Small Business Relief Fund Round 1

Background

On March 18, 2020 Portland City Council approved the allocation of $1 million in general fund dollars for relief to small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The following day the Prosper Portland board authorized the creation of the Prosper Portland Small Business Relief Fund to provide grants from $2,000 to $10,000 using the general fund dollars, and/or zero-interest loans of up to $50,000 using $1 million in Enterprise Zone funds as a bridge of support for Portland small businesses until state and federal disaster resources became available. Prosper Portland received more than 11,000 grant submissions and more than 3,500 loan applications.

The Portland Small Business Relief Fund provides support to small businesses in sectors that have been directly impacted by the necessary COVID-19 public health requirements and prioritizes businesses owned by Black, Indigenous, Asian Pacific Islander and all People of Color and/or women. The development of the fund incorporated the input of existing equity-centered networks and advisory bodies, leaders from other cities, and financial partners. Partners from the Inclusive Business Resource Network, Neighborhood Prosperity Network, multicultural chambers, and community development financial institutions (CDFIs) provided input on eligibility requirements, urgent business needs, grant and loan terms, and organizational capacity.

In addition, a number of local banks working with Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) pledged another $380,000 to the grant fund, to be disbursed following the same criteria and eligibility requirements established for the Small Business Relief Fund.  Working with OCF, Umpqua Bank pledged an additional $600,000 for the loan fund, making the total of available resources through the SBRF $1.38 million for grants and $1.6 million for loans.

The SBRF grant program opened for applications on Monday, March 30 at 9:00 a.m. and closed Wednesday, April 1 at 11:59 p.m.  The SBRF loan program opened for applications on Wednesday, April 8 at 9:00 a.m. and closed at noon on Saturday, April 10.

Prosper Portland managed the application and selection or screening process for these emergency relief grants and loans, using specific criteria to prioritize support for the most vulnerable businesses.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) partners process grant and loan disbursements once applicants are selected and qualified to simplify and speed up the disbursement process.

The review and selection processes for both grants and loans from the Small Business Relief Fund were approved by Prosper Portland leadership, city elected officials and staff members, and members of the Council for Economic and Racial Equity (CERE).

Loan and grant applications both used a JotForm web-based application.

CLOSED: Small Business Relief Fund Grants Round 1

Grant applications totaled more than 11,000; of those 8,777 passed initial eligibility screenings. On Thursday, April 2, given the tremendous level of need in the small business community, Prosper Portland immediately began its review of the applications.

Each eligible applicant received an automated score based on financial and economic criteria prioritized by City Council – employee support, business stability, use of the dollars, impact of the dollars (further details in items 1-4 below).

  1. Businesses that are public facing and directly impacted by new COVID-19 public health requirements and/or have experienced 25% or more decline in revenue since Feb 1, 2020
  2. Businesses for which resources will help them stay in business
  3. Businesses that continue to pay employees and/or provide healthcare and other insurance during COVID-19
  4. Businesses owned by Black, Indigenous, Asian Pacific Islander and all People of Color and/or women

Prosper Portland’s internal review team applied equity lenses to the list of eligible grant applicants as follows:

  1. Prosper Portland staff created multiple lists, pulling the top scoring applicants overall, as well as the top scorers by demographics, gender, geographies such as East PDX, industries, and additional intersectional identifiers (Veteran, LGBTQIA+, People with Disabilities, and non-English speaking applicants).
  2. Applications were separated as businesses with employees and those without.
  3. Staff read through and considered each application on the lists on an individualized, holistic basis.
  4. For businesses without employees, staff also weighed whether business owners had an option for unemployment insurance. Staff also considered businesses without employees which had potentially larger capital costs by industry (restaurant, retail, consumer products, manufacturing, among others).
  5. Staff then reviewed qualitative application data such as statements on economic impact, past discrimination in the financial sector, explanations of how employees are being supported, and how businesses intend to use potential award funds.
  6. Following those reviews, staff identified exemplary applications and created two lists of finalists, one for businesses with employees and one for those without.
  7. Finalists were then screened and verified via state of Oregon business name registration numbers. Addresses were also re-verified to be within the Portland city boundary.
  8. This internal review created four funding scenarios, using the two lists of finalists, and outlined different award levels.
    • Larger – 170 grants total. 60 grants at $2,500, for businesses without employees.  50 grants at $5,000, for businesses with employees. 60 grants at $10,000, for businesses with employees.
    • Balanced – 210 grants total. 100 grants at $2,500, for businesses without employees. 70 grants at $5,000, for businesses with employees. 40 grants at $10,000, for businesses with employees.   
    • Smaller – 260 grants total. 160 grants at $2,500, for businesses without employees. 80 grants at $5,000, for businesses with employees.  20 grants at $10,000, for businesses with employees.
    • Micro – 400 grants total. 200 grants at $2,000, for businesses without employees. 200 grants at $3,000, for businesses with employees.
  1. On Saturday and Sunday, April 4-5, Prosper Portland’s internal review team and leadership met with an outside review panel, consisting of City Council policy directors, community members, and CERE representatives. The panel reviewed the various scenario offerings, including disaggregate demographic data, and had intense discussions over the two-day period. The panel ultimately identified the balanced scenario as its decision and made additional recommendations around which types of business should receive the higher grant awards.
  2. Prosper Portland’s internal review team selected 40 businesses to receive the higher grant amounts, prioritizing top scoring businesses that were doing the most to prioritize and support employees. The panel gave the green light to begin notifying grant recipients.
  3. On Tuesday, April 7, Prosper Portland staff alerted grant recipients of their awards and directed them to disbursement partners, to begin fund disbursements starting Friday, April 10.

Throughout the grant selection process, the review committee sought to find a balance between the number of businesses that could be supported and providing investments that would meaningfully support each business. The 210 grant recipients range from single-employee businesses providing services like childcare, preschool and coffeehouses to companies with two to 26+ employees taking extraordinary steps to feed, insure or support their workers. More than half of the recipients have been in business more than 10 years.

3 Diamond Construction, LLC
82nd Ave. Tobacco & Pipe Ltd.
82nd Thai Basil foodcart
Advanced Alternative Healthcare Clinic, Inc.
Alacrity Massage and Wellness
Alarm Tracks, Inc.
Alberta Street Market
Alcantar and Associates LLC
Ali transportation
Alshiref Design and Print LLC
Amalfi’s Restaurant
Anansi Beat
Andrea Thompson, LMT
Antilles Pearl Catering
Antojitos mexicanos
Aphrodite Hair Design
Asbestos Abatement Contracting LLC
Bamas Gourmet Sauces Inc
Batter On Deck
Beez Neez Gourmet Sausages
Begin Ride Care LLC
Bella Ink Permanent Makeup
Benchmark IT Services
Berry Ins And Fin Services Inc
Beulahland Ltd
Blaze Streaming Media, LLC.
Boise Buddies
Boss’N Up Beauty
Bratton Construction, LLC
Brian Evans
Broadway Alteration Station
ByZion
Cailey Elle Adornments
Camille V Style LLC
Cannon Lashes And Esthetics
Casa Colima Inc
Casa Del Sol
Chen’s Acupuncture Center,P.C.
Choi’s Kimchi Co.
Conscious Coils
Crescent Shine
CrossFit X-Factor
Cultural Blends LLC
Dan Hawk Photography, LLC
Dave Gage llc
Devotional Care Staffing LLC
Dietz & Caballero (DBA Impact Benefits & Retirement)
DJ Little Shell
DK’s Sports Bar
DLacie Jeanne LLC
E Howell Investigation, LLC
Elisa Mattice, LMT/ Outer Wisdom Herbals
Elite Acupuncture LLC
Eloisa’s Child care
Faby’s Hair Studio
Fat Cupcake
Figure8Sound
Foster Rivera Inc. dba Precision Landscape Services, Inc.
Foster Vision
Fulcrum fitness
Futeboltraining
Glow Girl The Beauty Experience
Good Rain Farm
GroundSpring Healing Center
Hands On Medicine
Heart and Hustle Productions LLC
Hip Hop Soulsation Academy
Honeybee Sparkling Lemonades & Syrups
Hot Mama Salsa
Imagination Station Daycare Center
Immigrant Law Group
INVANTAS Solutions LLC
Istanbul gifts.Golden horn jewelry and gifts
J.James Therapy & Massage
J.L. Garland LLC
jacki gethner lmt
JB Medical Transportation LLC
Jef Gunn Artist Designer Craftsman
Jesmar Spices LLC
Joan Carlos Uribe
josefas day care
Juan puente
Julies Russell Llc
Kamaljit Bains
Kanim Associates LLC
Kathmandu Cafe
Kingdom Kids Care
Kitty Cat Condos LLC
KMC Flavel Inc
Konstructive Solutions
Kurt Deutscher
La Oaxaquena Inc
La Tierra Jewelry
Laas auto sales LLC
Ladybugs childcare Llc
Leadership Lab, LLC
Lemond C Hunter DMD PC
Lindsey Gwyn @ Moxie for Hair
Luminance
Magic Mike’s Heating and Cooling LLC
Maid in Portland Eco-friendly Cleaning, LLC
Maple Counseling
Mason Market LLC
Mathilde’s Kitchen
MB42 Salon and Barber, LLC
Me Hair Design
Mentes Creativas Child care
Merkato Ethiopian Food Store
Meskel Market LLc
METRO BOUTIQUE
Mildred’s Sweet Treats
mmg medical transpiration
Mojo’s Transportation Inc.
Ms. Jackson’s Dreadlocks
Ms’s K’s Incense and more
Murphy’s Market
Mystique’s Fancy Faces
Natural Wonders LLC
Nightvision Hair
No End Of Designs (NEO)
Nova Mindful Therapies (Previously Nova Massage
Novedades Prado LLC
Ole Frijole
Olympia Medical Transportation LLC
One Grand Gallery
Oregon Fixture Services,LLC
Osorio Media Arts LLC
Out of the Closet Too
Ovation Coffee & Tea
Palladium Inc
pdx minivans llc
Peninsula Family Acupuncture, LLC
Pensole Inc
Pequenitos Day Care LLC
Per La Cara
Perez Janitorial Services LLC
Portland Personal Training and Weight Loss LLC
Portland Pupusas and Taqueria, LLC.
Portland Sports Bar & Grill
Portland Tub and Tan
Portlandia International Language School
Portlaundry LLC
Powellseafood restaurant
Professional Office Cleaning NW
Puddletown School
Puzzle Rings By Pahos
Rag Automotive Electric dba Bill’s Quality Automotive
ReLeaf Health
Rising Fire LLC
RM2 Inc. dba: Life of Riley Tavern
Rose Alchemista
Rose City MLD Clinic
Rrb native jewelry
Rubio’s Automotive PDX LLC
Russ’ Gifts and Sundries
Ruth Oclander
Safari Restaurant
Santo Domingo Taqueria
Seven Circles Natural Medicine
Shayne Case
Sika Stanton
Simon’s Auto Body
SISTAS LLC
Slim’s Restaurant and Lounge
SLS Native Couture Designs
Soapbox Theory
Solidarity Cab Cooperative dba Union Cab
Sparkle Pony Hair PDX at Enhance Salon
Stacy Darby
Stag Investments LLC
Steakadelphia
Steph W Tattoos
Stickers Asian Cafe
Su Casa Super Mercado
TAH bags
Taqueria Lindo Michoacán
Tatoos by Henry
Tattoo 34 on Hawthorne
Teaching Artist Amanda Chao
Thai Mango LLC
The Black Mannequin LLC
The Hair Connect
The Jayah Rose Salon and Spa
The Perlene Limited (dba The Perlene)
The Shachter Inc
The Treatment
The Venderia
Three Sisters Nixtamal
Tienda Y Panaderia Santa Cruz Inc
Tierra del Sol Cuisine LLC
Tierra Educational Center LLC
Tiki Touch Massage
Timeless Touch
Today’s Little Scholars Childcare
Tré Bone Inc
Trillblazin LLC
True North Massage LLC
Uno Dos Tres Academy
Victoria’s Services LLC
Village Childcare Enterprises LLC
Wisdom of the Elders, inc.
wolf crow medicine
Xavier Environmental, Inc.
Xstream Learning Center
Yoga for Life, Inc.
Zakwell Inc.

Press release

Awardee Data

CLOSED: Small Business Relief Fund Loan

  • Business must meet one of the following:
    • Business is public-facing (e.g. retail, coffee shop, food service) and is directly impacted by new public health requirements related to COVID-19 pandemic.
    • Business has experienced 25% or more decline in revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Businesses must have $5 million or less in annual gross revenue
  • Business must have 50 or fewer employees
  • Business must provide owner with primary source of income (more than 50% of monthly income should come from the business)

  • Nonprofit
  • Landlord (non-landlord property management companies may apply)

  • Job preservation, particularly for POC, women, low income individuals and individuals in East Portland and Neighborhood Prosperity Network service areas 
  • Businesses located in industrial districts 
  • Businesses that pay employees $15/hour or more and will use resources to maintain level of employment 

  • 4- or 6-year term, 0% interest rate
  • Payments deferred for 12 months (this is included in the term above; e.g., 1 year of deferred payments then 3- or 5-year repayment term for a total of a 4- or 6-year loan term)
  • Note: a loan term of 6 years will be provided to businesses that retain employees and/or continue to pay for health care premiums
  • Loan balance is due at the end of the term. If it not, interest could accrue at 8% until balance is paid off.

Resources from both grant and loan funds may not be used for personal uses or those prohibited by federal (except legal cannabis), state, or local law or regulation.