Province offering $10K in relief funding for businesses affected by lockdown

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By Nick Seebruch
Province offering $10K in relief funding for businesses affected by lockdown
Picture from Flickr by Michael Curi. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

CORNWALL, Ontario – The province of Ontario is offering $10,000 in grant funding through the Small Business Relief Grant to support businesses affected by the current COVID-19 lockdown.

In an announcement on Friday, Jan.7, the province announced that in addition to the grant funding, eligible businesses would also receive a relief on their electricity rate.

“Our government understands that public health measures needed to blunt the spread of the Omicron variant are impacting the lives and livelihoods of small businesses, workers and families across Ontario,” said Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance. “Since the first day of the pandemic, we have provided unprecedented levels of support to protect people, jobs and our economy. We will continue to deliver on that commitment.”

Eligible businesses include:

  • Restaurants and bars;
  • Facilities for indoor sports and recreational fitness activities (including fitness centres and gyms);
  • Performing arts and cinemas;
  • Museums, galleries, aquariums, zoos, science centres, landmarks, historic sites, botanical gardens and similar attractions;
  • Meeting or event spaces;
  • Tour and guide services;
  • Conference centres and convention centres;
  • Driving instruction for individuals; and
  • Before- and after- school programs.

Businesses that have previously qualified for the Ontario Small Business Support Grant will be pre-screened and will not need to re-apply. New businesses will be able to apply in the coming weeks.

“Local businesses have done a great job at following guidelines to keep employees and customers safe since the pandemic started,” said Jim McDonell, MPP for Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry. “These new supports will help to ensure they will be able to continue and resume their operations, and provide their high level of service for which we are very grateful.”

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