offering $500 Emergency Relief Grants for artists working in craft, literary, media, performing, visual, and interdisciplinary arts.

• The Center for Craft is offering $500 Emergency Relief Grants for craft artists via the Craft Futures Fund.

• CERF+ offers Emergency Relief Grants of $3000 for artists working in craft disciplines.

• The Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Foundation offers emergency grants for mid-career painters, printmakers, and sculptors with at least 10 years of exhibition history.

• The NC Arts Foundation will be offering grants for artists soon - sign up for updates when the application becomes available.

Grants for Performing Artists and Venues

• The National Independent Venue Association is offering relief grants for arts venues and promoters.

• The Entertainment Community Fund offers emergency grants for performing artists of all types.

• MusiCares offers emergency grants for professional musicians.

 Grants for Nonprofits:

• The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina is offering $25,000 grants to 501(c)3 organizations responding to the impacts of Helene.

Dogwood Health Trust Resource Page: https://dogwoodhealthtrust.org/hurricane-helene/

FEMA

FEMA -The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) aids individuals, communities, and local governments affected by disasters, helping them recover and rebuild.

 FEMA Individual and Household Program: Individuals and Households Program | FEMA.gov  Apply online, over the phone 800-621-3362, or in person with officials.

  Individuals and Households Program (IHP) provides financial and direct services to eligible individuals and households affected by a disaster. IHP assistance is not a substitute for insurance and cannot compensate for all losses caused by a disaster. The assistance is intended to meet your basic needs and supplement disaster recovery efforts.

 Can cover temporary housing, repair or replacement of owner-occupied homes, a temporary housing unit, hazard mitigation assistance, or other disaster caused expenses.

Small Business Administration

Provides low-interest loans to businesses or homeowners/individuals for disaster recovery efforts. Apply now. You do not have to know when you are going to reopen yet and you do not have to accept it or disperse it immediately, but they are suggesting for business owners and anyone looking for this type of loan to apply ASAP.

  Link online: Disaster assistance | U.S. Small Business Administration (sba.gov)

 Phone Number: 800-659-2955 from 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET Monday through Friday. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

 Email: disastercustomerservice@ sba.gov

We wanted to remind you about a new initiative we are trying this holiday season, encouraging people who can't make it to Hendersonville to still support us by buying holiday gifts online from Hendersonville businesses, either actual physical goods, gift cards, or by making a donation to a local organization or business in someone's name as their gift.

The Gifts From Hendersonville page is already live, and we plan to put some weight behind promoting it beginning November 4th, next Monday. To be included on this list, all you must do is fill out a very simple form.

The criteria to be included on the Gifts From Hendersonville page is as follows:

• Must be a business located in Henderson County or an organization that helps Henderson County businesses/residents.
• Must have an online store that sells goods, services or gift cards. Or have a way for people to make an online donation, either via your website or a donation site (i.e. GoFundMe)
• If someone makes a donation as a holiday gift, you must provide them either an email or a certificate stating that a donation was made on their behalf to help “Your Business Name” with Hurricane Helene recovery efforts, or specifically what the funds will be going towards to help with recovery efforts. 

If you have any questions, please let me know. We know that this won't make up for all the losses you have faced in the wake of Hurricane Helene, but we hope it will at least soften the blow a little bit.

Sign up to include your business Here!

FEMA

FEMA -The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) aids individuals, communities, and local governments affected by disasters, helping them recover and rebuild.

 FEMA Individual and Household Program: Individuals and Households Program | FEMA.gov  Apply online, over the phone 800-621-3362, or in person with officials.

  Individuals and Households Program (IHP) provides financial and direct services to eligible individuals and households affected by a disaster. IHP assistance is not a substitute for insurance and cannot compensate for all losses caused by a disaster. The assistance is intended to meet your basic needs and supplement disaster recovery efforts.

 Can cover temporary housing, repair or replacement of owner-occupied homes, a temporary housing unit, hazard mitigation assistance, or other disaster caused expenses.

Small Business Administration

Provides low-interest loans to businesses or homeowners/individuals for disaster recovery efforts. Apply now. You do not have to know when you are going to reopen yet and you do not have to accept it or disperse it immediately, but they are suggesting for business owners and anyone looking for this type of loan to apply ASAP.

  Link online: Disaster assistance | U.S. Small Business Administration (sba.gov)

 Phone Number: 800-659-2955 from 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET Monday through Friday. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

 Email: disastercustomerservice@ sba.gov

Disaster Unemployment Assistance

DUA is a federal program that provides temporary payments for people who, as a direct result of a disaster: No longer have the job that provided their primary source of income, are unable to reach their place of employment, cannot work because of an injury caused by the storm or were unable to begin employment or self-employment due to the storm. Have become the major supplier of household income due to a storm- related death of the previous major supplier of household income.

 The fastest way to file a claim is to file online at des.nc.gov. If you need help, you may file over the phone by calling the DUA Hotline at 919-629-3857.

Disaster Assistance Resources and Support Information

• Disaster Unemployment Assistance
• North Carolina Military Business Center-Helene Support
• WNC Business-Small Business Recovery Resources
• Arts NC, with support from Arts AVL 
• NC Arts Disaster Relief Fund
• Carolina Small Business Development Fund Assistance
• Gov-Road Updates
• NC Disaster Relief Fund
• Pisgah Health Foundation
• North Carolina Department of Public Safety
• Duke Energy Outage Tracker
• NC Rural Center
• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
• Water Safety
• SBTDC Recovery Resources

Henderson County Resources

• Henderson County Cooperative Extension Office
• Community Foundation of Henderson County
• City of Hendersonville-Updates
• City of Hendersonville-Support
• Henderson County-Support
• Advent Health-Resources
• Well Water Testing

FEMA RESOURCES FOR INDIVIDUALS:

FEMA has declared Individual Assistance (IA) for Hurricane Helene. What does this mean for you? It means that you can apply for disaster assistance from FEMA to help offset your disaster-related expenses. You can apply online at https://www.disasterassistance.gov/ or by telephone at (800) 621-3362. Otherwise, you can download the FEMA weather app from Google PlayStore or the Apple Store and you can apply for assistance on the app and upload receipts. Whichever method you choose, the form has a few questions that are tricky. To avoid delay, please follow the following tips:

1.   One of the questions that FEMA will ask when you register is “Do You Have Emergency Needs”? This means during your evacuation or since staying at home during the disaster, do you need help with Gas, Medication, Food (meals, water, had no power and everything spoils), Shelter (you are staying with friends, family or in a hotel); Clothing; or Durable Medical Equipment (oxygen, walkers, cane, glasses, all major equipment, etc). If this is true, say “YES” to this question. That will result in your receiving Displacement / Critical Needs Assistance, which is $750.

2.   When asked if your home is/was accessible, answer "NO" if there was debris, tree branches, continued flooding, loss of power, damage or destruction that prevented you from staying there after Helene. This question is asking whether you can stay at your home or apartment and will trigger the ability for you to receive assistance to pay for hotels or provide funding to use while you stay with family or friends.

3.   When asked if utilities are out, say "YES" even if your utilities were out for a few days. This triggers assistance $ to stay somewhere other than your home or to buy fuel to power a generator.

4.    When asked “Are you willing to relocate” say "YES" if you cannot live in your home due to damage, loss of power, etc. This question means you are willing to stay in a hotel or apartment temporarily, and triggers that funding for you. It is not asking if you are willing to move away from your home permanently.

5.   If you bought or buy a generator, FEMA will reimburse you up to $629, but you must submit the receipt. If you bought a chainsaw, FEMA will reimburse you up to $219. Again, you need to provide the receipt. Save your receipts.

Employee relief/unemployment information:

• North Carolina Division of Employment Security’s Disaster Unemployment Pay
• NCRLA Assistance (including NC Hospitality Worker Relief Fund)
• Southern Smoke Foundation – offering emergency assistance to workers in the food and beverage industry in North Carolina

SHOP WNC Website –this is a website started by a few partner downtown organizations who want to support Western North Carolina Small Businesses. They are creating a listing for small businesses in affected areas, and linking to any online stores. Please take a minute to fill this out.  - site will go live next week https://www.shopwnc.com/submit-listing  

10/11/2024 Dowtown Businnss Updates:

Businesses, partners and Friends,  please see some additional updates from Downtown and the City. I have also included the updates from 10/7/24 below and will log on our downtown page here: https://www.hendersonvillenc.gov/businessupdates

SHOP WNC Website –this is a website started by a few partner downtown organizations who want to support Western North Carolina Small Businesses. They are creating a listing for small businesses in affected areas, and linking to any online stores. Please take a minute to fill this out.  - site will go live next week https://www.shopwnc.com/submit-listing  

PARKING -  Parking Update: No Paid Parking for October!

In response to Hurricane Helene, the City of Hendersonville will not enforce paid parking in downtown for the rest of October.  However, safety-related violations will still be enforced, and citations will be issued for all the normal infractions. You'll get a ticket for things like:

• Double parking
• Blocking fire hydrants
• Parking in the opposite direction of traffic flow
• Parking in crosswalks, loading zones, or fire lanes
• Handicapped parking infractions

Also – don't forget about these special event parking reminders:

Thursday, October 17 – Rhythm & Brews

• Caswell to Barnwell – No parking after 9am for event setup
• Barnwell to Allen – No parking after 1pm for event setup

 Thursday, October 31 - Treat Street Carnival

• Allen to 6th Avenue - No parking on Main Street after 12 (noon) for event setup
• Permit holders should look at their iparq account for an email by end of day with additional information on permit parking.

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FREE EMERGENCY WIFI - RiverWave Broadband is providing Downtown Hendersonville, NC with free emergency wi-fi until cell service and internet signal improves in the area

When getting online, just look for 'COH Emergency Wifi'. You will be directed to a splash page, and once you agree to the terms of service you're good to hop online! Just a side note - the signal is strongest between 4th and 5th avenue, and it sleeps between 10 PM and 8 AM.

Jamie Carpenter, Downtown Manager -  jcarpenter@hvlnc.gov and 828-551-1748

10/7/2024 Downtown Business Update:

Businesses, partners and Friends,  First, I hope you and your families and loved ones are well. I know this is a challenging time for everyone and we wanted to get this information out to you in several ways so you know what we are working on in the City and Downtown. The following packet of information is for you, your employees and anyone who may need it.  I have also seen some individual gofundme and calls for help for individuals. If there are any of your employees who have lost their homes or loved ones, I would appreciate if you could send me a link or information so I can pull it together in one location. Please email me or call or text if there is anything you need and I will do the best I can to find it.

Jamie Carpenter, Downtown Manager -  jcarpenter@hvlnc.gov and 828-551-1748

SUMMARY

1. Disaster Recovery Assistance. There is a lot and I have attached several documents.
   1. Individual: FEMA and Disaster Unemployment Insurance
   2. Business: Small Business Administration and Mountain BizWorks
   3. Pisgah Legal Services has provided support for FEMA applications. Hendersonville office location is 440 South Church Street. More info can be found at pisgahlegal.org/fema.
2. BUSINESS OFFICE RESOURCE: 10am-5pm Tuesday – Friday. WIFI & OFFICE SPACE

Businesses who need a desk to access with wifi to complete forms (without individual assistance) can come to the Hive on Five 125 5^th Avenue W – Above the public restrooms to access internet, printer, and have a place to work. Bring your own computer. If you need earlier access please contact Jamie Carpenter at info@downtownhendersonville.org or call/text 828-551-1748 and we can work to arrange earlier or later access.

3. EVENTS:
   1. Rhythm & Brews 10/17 WILL HAPPEN. We are working out the details now. The revenues raised will go towards relief efforts but we are still working out details.
   2. Treat Street is being worked out. This is a bigger logistical event that we are still getting our heads together on.
   3. Bear Auction continues. WE ARE EXTENDING THE AUCTION TO NOV 16.
   4. Farmers Market is in the works of a scaled down pop up market. We will provide updates.

4. PARKING – Enforcement is currently suspended. Only tickets are for blocking hydrants, double parking, parking in handicap space, etc. Garage is open with gates up.
5. TEXT ALERT UPDATE – We need to update our downtown list for text alerts so we can make sure you and your employees are all getting updates when there are downtown-specific issues or concerns. This came to light as a serious need last week. This is for anyone but will include updates on street closures AND if there are ever emergency updates that need to get to downtown people quickly. UPDATE INFORMATION HERE