BY ROBBIE SEQUEIRA
Democratic state Sen. Alessandra
Biaggi is embarking
on a multi-day tour through
the Bronx’s 34th District —
which encompasses the north
Bronx’s Riverdale, Pelham
and Throggs Neck sections —
enlisting small businesses in
her district to apply for their
share of the state’s $800 million
COVID-19 Small Business
Recovery Grant Program.
Through the grant program,
small businesses
throughout New York State
are eligible for reimbursement
with grants up to $50,000 for
any COVID-related expenses
suffered between March 1,
2020 and April 1, 2021.
Biaggi is also imploring
her fellow elected offi cials to
spread the word in their districts,
business-by-business,
about the relief program.
“The biggest barrier is that
these small businesses don’t
know that this grant program
exists,” Biaggi said to the
Bronx Times during her stop
on Pelham’s Lydig Avenue.
“Honestly, people are just trying
to survive, and when you
look at the Bronx, this has
been the borough hit hardest
by COVID death, infections
and unemployment rate.”
More than 330,000 small
and micro businesses are potentially
eligible for this program,
including 57% of the
state’s certifi ed Minority/
Women-owned Business Enterprises.
The Bronx’s business and
labor markets were ransacked
by COVID-19, reaching unemployment
levels as high as
25% in June 2020; the highest
of any county in the state at
that time.
According to a June 2021
report from state Comptroller
Thomas DiNapoli, a “signifi -
cant factor” in the borough’s
economic losses were the industries
where Bronx residents
were employed.
The report states that the
borough’s high unemployment
rate led to “inadequate
resources” for the small businesses
that make up the majority
of the Bronx’s commercial
activity.
Unemployment in the
Bronx has since leveled down
to 13.5%, according to the latest
Bureau of Labor Statistics
report for June. However, the
Bronx workforce is still recouping
from the effects of a
marathon pandemic.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, J 6 ULY 23-29, 2021 BTR
Prior to the onset of COVID,
more than 70% of the Bronx
workforce was employed in
“Essential or face-to-face industries,
the largest of which
include 25.9% in healthcare
and social assistance; 10.2% in
retail trade; 9.6% in accommodation
and food services; and
7.7% in transportation and
warehousing,” DiNapoli’s report
reads.
Although the Bronx did not
have the highest rate of COVID
19 cases among the city’s
fi ve boroughs, the Bronx did
have more cases and more
deaths per capita, according
to Business Insider. Additionally,
outcomes in the Bronx
were more severe, with the
highest hospitalization and
death rates.
New York City businesses
also saw sparse relief from the
federal Paycheck Protection
Program (PPP) loan program
that ended on May 31.
In January, only 12% of
NYC’s 1.1 million eligible
small businesses received
PPP loan assistance, with
the Bronx receiving the least
amount of federal aid; just
40% of employee-based businesses
received PPP loans.
Despite COVID’s inequitable
Sen. Alessandra Biaggi discusses the state’s Small Business Recovery
Grant Program to the owners of thePanda Chinese Restaurant at 791
Lydig Ave. on Thursday, July 15, 2021. Photo Robbie Sequeira
impact on the Bronx,
Biaggi touted the “resilience
and optimism” of the 34th District’s
small business owners.
“There’s a resiliency and
optimism in each business
we’ve walked into,” she said.
“There’s also a doggedness to
not give up.”
Biaggi said for New York
City to truly recover from the
pandemic, all boroughs must
benefi t equitably and relief
must be “transformative” for
the city’s small businesses
and communities.
“That’s why we’re doing
these face-to-face meetings
so that these encounters are
more impactful,” she said.
Biaggi tours district, touts recovery
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