AKRON, Ohio — According to a news release from the city of Akron, 100 businesses in Akron have been chosen to receive a one-time $10,000 grant to provide relief after the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Akron's small businesses have endured so much over the past several years to keep their doors open and to continue serving this community," said Mayor Dan Horrigan.
The grants were made possible by and are coming from the city's allocation of the American Rescue Plan Act.
The pandemic hit small businesses especially hard.
“These grants are our way of mitigating the fallout they experienced from COVID-19 and putting these once-in-a-generation funds back into the community. We’re excited to support our small businesses in this way, ” said the Director of Strategic Development for the city of Akron, Catey Breck.
According to the release, 43 of the grant recipients are minority-owned businesses and 40 are businesses owned by women. The businesses are also from varying industries including healthcare, restaurants, bars and restaurants, construction companies and more.
Recipients had requirements they had to meet in order to receive the grant, including having between 2 and 50 employees on their payroll, being current on their taxes and they had to be in operation in the City of Akron on or before Jan. 1, 2020, just to name a few.
Here is a full list of requirements.
Payroll and benefits, rent or mortgage costs, utilities and software are among the allowable uses for the funding.
The recipients are undeniably grateful. Kara Hamad from Hamad's on Main, a restaurant in Akron, had this to say:
“Maintaining a small family business downtown after the pandemic sometimes feels like being a captain of a slowly sinking ship. Receiving the Small Business Relief Grant has finally given us a shore in sight. We are grateful to have been given this opportunity to help keep us downtown where we belong. We will be able to pay off debt accrued while trying to survive the past few years and will be able to move forward with a more hopeful future. Additionally, receiving the grant has allowed us to focus on our son’s heart surgery and Jon’s recovery without additional stress. It’s feels good to know our city is here for us.”
Here is a full list of grant reciepents:
- 2 Live Music
- Full Service Logistics LLC
- Scanlon & Elliott
- A & B Tent Rental Inc.
- Gear Star American Performance Transmissions Inc.
- Shifrin Newman Smith Inc.
- A and A Vending Inc.
- Good Life Body Piercing and Fine Jewelry
- Slaughter Tire Service Inc.
- Akron family business
- Great Lakes Premier Distribution
- South Akron Awning Co.
- Akron Honey Company LTD
- Green Light Auto Sales
- Sparks Investment Inc.
- Akron Legends Barbershop
- Hamad's on Main
- SpeedPro Akron North
- Akron-Canton International Forwarding
- In A Minute Ltd.
- Square Nightclub
- Allegiance Insurance Group LLC
- Inda Blatch-Geib
- Subway
- American Family Insurance
- Jilly's Music Room LLC
- Summit County Classics Inc
- American Medical Transport
- Kane Investments LLC
- Summit Tax & Insurance Services
- Angels on Earth Health Care Services
- Kids Academy 2
- Sweet Modern LLC
- Arlington Street Muffler LLC
- Kleen in Motion LLC
- Tear-Ez
- A to Z Auto and Truck Repair
- L & H Home Care
- T.R. Fields & Associates Inc.
- Backup Power Solutions Inc.
- Laplace Events LLC
- Technology Management Solutions Inc.
- Barley House
- Loving Hearts Helping Hands
- The Akron Plating Co. Inc.
- Barmacy
- M&L Equipment Company
- The Brat Boulevard Corporation
- Baxters LLC
- Marques
- The Culinary Chameleon
- Beyond Expectations Barber College
- Mason Construction and Concrete LLC
- The Growing Patch LLC
- Blue Leaf Apothecary LLC
- Mint Hair Collective LLC
- The Hatterie Inc.
- Caring Angels Healthcare LLC
- Mr. Dans Daycare LLC
- The Score Draft Room
- Clarktel/Tele-Communications Inc.
- Nando’s Auto Care LLC
- Transit Transportation Services LLC
- CNJ Renovations LLC
- NOMZ LLC
- Twisted Tomato
- Coast to Coast Caulking & Waterproofing LLC
- Orleans Avenue Entertainment Corporation
- Uncle Bacon's BBQ LLC
- Design Perspective LLC
- Paolucci Law LLC
- Vigeo Gardens
- Diamond Daleesa Accessories
- Polymet Recovery LLC
- Westside Masonry LLC
- Diamond Grille
- Pritt Entertainment Group LLC
- White Glove Cleaning Solutions LLC
- Dot Org Solutions LLC
- R&S Cleaning Solutions
- Wilkinson Funeral Home
- Duo Tax Services LLP
- Rasheed F. Nemer M.D.
- Words by Mom
- Eddies Famous Cheesesteaks
- Red Point Digital LLC
- Yoga Squared
- Eighty-Three Brewery
- Rosas Playhouse Inc.
- Your Virtual Solution
- El Papa’s Mexican Bistro
- Rot Sorn
- Zeber-Martell Studio Inc.
- Emidio & Sons
- Rubber City Clothing
- Farmer Boy Restaurant
- S3 Technologies LLC
- FG Solutions LLC
- S4 Mobile Laboratories LLC
- First Glance Imagining Inc.
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