Town of North Manchester, Indiana

COVID-19 Small Business Support  
Information for small businesses impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic

Critical Industries Hotline
The State of Indiana has launched a call center specifically to answer business- and industry-related questions about COVID-19 from Indiana businesses and employers.

To connect with the Critical Industries Hotline, call 877-820-0890 or email [email protected].

REMINDER: This hotline is specifically for business and industry leaders. Those looking for answers to questions regarding unemployment or personal concerns can be directed to the state's FAQ page.

Financing

Town of North Manchester 
OCRA Grant Program(click to download application)

Businesses eligible for a Town of North Manchester COVID-19 Grant must meet the following requirements:

• Must be in good standing with regard to state and local taxes, licenses, and code compliance.
• Must be in good standing with the Indiana Secretary of State.
• Must meet the national objective as required by the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs. 51% or more of employees from a business or a collection of businesses, must have a household income at or below the low-moderate income levels established for Wabash County.
• Eligible uses of funds: payroll, working capital, support remote work, and other operational expenses.
  
  • Preference will be given to businesses that have:
    demonstrated a commitment to the community, through the support of local youth or charitable programs, good corporate citizenship, participation in community and business support organizations.
  • plans to hire, train or assist individuals who lost jobs or experienced economic hardship during the
    COVID-19 crisis.
  • needs that have not been or are not anticipated to be addressed through other government assistance programs
  • not received abatements from the Town previously.
  • made all reasonable efforts to keep employees employed during the recovery process.
  • in an industry sector particularly affected negatively by COVID-19 and public safety measures associated with the outbreak (for example retail, dine-in restaurant, salon).
  • have a physical location within a two-mile radius of North Manchester corporate limits.
  • had 25 or fewer Full Time or equivalent employees as of March 1, 2020
• Not for profits are eligible to receive funds from the program, however, the funds may only be used for "new costs" associated with the Covid-19 crisis.

Grow Wabash County
Revolving Loan Fund program

To support Wabash County’s business community as it experiences unexpected closures and decreased revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Grow Wabash County will be offering loans to help small businesses with necessary business expenses that they may be facing as a result of the ongoing crisis. 

Grow Wabash County will award Rapid Response Loans as well as Traditional Revolving Loan Fund loans to help businesses bridge the gap between this time of low revenue and when operations eventually return to normal. 

Get more information about the loans and how to apply by visiting Grow Wabash County's Revolving Loan Fund page.

Business in a Box

Grow Wabash County is offering Business in a Box grants that allow for local businesses to spend up to $3,000 in professional services offered by other local businesses. The funds can be used for a variety of operational costs that involve our local professionals such as hiring a marketing firm to help revamp your website for e-commerce or working with a local CPA to evaluate your finances to determine your business' next steps forward.

Download the Business in a Box application.

CARES Act

Congress approves updated CARES Act Economic Relief Plan. Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act aka the CARES Act authorizes emergency loans to distressed businesses by provides funding for forgivable bridge loans and additional funding for grants and technical assistance. There are three main components to the CARE Act for businesses defined below:

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

The Paycheck Protection Program is designed to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on payroll by providing each small business a loan up to $10 million for payroll and certain other expenses. If all employees are kept on the payroll for eight weeks, SBA will forgive the portion of the loans used for payroll, rent, mortgage interest, or utilities. Up to 100 percent of the loan is forgivable.

Apply: Businesses must apply through an approved SBA lender.

SBA Approved Lenders in Wabash County:

• Bippus State Bank, 260.982.6200
• Crossroads Bank, 260.563.3185
• First Merchants Bank, 260.563.4116
• Mutual Bank, 574.267.2001* For the Warsaw office.
• Flagstar, 260.563.1116
• Woodforest National Bank, 260.563.4625
• First Financial Bank, 844.828.7740
• First Farmers Bank and Trust, 260.563.1196
  
  The complete list of Wabash County SBA-Approved Lenders can also be found here.

Eligibility:

• Business must have been operating since prior to February 15, 2020
• Must be a small business which is defined as less than 500 employees per physical location
• Nonprofits must have a 501 (c)(3) status to quality
  
  More information to come on Friday, April 3 at sba.gov/coronavirus.

Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) & Grant Program 

Small business owners in all U.S. states are eligible to apply for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan advance of up to $10,000. The SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program provides small businesses with working capital loans of up to $2 million that can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing. The interest rate is 3.75 percent for small businesses. The interest rate for private non-profit organizations is 2.75 percent. SBA offers loans with long-term repayments to keep payments affordable, up to a maximum of 30 years and is available to entities without the financial ability to offset the adverse impact without hardship.

Funds will be made available within three days of a successful application, and this loan advance will not have to be repaid. Maximum $2M with rates starting at 2.75% with 30-year terms.

Apply: Fill out the online application.

Eligibility: Small businesses defined as 500 or fewer employers (independent contractors, sole proprietors, and all included) and non-profits are eligible. Eligibility for EIDL will also be based on the financial impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on the business.

More information to come at sba.gov/coronavirus

**NOTE you can get both the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Paycheck Protection Program as long as they aren’t paying for the same things!**

For an organized overview of both PPP & EIDL, Indiana State University has made public this helpful visual guide. Download here.

Small Business Debt Relief

The SBA Debt Relief program will provide a reprieve to small businesses as they overcome the challenges created by this health crisis.

Under this program:

• The SBA will also pay the principal and interest of new 7(a) loans issued before September 27, 2020.
• The SBA will pay the principal and interest of current 7(a) loans for six months.
  
  More information to come at sba.gov/coronavirus

For additional information regarding these various loan programs, U.S. Rep Jackie Walorski's office has put out a comprehensive fact sheet. Download here.

SBA Loan Assistance

SBA Express Bridge Loans

The Express Bridge Loan Pilot Program allows small businesses who currently have a business relationship with an SBA Express Lender to access up to $25,000 with less paperwork. These loans can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing and can be a term loan or used to bridge the gap while applying for a direct SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan.

If a small business has an urgent need for cash while waiting for decision and disbursement on Economic Injury Disaster Loan, they may qualify for an SBA Express Disaster Bridge Loan.

Terms are for up to $25,000 with a fast turnaround. This bridge loan ill be repaid in full or in part by proceeds from the EIDL loan

Find an Express Bridge Loan Lender via SBA’s Lender Match Tool or by connecting with your local SBA District Office.

Small Business Interruption Loans

The Small Business Interruption Loan program will be conducted as part of the 7(a) Loan program, with the same qualifications for businesses. To qualify, on average in the last three years, a business must have less than 500 employees and bring in less than $7.5 million in revenue. However, non-profit organizations may also qualify for Small Business Interruption Loans.

Loans of up to $10 million can be taken and used for a wide array of expenses including payroll support, mortgage payments, and other debt obligations. These loans do not have borrower or lender fees, and they are 100 percent government guaranteed. Loan repayment is deferred for up to one year.

All Small Business Interruption Loans are eligible for forgiveness in an amount equal to the payroll cost and costs related to debt obligations for the period of March 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020. The amount of the loan eligible for forgiveness will be reduced proportionally the number of employees laid off during this period relative to the borrower's prior employment levels.

Businesses looking for additional capital may also utilize the SBA's Lender Match online referral tool to connect with SBA-approved lenders.

Other resources made available through the SBA include Counseling and Advisement, Contracting help and additional information pertaining to COVID-19.

Patronicity Crowd-Funding

Harness the power of the public to keep our local business community afloat!

For all non-matched crowdfunding campaigns that are launched before May 15th, Patronicity will be waiving all fees. In the interest of allowing businesses to access those funds as soon as possible, the site will also allow rolling funds distribution before the campaign ends.

Click here to get involved with Patronicty's Small Business program and start preparing for a brighter tomorrow.

Marketing

Visit Wabash County
Visit Wabash County is offering up guidance and support for local businesses that want to boost their online and social media presence during this low-traffic time.

Here are some "pro-tips" from Visit Wabash County about how to stay connected with your customers:

1. Highlight customers/donors/contributors via appreciation posts.
2. Share the history of why your business exists
3. Highlight employees via appreciation posts
4. Highlight a neighboring business
5. List top 5 things you like about your work, your business, your community
6. Need more help, reach out to Visit Wabash County, we promise to do our best to assist you with your marketing needs, questions or concerns.